Being relatively new to koi ponding ( 7 yrs) I'm still unsure of a spawn. However today I'm sure. I think. I've had one Aka Bekko get so swollen in the lower rear abdomen over the last 7 or 8 days that I was worried about dropsy. She (?) was also resting frequently on the bottom but there was no pine coning of the scales and her appetite was good. Last night aroud 11:00 pm I went out with a large flood light to check her condition. What I found was very milky water with some foam on the surface. The water had been crystal clear up until dark. Then I noticed one of the other koi had some small roughed up patches of scales. This morning the water was even more milky/cloudy and there is more foaming. The Aka Bekko is now swimming vigorously and is noticeably slimmer. These are large koi, all but one over 18 inches. Some are 24 inches. I've had them since they were 6"-8".
It's very early spring here and there is no vegetation in the pond to speak of. Just some water lilys in pots breaking dormancy. So what's going on here? Is it what I think it is? In the years previous I've never really seen this type of activity, except with gold fish. Are my koi slow learners? The owner seems to be. ;>)
Early Koi Spawn ?
Congrats momma! You can try looking for the eggs, they will adhere to anything. Like leaves or string algae or even a coating of algae on your rocks. If you can, take some out and put it in a big container with pond water. Add an airstone and see what happens. It's really hard to see the babies after they hatch. Sometimes as early as 3 days if the temperature is right.
I'm heading out to the pond to do that. I've got air stones from an aquarium. There are 3' fry in the pond from last year but I never, ever saw a thing. And since there were some goldfish in the pond for a short time early in the season I'm not sure of the pedigree of last year's fry. There was no milky water, not foaming, no nuttin in all the years previous. We did cull absolutley all the visible goldfish last June, so maybe having the pond to themselves encouraged the koi this year. Well, I'm toddling off to the garage to dig out the airstones.
Koi will only spawn if all the conditions are right. Like water quality and temperature. So you did it. That's great, now the fun begins! Let us know when they hatch.
Don't forget to do a water change after you pull out some eggs.
This message was edited Apr 20, 2008 10:32 AM
I took a small potted water lily from the pond and put it in a big tub with a small air stone. There seem to be eggs on the rocks on the top of the pot. If you hadn't given me such good advice I would not have thought to do a water change. Just finished changing out 750 gals of 2400. The water is still a little cloudy. Whew! Tired! But the koi act happy.
Snapple,
Just wondering what your water temps are. How old is your Aka Bekko? I know they have to be a certain age to breed and right now, I can't remember if it is 3-5 years old or what it is (the older I get, the less I seem to remember......). I am sure that somebody else on this forum could tell us.
Last year, we were practically overtaken with so many koi offspring. This year, we are putting out the home made spawning sponges. I need to get on the stick here and get my spawning sponges in!
Thanks for the heads up.
Carolyn
The Aka Bekko is 5 years here. The water temps range from 58 at night to 66/68 during the day. I have a remote thermometer so I can monitor from the house. I was planning on ordering some spawning ropes for the first time but the koi beat me to it! I'm still going to get some but there is no rush now! The koi are quite lively today and eating well. They seem to appreciate the water change. Thanks again.
Mary
BTW I had over thirty pairs of mating toads in the pond last night. Spring has definitely sprung in these parts.
Snapple, your job is not done yet. lol You need to get some baby koi food. You can take what you feed the adults and pulverize it. Or you can feed baby brine shrimp, maybe your local pet store has baby fish food. It has to be like powder.
After the fish hatch they will stay on the side of the container until their yolk sac is gone and then they will be looking for food. Their might be enough on the water lily, but you should be prepared.
AhHah! I have fry food and baby brine shrimp from my indoor aquarium. Thanks again!
Snapple,
I think my temps are about where yours are. Looks like I got the spawning mops out in time! I want to thank you for posting on this subject - last year we had an awful time trying to catch the baby koi. We had 2 batches of them - one about now and then there was another batch sometime last September. We are hoping the spawning mops make it easy and all we will have to do is to move the mops when they are full of eggs to a tank that will be prepped and ready for them.
Thanks again,
Carolyn
Wow, interesting to hear that! I'm here in Florida and my koi have not spawned yet. My goldfish did last month, but so far, nada for the koi...and I have some huge bellied females out there right now. I don't know what the delay is, but I don't want the water to get too warm for them.
Mary,
I am still waiting too, however I was reading that koi spawn from April to July. What I was reading did not state where - I know your water temps are going to be quite different from mine in any of those months. Mine aren't even chasing each other and nobody appears to be egg bound.
We got rid of the goldfish a couple of years ago - all they do is breed!
Carolyn
Mary, try doing a water change about 25% and see if that puts them in the mood!!
Carolyn, I'm in zone 5 also and mine haven't done anything either. It's a little early.
Wonder how Snapple is doing?
The eggs did not hatch. At least I don't see anything and more than enough time has passed. I've still got the air pump running but probably just should shut it off and empty the water. In case the koi get in the mood again I bought a koi spawning bag that floats. It's designed with a fuzzy exterior that the koi can deposit their eggs on. Then you turn it inside out and it becomes a fry incubator. At first the koi were terrified of the bag but this morning they were swimming around it fine. So we'll see.
Snapple, it is very hard to see the baby fish. I found that when it is dark out you can take a flash light and shine it into the water. Then you can see them if they hatched. They are sneaky little fishies and they have to be to survive. So check it out before you dump the water. Even when looking move the leaves slowly to see if anything moves, the fish almost look ghost like.
Has anyone ever used a feather duster for a spawn mop (not the kind with real feathers but the blue type with all the tiny loose strings). What about the scrubbers for dishes (baby bottle cleaners). Both resemble what retails for spawning mops at a very reasonable price. I'm thinking of putting those in. I got the feeling love is in the Air. . .
Not me, I don't use anything. I just pull out the algae and its full of eggs. LOL
This year I'm only taking out a few.