REQ: advice

[Rez]

Hello there,
I'm on the verge of setting up a pond, and have few concerns regarding
protection of the pond. My original intention was to have a simple wildlife
pond, but have since decided to stock some fish of some description. My
problem/worry is the predatory subject. I do not want mesh/screen covering
the sface, but I live in a very rural part of suffolk where aside from
several cats there is also a risk from Herons, possibly kingfishers & a
multitude of other creatures that may fancy a nibble from the pond.
I've read about cords & such to stop wading birds, but is there any way of
protecting the pond from such things without making it too much un-natural
looking? Any ideas or experiences greatly appreciated.
TIA
Rez



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[Benign Vanilla]

"Rez" > wrote in message
...
> Hello there,
> I'm on the verge of setting up a pond, and have few concerns regarding
> protection of the pond. My original intention was to have a simple
wildlife
> pond, but have since decided to stock some fish of some description. My
> problem/worry is the predatory subject. I do not want mesh/screen covering
> the sface, but I live in a very rural part of suffolk where aside from
> several cats there is also a risk from Herons, possibly kingfishers & a
> multitude of other creatures that may fancy a nibble from the pond.
> I've read about cords & such to stop wading birds, but is there any way of
> protecting the pond from such things without making it too much un-natural
> looking? Any ideas or experiences greatly appreciated.

You'll need to go deep, and provide a hide out from fish. You'll also want
to avoid shelves the birds have no where to stand. This will of course make
marginal plants diffcult to keep. I have sloped sides, and wish I had more
shelves for plants. On a side note...my pond has remained unat....on second
thought...I am not going to temp fate and discuss what has or has not
happened to my pond with respect to heron. I can't risk it.

BV.

[Ka30P]

One way to approach a wildlife pond is to think about feeding the predators
too. Stocking fish for herons, kingfishers and various mammals.
They can be fascinating to watch. Every December a kingfisher visits my pond
and has his share of fish. I heard of a bird watching lady who wanted to put in
a pond just to attract herons.

But some folks get attached to their fish and it hurts to see their pets
snarfed up.

Netting is a very effective deterrent but for wildlife it can be dangerous.
Like BV says depth and straight sides helps keep herons at bay, though some
very determined herons will actually float along on the water like a duck and
strike.
A chimney flue at the bottom of the pond gives fish a place to hide once the
intial strike occurs. But as Ingrid says, herons are very patient. Having bird
brains they have little trouble with boredom and are prepared to hang about
waiting for the fish to come out again.
An electric fido shock fence will keep mammals away. But also all the wildlife
you hope to attract.
A motion activated sprinkler works for many ponders. But again also works on
wildlife too.

So I'll go back to my original suggestion and have you include
the predators as invited wildlife and don't get too attached to your fish.


kathy :-)
<A HREF="http://www.onceuponapond.com/">Once upon a pond</A>

[Andrew Burgess]

"Rez" > writes:

>Hello there,
>I'm on the verge of setting up a pond, and have few concerns regarding
>protection of the pond. My original intention was to have a simple wildlife
>pond, but have since decided to stock some fish of some description. My
>problem/worry is the predatory subject. I do not want mesh/screen covering
>the sface, but I live in a very rural part of suffolk where aside from
>several cats there is also a risk from Herons, possibly kingfishers & a
>multitude of other creatures that may fancy a nibble from the pond.

I was the same way. I've really gotten used to the bird netting. You might
give it a week or so, its a small investment.

[Rez]

"Benign Vanilla" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Rez" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Hello there,
> > I'm on the verge of setting up a pond, and have few concerns regarding
> > protection of the pond. My original intention was to have a simple
> wildlife
> > pond, but have since decided to stock some fish of some description. My
> > problem/worry is the predatory subject. I do not want mesh/screen
covering
> > the sface, but I live in a very rural part of suffolk where aside from
> > several cats there is also a risk from Herons, possibly kingfishers & a
> > multitude of other creatures that may fancy a nibble from the pond.
> > I've read about cords & such to stop wading birds, but is there any way
of
> > protecting the pond from such things without making it too much
un-natural
> > looking? Any ideas or experiences greatly appreciated.
>
> You'll need to go deep, and provide a hide out from fish. You'll also want
> to avoid shelves the birds have no where to stand. This will of course
make
> marginal plants diffcult to keep. I have sloped sides, and wish I had more
> shelves for plants. On a side note...my pond has remained unat....on
second
> thought...I am not going to temp fate and discuss what has or has not
> happened to my pond with respect to heron. I can't risk it.
>
> BV.
>
>
Thanks for the reply & advice :)
I hear what your saying, and don't blame you on the silence ;)


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[Rez]

"Ka30P" > wrote in message
...
>
> One way to approach a wildlife pond is to think about feeding the
predators
> too. Stocking fish for herons, kingfishers and various mammals.
> They can be fascinating to watch. Every December a kingfisher visits my
pond
> and has his share of fish. I heard of a bird watching lady who wanted to
put in
> a pond just to attract herons.
>
> But some folks get attached to their fish and it hurts to see their pets
> snarfed up.
>
> Netting is a very effective deterrent but for wildlife it can be
dangerous.
> Like BV says depth and straight sides helps keep herons at bay, though
some
> very determined herons will actually float along on the water like a duck
and
> strike.
> A chimney flue at the bottom of the pond gives fish a place to hide once
the
> intial strike occurs. But as Ingrid says, herons are very patient. Having
bird
> brains they have little trouble with boredom and are prepared to hang
about
> waiting for the fish to come out again.
> An electric fido shock fence will keep mammals away. But also all the
wildlife
> you hope to attract.
> A motion activated sprinkler works for many ponders. But again also works
on
> wildlife too.
>
> So I'll go back to my original suggestion and have you include
> the predators as invited wildlife and don't get too attached to your fish.
>
>
> kathy :-)
> <A HREF="http://www.onceuponapond.com/">Once upon a pond</A>

That's something I hadn't thought of, fits well with my idea of a 'natural'
environment too. I had thought of stocking with native fish (if that is even
possible - or legal). While dreaming of my pond I had visions of
sticklebacks, newts, dragonfly Larvae & such, like I remember as a kid. I
know that some wildlife itself is a problem for a 'natural' pond, dragonfly
nymphs predating on small fish etc, but would this really work? Am I allowed
to stock native fish & Newts? I suppose frogs will move in of their own
accord, but where (if I am allowed) would I find sticklebacks & such
nowadays?
I'm guessing you were referring to stocking goldfish or similar to feed
wildlife? If this is so, how much/often do the fish get taken, couldnt it
get costly?
Ok now I sound like a skinflint AND I'm rambling.
Thanks for the advice ;)



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[Rez]

"Andrew Burgess" > wrote in message
...
> "Rez" > writes:
>
> >Hello there,
> >I'm on the verge of setting up a pond, and have few concerns regarding
> >protection of the pond. My original intention was to have a simple
wildlife
> >pond, but have since decided to stock some fish of some description. My
> >problem/worry is the predatory subject. I do not want mesh/screen
covering
> >the sface, but I live in a very rural part of suffolk where aside from
> >several cats there is also a risk from Herons, possibly kingfishers & a
> >multitude of other creatures that may fancy a nibble from the pond.
>
> I was the same way. I've really gotten used to the bird netting. You might
> give it a week or so, its a small investment.
>
Hi, Thanks for the reply :)
From what I have been told it seems a complete net may be the only way to
avoid the problem completely, but doesn't it spoil the whole thing? I want
to be able to sit on my patio & look at the pond, and the image of a nsaty
net or mesh screen seems to destroy the 'natural' thing.
I see I'm going to have to be prepared to either not have fish, lose the
ones I have from time to time or have an ugly net.
Thanks again for your reply.


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[Ka30P]

Hi Rez,

There is a wonderful pond set up in England, it is fishless, in fact it gave me
my idea for my fishless pond, here is a link
http://www.mybitoftheplanet.com/
He gets the most wonderful assortment of amphibian and insect life.
All the critters will prey on one another but Mother Nature usually works it
out and it all comes out in the wash.
This newsgroup uk.rec.gardening will probably be able to tell you where you can
gather or purchase sticklebacks. I would go with those fish over goldfish.
You'll still get visiting predators but sticklebacks have less of a chance than
getting eaten than goldfish. Plus there is always the worry of goldfish getting
into natural waterways (big floods washing through backyard ponds, kingfishers
carrying off fish and dropping them, herons wading in ponds and picking up
sticky fish eggs).

I adopted native treefrog eggs into my pond from a friend's pond. All insect
life showed up on its own. We don't have salamanders in great numbers around
here. I'd like some toads and am looking for local ones to adopt. I decided not
to put any fish in this pond as I have another pond with goldfish in it.




Rez wrote
>>That's something I hadn't thought of, fits well with my idea of a 'natural'
environment too. I had thought of stocking with native fish (if that is even
possible - or legal). While dreaming of my pond I had visions of
sticklebacks, newts, dragonfly Larvae & such, like I remember as a kid. I
know that some wildlife itself is a problem for a 'natural' pond, dragonfly
nymphs predating on small fish etc, but would this really work? Am I allowed
to stock native fish & Newts? I suppose frogs will move in of their own
accord, but where (if I am allowed) would I find sticklebacks & such
nowadays?
I'm guessing you were referring to stocking goldfish or similar to feed
wildlife? If this is so, how much/often do the fish get taken, couldnt it
get costly?
Ok now I sound like a skinflint AND I'm rambling.
Thanks for the advice ;)<<
kathy :-)
<A HREF="http://www.onceuponapond.com/">Once upon a pond</A>

[[email protected]]

you simply have to try the black, fine bird netting first to realize how it
disappears in a very short time. in fact, the sun has to be just right to make it
stand out at all. I have my netting taut, so it isnt hanging in folds all over tho.

http://puregold.aquaria.net/mypond/changes/changes.htm
the netting is in all those pictures.
http://puregold.aquaria.net/mypond/2003/8-2003B.htm
the netting is somewhat more visible, but when I sit by my pond I look thru to see my
fish and pond, not the netting. I dont net just for predators, I net to keep birds
and everything else out of there and to keep my fish IN. Ingrid

"Rez" > wrote:
>From what I have been told it seems a complete net may be the only way to
>avoid the problem completely, but doesn't it spoil the whole thing? I want
>to be able to sit on my patio & look at the pond, and the image of a nsaty
>net or mesh screen seems to destroy the 'natural' thing.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
http://puregold.aquaria.net/
www.drsolo.com
Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
endorsements or recommendations I make.

[Gib]

"Rez" > wrote in message
...
> Hello there,
> I'm on the verge of setting up a pond, and have few concerns regarding
> protection of the pond. My original intention was to have a simple
wildlife
> pond, but have since decided to stock some fish of some description. My
> problem/worry is the predatory subject. I do not want mesh/screen covering
> the sface, but I live in a very rural part of suffolk where aside from
> several cats there is also a risk from Herons, possibly kingfishers & a
> multitude of other creatures that may fancy a nibble from the pond.
> I've read about cords & such to stop wading birds, but is there any way of
> protecting the pond from such things without making it too much un-natural
> looking? Any ideas or experiences greatly appreciated.
> TIA
> Rez

I've heard that a heron decoy will keep other herons away for a while, or a
fake fox.
A net is as close to a sure thing as you're going to get. And if your pond
isn't too big, it only takes a few minutes to take it off if you're going to
be spending the day in they yard. I didn't want to do it, but my favorite
koi became a meal, and I will not let that happen again.

--
"Almost nobody dances sober, unless they happen to be insane."
- H.P. Lovecraft

[Rez]

Thanks for the link, it looks a great pond. Thanks also for the advice about
the gardening group, I will sub to them later & check it out.
I will keep you posted as to how it develops.
Thanks again for your time :)

"Ka30P" > wrote in message
...
> Hi Rez,
>
> There is a wonderful pond set up in England, it is fishless, in fact it
gave me
> my idea for my fishless pond, here is a link
> http://www.mybitoftheplanet.com/
> He gets the most wonderful assortment of amphibian and insect life.
> All the critters will prey on one another but Mother Nature usually works
it
> out and it all comes out in the wash.
> This newsgroup uk.rec.gardening will probably be able to tell you where
you can
> gather or purchase sticklebacks. I would go with those fish over goldfish.
> You'll still get visiting predators but sticklebacks have less of a chance
than
> getting eaten than goldfish. Plus there is always the worry of goldfish
getting
> into natural waterways (big floods washing through backyard ponds,
kingfishers
> carrying off fish and dropping them, herons wading in ponds and picking up
> sticky fish eggs).
>
> I adopted native treefrog eggs into my pond from a friend's pond. All
insect
> life showed up on its own. We don't have salamanders in great numbers
around
> here. I'd like some toads and am looking for local ones to adopt. I
decided not
> to put any fish in this pond as I have another pond with goldfish in it.
>
>
>
>
> Rez wrote
> >>That's something I hadn't thought of, fits well with my idea of a
'natural'
> environment too. I had thought of stocking with native fish (if that is
even
> possible - or legal). While dreaming of my pond I had visions of
> sticklebacks, newts, dragonfly Larvae & such, like I remember as a kid. I
> know that some wildlife itself is a problem for a 'natural' pond,
dragonfly
> nymphs predating on small fish etc, but would this really work? Am I
allowed
> to stock native fish & Newts? I suppose frogs will move in of their own
> accord, but where (if I am allowed) would I find sticklebacks & such
> nowadays?
> I'm guessing you were referring to stocking goldfish or similar to feed
> wildlife? If this is so, how much/often do the fish get taken, couldnt it
> get costly?
> Ok now I sound like a skinflint AND I'm rambling.
> Thanks for the advice ;)<<
> kathy :-)
> <A HREF="http://www.onceuponapond.com/">Once upon a pond</A>


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[Rez]

Wow, you're right, I can't see any netting on those pictures, that surprises
me. previous ponds (belonging to friends etc) I've seen have all had hideous
green net over them, or in some cases a wire grate of some description.
Yours however looks fine, very nice.
Thanks for posting the links, much appreciated.

> wrote in message
...
> you simply have to try the black, fine bird netting first to realize how
it
> disappears in a very short time. in fact, the sun has to be just right to
make it
> stand out at all. I have my netting taut, so it isnt hanging in folds all
over tho.
>
> http://puregold.aquaria.net/mypond/changes/changes.htm
> the netting is in all those pictures.
> http://puregold.aquaria.net/mypond/2003/8-2003B.htm
> the netting is somewhat more visible, but when I sit by my pond I look
thru to see my
> fish and pond, not the netting. I dont net just for predators, I net to
keep birds
> and everything else out of there and to keep my fish IN. Ingrid
>
> "Rez" > wrote:
> >From what I have been told it seems a complete net may be the only way to
> >avoid the problem completely, but doesn't it spoil the whole thing? I
want
> >to be able to sit on my patio & look at the pond, and the image of a
nsaty
> >net or mesh screen seems to destroy the 'natural' thing.
>
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
> http://puregold.aquaria.net/
> www.drsolo.com
> Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
> compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
> endorsements or recommendations I make.


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[Rez]

"Gib" > wrote in message
...
> "Rez" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Hello there,
> > I'm on the verge of setting up a pond, and have few concerns regarding
> > protection of the pond. My original intention was to have a simple
> wildlife
> > pond, but have since decided to stock some fish of some description. My
> > problem/worry is the predatory subject. I do not want mesh/screen
covering
> > the sface, but I live in a very rural part of suffolk where aside from
> > several cats there is also a risk from Herons, possibly kingfishers & a
> > multitude of other creatures that may fancy a nibble from the pond.
> > I've read about cords & such to stop wading birds, but is there any way
of
> > protecting the pond from such things without making it too much
un-natural
> > looking? Any ideas or experiences greatly appreciated.
> > TIA
> > Rez
>
> I've heard that a heron decoy will keep other herons away for a while, or
a
> fake fox.
> A net is as close to a sure thing as you're going to get. And if your
pond
> isn't too big, it only takes a few minutes to take it off if you're going
to
> be spending the day in they yard. I didn't want to do it, but my favorite
> koi became a meal, and I will not let that happen again.
>
> --
> "Almost nobody dances sober, unless they happen to be insane."
> - H.P. Lovecraft
>
I've seen those heron decoys in garden centers, but never seen fox decoys, I
will have to look out for them. A friend of mine gave me an owl statue for
the garden & says that maybe it will help when I get the pond set up. So far
it seems to be keeping the birds from the garden, which isn't what I wanted,
so I doubt that will stay there ;)
For the size of my garden, the biggest I can go for a pond is 287 x 185 x 61
cm with a capacity of 1725 litres (I think). I think this may be a bit too
big to be taking nets off & putting them back on etc.
Thanks for your advice, all noted & appreciated.

>


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[[email protected]]

nope. Ingrid

">> I've heard that a heron decoy will keep other herons away for a while,


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
http://puregold.aquaria.net/
www.drsolo.com
Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
endorsements or recommendations I make.

[Rodney Pont]

On Sat, 05 Jun 2004 17:49:07 GMT, wrote:

>">> I've heard that a heron decoy will keep other herons away for a while,
>
>nope. Ingrid

It did here for a couple of days :-) You have to keep moving it but
eventually the real Heron realises.

Last year the pond was netted and we did get occasional damage to it
where the Heron visited. It seems to have learnt though and hasn't
visited this year, just flies over and away without pausing, we see up
to four going over a day.

As for the posts about their patience... A couple of years ago the
grass field next to us flooded and four Herons spent about ten days
waiting for fish to evolve.

--
Regards - Rodney Pont
The from address exists but is mostly dumped,
please send any emails to the address below
e-mail ngpsm4 (at) infohitsystems (dot) ltd (dot) uk

[[email protected]]

waiting for frogs. Ingrid

>As for the posts about their patience... A couple of years ago the
>grass field next to us flooded and four Herons spent about ten days
>waiting for fish to evolve.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
http://puregold.aquaria.net/
www.drsolo.com
Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
endorsements or recommendations I make.

[Benign Vanilla]

"Rez" > wrote in message
...
<snip>
> From what I have been told it seems a complete net may be the only way to
> avoid the problem completely, but doesn't it spoil the whole thing? I want
> to be able to sit on my patio & look at the pond, and the image of a nsaty
> net or mesh screen seems to destroy the 'natural' thing.
> I see I'm going to have to be prepared to either not have fish, lose the
> ones I have from time to time or have an ugly net.
<snip>

I think this is totally subjective. I for one don't like the netting, and
when the day comes that I must have netting, I guess I will just stop
stocking fish. I have been working very hard to get a natural look and the
netting to me, is just out of place. I am lucky however, that with several
ponds nearby, and that mine is quite covered from the sky, I have not had
any attacks...yet.

BV.

[Benign Vanilla]

"Rez" > wrote in message
...
<snip>
> > thought...I am not going to temp fate and discuss what has or has not
> > happened to my pond with respect to heron. I can't risk it.
> >
> > BV.
> >
> >
> Thanks for the reply & advice :)
> I hear what your saying, and don't blame you on the silence ;)
<snip>

Moments ago, I slipped and made the dreaded declaration in another thread. I
expect to find my pond empty when I get home today.

BV.

[Mike Patterson]

On Mon, 7 Jun 2004 10:16:50 -0400, "Benign Vanilla"
> wrote:

>
>"Rez" > wrote in message
...
><snip>
>> From what I have been told it seems a complete net may be the only way to
>> avoid the problem completely, but doesn't it spoil the whole thing? I want
>> to be able to sit on my patio & look at the pond, and the image of a nsaty
>> net or mesh screen seems to destroy the 'natural' thing.
>> I see I'm going to have to be prepared to either not have fish, lose the
>> ones I have from time to time or have an ugly net.
><snip>
>
>I think this is totally subjective. I for one don't like the netting, and
>when the day comes that I must have netting, I guess I will just stop
>stocking fish. I have been working very hard to get a natural look and the
>netting to me, is just out of place. I am lucky however, that with several
>ponds nearby, and that mine is quite covered from the sky, I have not had
>any attacks...yet.
>
>BV.
>

Well, when it happens, don't go into a complete panic for a while.

I had a heron visit about 3-4 weeks ago, thought I'd lost several
fish, but as of yesterday I was finally able to do a head count and
find that I only lost one. It -did- take until yesterday for all the
fish to come out of hiding and close enough to the surface to be
counted, though.

I put a 12" piece of 8" diameter black plastic pipe in the bottom,
plus stacked some of the large rocks so that there are hiding places
under them.

BTW, when I cut the pipe, it had very sharp edges at the cut lines, so
I used a torch and melted them to a smooth "rolled" edge. Hopefully
the fish can't hurt themselves on it.


Mike Patterson
Please remove the spamtrap to email me.
"I always wanted to be somebody. I should have been more specific..."

[Rez]

"Benign Vanilla" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Rez" > wrote in message
> ...
> <snip>
> > From what I have been told it seems a complete net may be the only way
to
> > avoid the problem completely, but doesn't it spoil the whole thing? I
want
> > to be able to sit on my patio & look at the pond, and the image of a
nsaty
> > net or mesh screen seems to destroy the 'natural' thing.
> > I see I'm going to have to be prepared to either not have fish, lose the
> > ones I have from time to time or have an ugly net.
> <snip>
>
> I think this is totally subjective. I for one don't like the netting, and
> when the day comes that I must have netting, I guess I will just stop
> stocking fish. I have been working very hard to get a natural look and the
> netting to me, is just out of place. I am lucky however, that with several
> ponds nearby, and that mine is quite covered from the sky, I have not had
> any attacks...yet.
>
> BV.
>
>
I feel the same way about the netting, I just want the natural look also.
I've seen ponds with netting and IMO it does spoil it. It has been suggested
here (and other places) that I try using decoys of some kind (although
someone suggested a heron decoy, would that work? I don't know too much
about herons, but wouldn't the sight of my decoy say to a real heron passing
over "Hmm, wonder what he's found" ?)
I think I will just see what happens. :)
Thanks again.



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[Ka30P]

Rez wrote << I try using decoys of some kind (although
someone suggested a heron decoy, would that work? >>

There was a report once of a ponder who had a heron decoy next to her pond and
found a few dead frogs and a fish laid at its 'feet'. It seems the fake heron
was being courted by a real heron.

Herons are solitary feeders for the most part and will attack another heron who
gets too close to their territory. They will leap on the back of the offending
heron and attack with those long sharp bills.
But... in areas of abundant food, such as a fish farm, the heron's feeding
territory will only be a few feet wide so you'll get lots of herons feeding.
Juveniles will tend to feed together as a group until they get older (think
teenagers at the mall).
Supposedly moving the decoy often will convince the flyover heron that there is
a real heron feeding at the pond.

I've had a heron visit my pond. Two labradors let me know of the visitor and
just coming out on the deck scared the bird away. Ponding friend jan has had
luck with a motion activated sprinkler.





kathy :-)
<A HREF="http://www.onceuponapond.com/">Once upon a pond</A>

[Benign Vanilla]

"Rez" > wrote in message
...
<snip>
> I feel the same way about the netting, I just want the natural look also.
> I've seen ponds with netting and IMO it does spoil it. It has been
suggested
> here (and other places) that I try using decoys of some kind (although
> someone suggested a heron decoy, would that work? I don't know too much
> about herons, but wouldn't the sight of my decoy say to a real heron
passing
> over "Hmm, wonder what he's found" ?)
> I think I will just see what happens. :)
<snip>

I seem to remember one ponder lamenting how a real heron was trying to mate
with the decoy, and went as far as to catch some fish and drop them at the
feet of the decoy. Ya know the old, "I caught you dinner, now give me some
hot heron lovin" stereotype.

BV.

[Rez]

"Ka30P" > wrote in message
...
> Rez wrote << I try using decoys of some kind (although
> someone suggested a heron decoy, would that work? >>
>
> There was a report once of a ponder who had a heron decoy next to her pond
and
> found a few dead frogs and a fish laid at its 'feet'. It seems the fake
heron
> was being courted by a real heron.
>
> Herons are solitary feeders for the most part and will attack another
heron who
> gets too close to their territory. They will leap on the back of the
offending
> heron and attack with those long sharp bills.
> But... in areas of abundant food, such as a fish farm, the heron's feeding
> territory will only be a few feet wide so you'll get lots of herons
feeding.
> Juveniles will tend to feed together as a group until they get older
(think
> teenagers at the mall).
> Supposedly moving the decoy often will convince the flyover heron that
there is
> a real heron feeding at the pond.
>

Thanks for info, much appreciated. Perhaps I will give the decoy a try then.
:)


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[Rez]

"Benign Vanilla" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Rez" > wrote in message
> ...
> <snip>
> > I feel the same way about the netting, I just want the natural look
also.
> > I've seen ponds with netting and IMO it does spoil it. It has been
> suggested
> > here (and other places) that I try using decoys of some kind (although
> > someone suggested a heron decoy, would that work? I don't know too much
> > about herons, but wouldn't the sight of my decoy say to a real heron
> passing
> > over "Hmm, wonder what he's found" ?)
> > I think I will just see what happens. :)
> <snip>
>
> I seem to remember one ponder lamenting how a real heron was trying to
mate
> with the decoy, and went as far as to catch some fish and drop them at the
> feet of the decoy. Ya know the old, "I caught you dinner, now give me some
> hot heron lovin" stereotype.
>
> BV.
>
LOL @ hot heron lovin'
Maybe I should get a male heron decoy, do they make them gender specific? Do
female Herons court male herons, I imagine not.

;)



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[~ jan JJsPond.us]

Mike, Invest in a "Heron Scarer" the little orange plastic fake fish one
can anchor to the bottom. The heron hopefully will grab for it first notify
the live ones to hide.

There is also the motion sprinkler that I use called The Scarecrow. So far
no one MIA here. ~ jan

>
>Well, when it happens, don't go into a complete panic for a while.
>
>I had a heron visit about 3-4 weeks ago, thought I'd lost several
>fish, but as of yesterday I was finally able to do a head count and
>find that I only lost one. It -did- take until yesterday for all the
>fish to come out of hiding and close enough to the surface to be
>counted, though.
>
>I put a 12" piece of 8" diameter black plastic pipe in the bottom,
>plus stacked some of the large rocks so that there are hiding places
>under them.
>
>BTW, when I cut the pipe, it had very sharp edges at the cut lines, so
>I used a torch and melted them to a smooth "rolled" edge. Hopefully
>the fish can't hurt themselves on it.
>
>
>Mike Patterson
>Please remove the spamtrap to email me.
>"I always wanted to be somebody. I should have been more specific..."

(Do you know where your water quality is?)