two signs of spring

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saw first chipmunk out today . first blue heron was here after lunch time and came back to have a comet for his supper . i really hate summer . . peace........ps. anyone know how to keep ice on pond year around ?
 
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Yeah, the only good thing about a cold winter is the protective ice on our ponds!
I recently added to a thread on how falling tree branches cannot harm my pond since it's covered by ice.

Another sign of spring coming...last night I was out walking the dog and I could hear geese flying by. It's amazing how they fly at night. I heard more this morning.
Spring is near!
 
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we have had canada geese for several weeks now . heron has been back almost daily and has taken more fish . did a search on here hoping to find out how well repellents work be they sprinklers , ultrasonics , decoys , protective ''tunnels'' in water , or ''what have you'' . found nothing that seemed to be worth risking money on . suspect best choice might be a cat on a 15 foot leash but that might get to be less attractive over time . did think about puting an electric conductor along edge of pond with one wire hooked to pad and other in water so heron would get a low voltage shock . since my electrical knowledge is small i might end up with a fried heron but more likely it would be a shocking experience for ME !! . . peace....ps. as always any thoughts welcomed and appreciated . oops , forget to mention , for several years heron preferred to eat chipmunks but for last couple years it has been more interested in our fishies . . peace,again
 
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we have had canada geese for several weeks now . heron has been back almost daily and has taken more fish . did a search on here hoping to find out how well repellents work be they sprinklers , ultrasonics , decoys , protective ''tunnels'' in water , or ''what have you'' . found nothing that seemed to be worth risking money on . suspect best choice might be a cat on a 15 foot leash but that might get to be less attractive over time . did think about puting an electric conductor along edge of pond with one wire hooked to pad and other in water so heron would get a low voltage shock . since my electrical knowledge is small i might end up with a fried heron but more likely it would be a shocking experience for ME !! . . peace....ps. as always any thoughts welcomed and appreciated . oops , forget to mention , for several years heron preferred to eat chipmunks but for last couple years it has been more interested in our fishies . . peace,again
I don't have any first hand experience with any of those ideas. Some ponders have had good results with a decoy heron. Having a decoy standing near your pond might keep other real ones away. They also have those floating alligator decoys. It might be worth trying one of those motion sensing sprinklers since they are not species specific. Any motion should set it off whether it be a large bird, raccoon, cat, bear, etc. I'd like to see a video of that sprinkler scaring off one of those beasts! You could aways go with a large net suspended above the pond. I recall some posts here that someone did this by using a large fishing net attached to surrounding trees high enough so it wouldn't bother people.
 

addy1

water gardener / gold fish and shubunkins
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I used the floating alligator heads, the herons were scared off for a bit, then ignored them. I used fishing line fencing around the pond, the heron dove through it. I used fishing line over the pond, a real pita, the heron got through it.

Deer fencing, trapped to many small birds, frogs and ugly.

So now use a wide weave gill net, hung around 3ish feet over the pond, works great. The herons used to come daily, they still fly over the ponds, but keep going.

Capture.JPG
 

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