Yeah, now that you all mention it, I did have to concoct a wire mesh cover since a green egret parked himself on the edge of the pool and had a grand old time.
What fish should I keep outside this summer?
- Thread starter Rare Cichlids
- Start date
While I am a bit further north then some of you, my experiences should help you all. I have two 300 gallon ponds that I put tropicals into in the summer. I will list the fish I have tried and wheather or not they were successful.
Guppies, put out 6 brought in just under 200.
Bettas, all died
Gouramis, all died
Florida flag, two pair out, about 100 in
Platies, two pair out, about 40 in, same with swords
Mollies, adults died found about 20 two inchers at end of season
Giant and longfin Danios, did very well, too many to count
Splendid Rainbows, 5 adults all died but about 150 young survived
Kribensis, pair, grew like weeds but never bred
Whiptails, bred and prospered, one pair out and about 30 in
Cories, a bunch of different types, all did very well and bred
Various Killis, all disappeared and I assume they jumped
Cherry barbs, bred and males turned the most amazing red you could imagine
Ghost shrimp, either became food or died
This has been the last two years worth. Not sure what I will be putting out this year. If you intend to save any young they need a lot of hiding places.
Plants also do pretty good as well. I grew an apon. ulvasious that was over 28" long.
I hope you find some of this helpfull.
Guppies, put out 6 brought in just under 200.
Bettas, all died
Gouramis, all died
Florida flag, two pair out, about 100 in
Platies, two pair out, about 40 in, same with swords
Mollies, adults died found about 20 two inchers at end of season
Giant and longfin Danios, did very well, too many to count
Splendid Rainbows, 5 adults all died but about 150 young survived
Kribensis, pair, grew like weeds but never bred
Whiptails, bred and prospered, one pair out and about 30 in
Cories, a bunch of different types, all did very well and bred
Various Killis, all disappeared and I assume they jumped
Cherry barbs, bred and males turned the most amazing red you could imagine
Ghost shrimp, either became food or died
This has been the last two years worth. Not sure what I will be putting out this year. If you intend to save any young they need a lot of hiding places.
Plants also do pretty good as well. I grew an apon. ulvasious that was over 28" long.
I hope you find some of this helpfull.
Just a quick note on birds and ponds...Herons and such will not eat from the land, and won't land in a pond. If you put up a fence that they can't walk over, your fish will be safer. No way to gaurantee their safety, short of completely covering the water, since there are a wide variety of fish eating critters out there. For racoons, if they can get to the waters edge, they will catch and eat. Having a lip around the pond more than 12-18 inches above the water level will help.
Garter snakes are a big threat to smaller fish--no clue how to keep them out, removing them when found is your best bet.
Mink and weasels can be deterred by your pet--they usually avoid dogs.
Crows and magpies will go after fish if they can--dogs will help, if they chase birds as well as my pair of mutts.
King fishers are probably the worst of the lot--they target 2-4 inch fish, and can get through most small fences, including chicken wire. Dogs won't help as much--they tend to ignore the smaller birds.
This are the methods used at our hatcheries, if that helps explain why I can offer this advice.
Garter snakes are a big threat to smaller fish--no clue how to keep them out, removing them when found is your best bet.
Mink and weasels can be deterred by your pet--they usually avoid dogs.
Crows and magpies will go after fish if they can--dogs will help, if they chase birds as well as my pair of mutts.
King fishers are probably the worst of the lot--they target 2-4 inch fish, and can get through most small fences, including chicken wire. Dogs won't help as much--they tend to ignore the smaller birds.
This are the methods used at our hatcheries, if that helps explain why I can offer this advice.
A quick word on detering predators. Go to a local groomer and ask if you can have a garbage bag of hair. It's gross, but if you spread a bit around your yard periodically, it should keep some of the more "wild" neighbors away, such as mink. Raccoons don't give a damn though...
Thanks for all the replies. Thanks for listing what did and didn't work for you, Darkangel and Billy Bob. Thanks for all the posts about wild threats. I'll keep all that was said in mind. But I doubt I'll have very many problems with that. Even though there are lots of animals around here, I believe the dogs keep them off of the property pretty good. If I start having problems I'll use some of the methods you guys have named.
I'll be sure to get pics.
I'll be sure to get pics.
