Birds eating pond fish?

[Jeddi]

Anyone ever had this happen to them, and is it common? I went to a pool party and saw that they had a pond, needless to say I went crazy and spent forever talking about fish. :hmm3grin2orange: The owner of the house said that she just started restocking because birds had eaten her other fish!

I'm just wondering if this is common and if there's any way of stopping it without making the pond look unattractive?

The fish were some sort of goldfish. They were only 4 or 5 inches maybe, though I'm not sure what she had before that got eaten.

We live in Virginia Beach, if you want an idea as to the climate and birds that may be found around here...

[Wild Turkey]

Very common.

They make nets to protect the fish from birds and other predators, ive seen some people erect gazebo-type structures over them for this also.

Well designed ponds will sometimes include tunnels (usually pvc) for hiding and pond design can come into play in other ways as well. If the pond is too shallow the fish probably wont last very long, for example.

[annageckos]

Most likely a great blue heron, it is very common. Raccoons will go fishing too. There is netting or different motion detecters. Some flash lights, sound or water.

[ohmikeosh]

BB guns would work well to keep predators out...lol...

[smaug]

Closed in surrounding around a pond keep herons away.Those big ugly buggers need a running start to take off and arent fond of areas that are tough to land in or take off from.Kingfishers are a prime predator of fish under 5 inches.Overhanging trees or perches for them to sit and wait are what they look for.

[Brhino]

when I was a kid we had a large fountain in the front yard that we stocked with goldfish. They made it through one summer, but then the following year one morning there were raccoon tracks around the fountain and no fish. :ssuprised:

I can also tell you from personal experience that a seagull can swallow a 12" yellow perch whole.

[annageckos]

Closed in surrounding around a pond keep herons away.Those big ugly buggers need a running start to take off and arent fond of areas that are tough to land in or take off from.Kingfishers are a prime predator of fish under 5 inches.Overhanging trees or perches for them to sit and wait are what they look for.


I have seen great blue herons take off from a stand still. They liked the canal where I use to live. One time one jumped right up into flight, scared my shepherd. And it was in a heavily wooded area.

[smaug]

I have seen great blue herons take off from a stand still. They liked the canal where I use to live. One time one jumped right up into flight, scared my shepherd. And it was in a heavily wooded area.
Thats not the norm.They are normally very shy and wary .My point is,make it difficult for them and they will go elsewhere.There are 4 ornamental ponds with a mile of me,one is just down the street a hundred yards.Myself and another pond set up just like mine have not been touched,the other 2 with wide open area around them have been plundered to the point that they dont even put fish in them anymore:hmm3grin2orange:

[HeatherB]

We had two koi last summer that were snarfed by something. I assume it must have been a heron, as a family down that road has a big natural pond that they flock to. We had goldfish in there too, but they weren't eaten. I guiss it was becuase the koi were so uh...social and came up to the surface all the time. Easy targets. I am thinking of replacing them- but I don't know if I should.

Adding PVC pipe and plants can help. Helps to cover the fish so they are not eaten.

[smaug]

If they have targeted your pond the best option is to target them!They will identify your pond as a food source.Netting works as does densely planting the edges with tall grass.A 12 gauge works better.

[annageckos]

If they have targeted your pond the best option is to target them!They will identify your pond as a food source.Netting works as does densely planting the edges with tall grass.A 12 gauge works better.

Except they are federally protected birds. You can scare them off or deter them, but killing or harming them can lead to heavy fines and possible jail time too. They do have a large wingspand so if it is difficalt for them to land they should move on to easier food. Things that move randomly work well along with fishing line tied in rows about the pond and area if possible. Space it about a foot apart so they can't get to the pond. You see this a lot down the shore at resterants and bars to keep the seagulls out..

[HeatherB]

Things that move...hmmm... good- I'll have to get the whirlygigs out and put them around the pond!

[smaug]

Dont ask dont tell !My koi are worth thousands.A marauding heron might choke on such rich supper.:sconfused:

[wolf_eyes]

I'm not sure how effective this is so if any of you could say if this works or not, it would be great as I plan to have a pond in the future. I have seen people place heron statues around a pond. I've heard that since herons are territorial birds they won't land at an area that already has a heron next to it, thus the statue. I'm not sure how true this is though. It seems to me that the owl decoys that they use for pidgeons don't work very well after a while.

[smaug]

I'm not sure how effective this is so if any of you could say if this works or not, it would be great as I plan to have a pond in the future. I have seen people place heron statues around a pond. I've heard that since herons are territorial birds they won't land at an area that already has a heron next to it, thus the statue. I'm not sure how true this is though. It seems to me that the owl decoys that they use for pidgeons don't work very well after a while.
check this out.
http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fs earch%2Fimages%3Fp%3Ddecoy%2Bheron%26ei%3Dutf-8%26fr%3Dmcsaoffblock&w=500&h=375&imgurl=farm3.static.flickr.com%2F2353%2F2845694238 _f904887520.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flickr.com%2Fphotos%2Fjeff_k ontur%2F2845694238%2F&size=133k&name=Real+and+Fake&p=decoy+heron&oid=dff9fc88282a9e72&fr2=&fusr=MoreSatisfyi...&no=15&tt=411&sigr=11kadtt46&sigi=11msjhbts&sigb=12jgnn5rh

[HeatherB]

I guess the key to that stuff working is to move them around ever so often!

[smaug]

I have also seen fishing line fences around fish ponds.Its invisible if done correctly .It is installed so that it is about a foot and half off the ground ,run it right around the outside edge of the pond and stretched tight.In this way they cant step over it and it is awkward for them to fly over it if there isnt alot of landing area on the water side.Fish line can also be streched across the pond every foot or so,this deters diving birds.All of these detract from the beauty of a pond but no pond is as devoid of beauty as one without fish!