Some people complain about fish predators

[brad_A]

I got three comets last season and I saved all the babies when I drained the pond for the winter. This season I just gave away 60 babies to the fish store and kept the original spawn. I have 18 fish now in an indoor aquarium for my 1100 pond. I don't want too many fish in my pond and there were few bugs in there during this season and I miss seeing native frogs in my pond..

Does anyone have ideas to introduce a predator to thin out the herd? I was hoping for a heron believe it or not.

I am thinking abut trying to sex the remaining comets and only put in males or vice versa. Is venting the best bet to differentiate?

 

[addy1]

i just don't feed mine a lot and they nicely eat the eggs as they are laid. If I see chasing, they get no food, the eggs are eaten fast. This year I think I saw two fry and not in the big pond, around 200 adults.

 

[Ruben Miranda]

Hello
Since I have started keeping turttles I have not seen any fry.
And that has been what 4 years now, Up untill then we had babies almost every season.
All the Koi I have now are from the original except for 3 or 4 fancy tails or long fin koi.

But becarfull what you wish for once you get a predator such as a heron or Racoon they will keep coming back untill the pond is empty of food.

If you don't want fry the best thing you could do IMHO is
As you said try and sex them and that is hard when the are young.
or
when you do get fry sell them for feeders at the local pet place, Sad I know but it is a option
or
try to find homes for them and give them away.

Good luck

Ruben

 

[j.w]

Stop feeding them and they will eat every egg they can find. Did that for many yrs and they can find enough food in the pond to stay alive. Keeps them fit and trim and your pond won't fill w/ fry. They will not starve to death!

 

[adavisus]

Dragonfly larvae will mop up all but a few hatched fish, draining and cleaning a pond may have interrupted what they usually get up to.

Between water spiders, water boatman, beetles, dragonflies, the chance of too many bebby fishes is slim to, none

Regards, andy
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21940871@N06/
http://swglist.wordpress.com/

 

[Craig58]

We tried a sunny thus past year and only had 4 surviving koi and no goldfish. Unfortunately, the sunny jumped out of the pond shortly after spawning season. We currently have 4 small sunnies in the indoor quarantine pond and are acclimating them to taking koi food. In the spring we will put 1 or two out in the pond. It will depend if we can sex them or to in the spring. We don't want a koi pond full of sunnies!

Craig

 

[dieselplower]

Get a couple of oscars.

 

[Fishylove]

Oscars in a pond?!?! Golden orfe's look cool

 

[Craig58]

Oscars are tropical aren't they? I need them to winter over.

Craig

 

[Fishylove]

Yes they are tropical lol

 

[Craig58]

Yeah, that's what I thought. Not a solution for most ponders.

Craig

 

[gardengimp]

What's a sunny?

I haven't found any fry in my pond this year. Which is odd, because last year this time I found several fry. This year I added a few Rosy Reds, which I think are fairly hardy as well as a Beta. The beta of course would need to come inside for winter in most winter climates. Oh, and I just recently started feeding the fish. I figure during the summer there is more than enough food for them. It is still very warm down here, but the wet humid buggy season is gone, so they get supplemental dry food. Funny, they don't seem to mind it.

 

[Ruben Miranda]

Hello

Oscars are tropical aren't they? I need them to winter over.

Plus they are very aggrisive and would more then likly attack yuor Koi or Goldies.

I think they where messing with you about the Oscars :razz:

Ruben

 

[brad_A]

i was throwing around the idea of kidnapping a painted turtle the next time I see one trying to cross the road.

 

[Craig58]

A sunny = sunfish. Many varieties of them. One common variety is also called a bluegill. I believe the ones we have are banded sunfish which are local to the SE pa area. Large mouth and small mouth bass are considered sun fish. So are crappies. But usually these aren't what people are talking about when referring to sunfish. A large mouth bass would eat all but the largest goldfish. Not good for the ponder.

http://www.fish.state.pa.us/pafish/fishhtms/chap22.htm

Craig