Strange fish

[Judi]

Hi everyone
i don’t know if anyone can help...my wildlife pond has been set up for a few years now and all seems to be well, with lots of wildlife visiting and breeding there. About 4 /5 years ago we were amazed to find some tiny fish appear, which I assumed were minnows that had either been Introduced As eggs with some oxygenating plants or had come in via a bird, from a nearby river. The fish were silvery grey and only about 2-3” when we first noticed them. We have never fed them but They somehow managed to survive despite the pond freezing over for weeks at a time and are now about 5-6” long, Much darker brown grey, almost black with, I think a slightly paler underbelly. They now have red eyes (just the iris) and red dots on the edge of the dorsal fin, I haven’t taken them out to inspect them As felt it best to leave things be, but would dearly love to k ow what sort of fish they are! Does anyone have any idea?

 

[Jhn]

Could be Rudd which have red eyes, have red fins as well. Just a complete guess, Really hard to say with out a pic though.

 

[Judi]

Thank you but I don’t think they are... they’re only about 5 or 6” long and the fins are the same colour as the back ...dark browny grey/black. the red spots are very distinct dots on the tip of the dorsal fin. I can’t see any dots or colorisation on the other fins or tail . Unfortunately taking a photo or catching them is Almost impossible, they’re very shy and only emerge from the pond weed occasionally on warm days.
thank you though, it’s a real mystery!

 

[j.w]

@Judi check out this Minnow I.D chart. maybe you will see your fish here: http://www2.dnr.cornell.edu/cek7/nyfish/Cyprinidae/cyprinidae.html

 

[Judi]

Thank you but I’m afraid I still can’t find anything. I’ll try and take a photo if the weathers warm tomorrow.
sorry to be such a pain!

 

[Judi]

Managed to get a pic but doesn’t show the dorsal fin I’m afraid... am wondering if it’s some sort of goldfish cross?

 

[Mmathis]

Hi, @Judi! You live in the U.K., but can you tell us where? That might help with an ID. Here in the US, many of our critters, including fish, are only found in specific parts of the country. I don’t know about the U.K., but it’s worth a shot.

Also, do you think you could get a pic of these guys from the side so we can see its profile?

 

[Judi]

Hi turtle mommy, I live in Devon ...south west uk
snow is rare but heavy frosts in winter, loads of rain all year! warm summers up to about mid eighties.

 

[Jhn]

Does it look like this.... it’s a roach...similar to the Rudd but fins aren’t consistently red

 

[j.w]

This one shows more red on fins and info on them: https://badangling.com/coarse-fish-species/roach/


Roach
Coarse Fish Species

Name
Roach (Rutilus rutilus)
Average Weight
Roach do not reach the large sizes attained by other coarse fish, a fish of 2 lbs (0.9 kg) would be considered a fantastic specimen.
Also known as
Common Roach and Red Fin
IUCN Status
LC – Least Concern
A Note On Spawning
Roach are closely related to both Rudd and Bream, as such they spawn around the same time, usually between April and early June, when water temperatures are around 18°C, usually on sunny days. Females often return to the same areas every year to spawn. When they do actually spawn, they often do so with a lot of energy, as the larger male fish follow females. The result is a lot of splashing, with some fish being seen jumping well out of the water.
Healthy females can produce up to 100,000 sticky yellow eggs per kg of body weight. These eggs are generally laid on weeds, usually in the upper levels of the water. The fry which emerge, just like immature roach, are easily targeted by predators. Waters with many predators and limited food sources produce few fish which are large. An anglers dream!
Appearance
The roach is a slim-bodied fish, its back is a grey-blue colour, its flanks are bright silver and its underbelly is pale cream. Despite also being known as ‘red fins’, with the exception of its anal fin, roach have fins which are orange, although they do develop into a shade of red in older specimens. Its mouth is small, with the top lip extending over the lower lip, indicating its preference for bottom feeding. They are found in large shoals, the largest of which can contain many hundreds of individual fish.
The roach is commonly mistaken for rudd, but you can tell the difference between the two in a number of ways. Firstly, the rudd’s fins are bright red, compared to the dull red/orange fins of the roach. The rudd also has a protruding lower jaw, unlike the roach which has a protruding upper jaw. The rudd’s dorsal fin is also located much closer to the tail compared to the roach’s. Finally, if you want to be extra sure that you’ve caught a roach, along the lateral line it will have a scale count of 39-49 scales.

 

[Judi]

No j.w. Sorry, that one is far too round, as in my photos . I’m almost certain now it’s a brown goldfish. Apparently the young are dark brown, as they mature they can turn gold and/or black, especially with sunlight, a bit like getting a suntan! I think the eggs must have come in with some oxygenating weed or perhaps on a birds beak.

 

[Judi]

Thank you everyone for all your help