Population control?

[dynara]

My mum has a pond in the backyard, it's about 200 gallons (I think, definitely more than 150 anyway, the depth varies so I had to do a bit of guess work and averaging to calculate volume). She added 8 white cloud mountain minnows to start with and they've just exploded in numbers. There must be at least 50 if not something close to 100 in there now. Which is great cause they're obviously happy but she's starting to get worried about things getting a little crowded in there. So I was wondering just how many would be too many in a pond of this size and if there was any other fish that we could add that would eat some of the fry and keep the population in check (and that wouldn't just add dozens of their own offspring to the mix).

Thanks in advance.

[fish00053]

I'm not sure of the size of the fish that you are talking about. If your only talking a inch or inch and a half then I would not worry. However, If they multiply that fast then I would want to talk to one of the very Knowledgeable personnel on here. Not much help, but I'm sure it looks very much alive.:19:

[Brhino]

yeah, they stay pretty small. Space-wise you're probably okay in the 100-200 range. Filtration might be a separate issue, depending on your setup. Have you tried contacting your local fish stores to see if they'd be interested in taking some?

[VoidParadigm]

Don't worry about it. The population will eventually reach a peak it cannot go over due to food availability, space, etc.

Small fish like that aren't as affected by numbers.

[smaug]

What is your climate like?

[dynara]

sub-tropical. I live in Brisbane, Australia if that helps any. Never gets below freezing (rarely even gets close).

[smaug]

Find a predator fish that can live in thoses temps and stays under a foot and you have your solution.