Garden ponds, protecting pond fish fry and eggs or ova

Pondkeeper's How to...

Protect Newly Hatched Pond Fish

Pond fish, pond fry and fish eggs

If you have very young fish in danger of being eaten by larger fish you can seperate them until they are a bit bigger as follows .......

Create a fine mesh bag about 2 feet deep. Attach the bag to pieces of foam (or maybe polystyrene) that float creating a ring or square. Add a bit of weight to bottom of net ... eg stones and let it float around the pond. Of course you must catch the fish first and then put them in their safe floating environment.

Many gold fish are born black and not gold ... they seem to appear from nowhere when they are about 1 inch long. In fact they have been hiding from the larger fish who would have eaten them along with many others that did not survive hatching from the ova or eggs. Because the young gold fish are black they can be difficult for us to see. Gradually they start turning gold until they do become little goldfish - what a delight they are too. All your own work at that.

This one sounds a bit crazy but works. Your fish will learn to recognise you especially if you feed them. To speed up this process move your hands as you approach the pond (or do something similar) ... just don't let the neighbours see you. Keep the movement the same every time for maximum effect.