predators in ponds

[guppymax]

I kept my Koi goldfish in 10x2x30 feet earthen plastic lined ponds at first. I raised a lot of tadpoles and the racoons visited a little but the real problem was big water snakes. I guess the water was too big for the racoons to catch much. I found a bunch of snakes in the pond one day and shot up my liner killing the snakes. The water leaked lowering the level and owls got a bunch of koi the next night. The koi had avoided the snakes better than I thought.

I moved the remaining koi to a 10x2x10 feet cinder block above ground plastic lined pond. Being able to drain or siphon the water through a net is a big advantage when it comes time to catch all the fish. The big snakes don't  bother my above ground cinder block ponds. The stripped garter snakes visit some and the frogs are not much of a problem. There is a little grey heron that cannot do much in that depth of water. Deeper water would be necessary for longer legged birds. The real problem is the racoons and they do not seem to bother smaller fish only my orandas and koi.

I keep guppies seasonally in 15 gallon totes. Here the tadpoles are overwhelming, and the stripped garter snake is a real problem.

I hope I will find a way to screen my totes and cinder block ponds soon.

max

[SCOTT]

Re: predators in ponds

Have you considered using plain old window screen Max? The screen now days is made from fibre rather than steel so it wont rust. Build a frame from 1x2 lumber, staple the screen in place, then drop down over the pond. You could even make a trap door in the screen for feeding without to much difficulty. By making the screen a little bit larger than the outside dimension of the blocks you could get it to sit over the edges all the way around, keeping the wind from blowing it off, kind of like a lid on a butter bowl, or in this case, a tuna can.

[guppymax]

Re: predators in ponds

That sounds like a good idea. Why don't you come over and show me how 12 times this spring lol.

max