I put 3 koi in (4") last week, and now they are gone! The pond is 3' deep, all they did was hide, they never came out. The marginals are still in position so I don't think it was raccoons. Hmmm.
Will water lillies covering a good portion of the pond help this, whatever it was?
Another lilly Q, will the pads keep the water cooler or act as solar pannels and warm the water?
Thanks, Dennis (brand new pond owner)
Missing fish?
I am new to ponds too but have been told that the plants on the surface shade the water and cool it.
Are you sure the fish are gone? They can hide pretty well if the want to. I had one in a tank once that disapeared for weeks and then one day was just there again. He was brightly colored and over 8" long. We never did find out where he hid.
I'm pretty sure. I can't help poking around in crannies with a stick.
Dennis, It's hard to say without any tell tale clues. They could be hididng.....new fish love to do this. They sometimes hide in the folds of the liner and you may not see them for quite some time.
Sometimes they die for no apparent reason and could be laying on the bottom. Can you see the bottom?
There are also preditors. Turtles, bullfrogs, snakes, herons, racoons, just to name a few. Do you have any of these critter hanging around?
I hope that you solve the mystery soon!
I've been very lucky with all my fish but I've also learned that koi like to jump. Perhaps they made a leap for a bug and missed going back in. I totally agree also with branka...preditors do a number on fish. Also do you have a cat? They say that cats don't like water...not 100% true. I have a neighborhood cat that visits my pond for a drink. We fear that the cat will attempt to play with my extremely friendly fish and accidently injure a fish. Is that possible for you too?
And yes, water lily leaves are super great for your water. Not only do they shade your water, but they give your fish somewhere to go for protection.
Hope this helps!! Happy Ponding... "T" :)
Thanks everyone. As soon as the lillies fill in I'm try a few more. They aren't hiding, I guess they need a hiding spot.
It can take quite a while for koi to get used to a new pond sometimes. You may be very suprised by them coming out when you have thought they were gone for sure. I have found it incredible how small a space it takes to hide a koi in. The more you poke around with the stick the longer it will take as they will be frightened all the more. Just wait and see if they reappear.
Wow, you were right! I was just feeding my 2 brand new koi (and new feeders) and who decided to show up???? My 3 missing koi! I had used a broom stick and poked all through the pond, so sure they were gone. I can't believe they were in there!
years ago my kids were playing down at the lake and scooped up some small fish in nets.
They then threw them in my pond.As they grew I found perch ,sunfish,catfish and shinners.Plus this strange fish,to this day I don't know what it is.
Getting back to the story....I wanted the native fish out and back in the lake so I could get Koi,so I drained the whole pond,netted all the fish and let them go,cleaned all the sluge and icky's from the bottom,filled it back up and eventually got my Koi.And guess who comes up and eats with the Koi,that strange fish(I think its a sucker)......... Now that pond was EMPTY,all I can think is he hid in one of the folds in the liner.And I still can't catch him.......
That's awesome Cala. Those suckers get big out this way. I gather they are gentle but big!
I think they were also in the fold of the liners. Quite relieved at how well they look.
I sure am glad that you have your fish that you thought you lost. They seem to find the smallest places to hide and chasing them around with a broom would have made them hide all the longer. I would have hidden too if you had chased me with a broom. lol
A friend called me the other night and accused me of putting a koi into her pond. She only has shubunkin goldfish and feeds them daily at least twice a day. She suddenly had a two inch koi swimming around in her pond waiting to be fed. LOL I really didn't put it in there but she said I did. sigh I guess she called two more people and told them that they had put it in her pond. LOL I wish I HAD been the culprit because then I could really laugh about it. I think it came in some parrot feather that she was given a couple of weeks ago. She claims that would be impossible but I know better.
cc, at least the next time you drain your pond that fish will be much larger and probably much easier to catch.
Yes he will and this year while I'm on vacation I just may do that!
Gee, Ponditis, you should have told her that most folks would LOVE if someone would come sneak a koi into their pond, especially considering the price they fetch!
We went fish shopping this weekend, and my poor family ooohed and ahhhhed over the koi, but I firmly steered them back toward the shubunkins and comets - much easier on the wallet and my pond plants!
Terry, LOL I did tell her that as a matter of fact. I also told her that if she doesn't want it that I would take it and find it a good home. She knows that I have sold over 150 koi in the last few weeks so I think she thought I would pay her to haul away my fish. I wouldn't pay her for that fish even if it WAS mine. :)
I used to work at a pet shop, and some feeder fish came in with lovely extra long tails and bright blotchy colors. They were someones culls from goldfish breeding I guess cuz they sure didnt look like typical feeder fish. Well I rescued 55 of them ( at ten cents each lol) and have lost a few along the way. best I can tell I have about 30 or so and they are around 6 inches long. now I have babies everywhere and need a little sunfish to thin them out. I also have rice slicks ( minnows in rice fields) that I guess the cranes (darn those cranes) brought in on their feet as eggs.---anyone know how big rice slicks get? cheryl
playsndirt, too bad we don't live closer. One of my ponds has thousands of sunfish in it and you would be welcome to some of them to clean out your pond.
Sorry I am not familiar with rice slicks.
thanks anyway-----------guess Ill have to sane one from a creek around here. lol cheryl
Hi pondlovers Dennis did you ever find the third koi? Another question anyone know what grows fast and is simple to care for in a pond im a new owner and things will be ready to go next week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
YEAH Lori
Lorimoretti, Do you mean a plant or a fish? For plants most any water garden plant is fairly fast growing. It would help to know the size of your pond including depth, width, full sun, shade, part shade, etc. And there are also many threads on DG to read that will help you decide what you may want to have.
poditis, My pond is 6ft x 5 wide, 4ft deep,half full sun,half part sun. Will get koi for fish. but next weekend ready for the water plants. where do i go on dg, Im new.
Lori
Lori, before you invest in koi for a new pond, can I gently recommend starting with goldfish? The plain ones are fun, and if you want something more interesting, shubunkins, fantails and comets are very pretty and a lot less expensive than koi. After having the pond for a full year, you can then decide if you want koi - they tend to be messier and nibble on the plants, so it's more of a juggling act to keep them and the plants happily co-existing.
And the first winter with a pond can prove very educational and expensive (our first year, the weather turned suddenly cold and stayed that way for a month. By the time we wised up and got a hole opened up, we had lost our biggest fish.)
Terry
Sorry to hear about your fish! sound s like a great idea!Any suggestions on the plants you sound like an expert! I hear stuff about brugs by ponds? not to familiar yet. but look interesting!
Lori
I agree with Terry about the koi investment. You can later remove the goldfish and put in koi but for now you are well advised until the pond is more established.
For trading plants try the plant trading forum. For just asking for water plants you can try posting a new message on the water garden forum. Right now I am traded out or I would try to help you with some plants.
My mom got some feeder fish which have developed lovely tails, very long and graceful almost like butterfly koi. I put 6 feeder fish in our pond and was certain only one remained, but lo and behold I found out I have four still there. They were hiding very well! They disappear when we come near the pond unless we sneak up on it.
Kim, if you started calling them goldfish they might not disappear as fast as when you call them feeder fish. They don't want to be feeder fish anymore they just want to be your pets. giggle
Hmmmmmmm....You may have a point there! I won't tell them about sunfish, either!
nope don't tell them about the sunfish at all, you need to tell them that they are precious and cherished to you now that they are soooo beautiful and then maybe they will start coming out of there when you are around.