Fish dying

Again, thanks for responding!

Today I found another fish dead. :-(

Again, I checked the water chemistry. pH 7.4, nitrite and ammonia
negative, hardness as before. I added a little more lime to the
filter and cleaned the pumps and checked to make sure the air pump and
waterfall are working okay.

I did find some aphids on a couple of the pond lily leaves. Removed
those I found.

I went to the website you recommended and did my best to do a
post-mortem physical exam. I also checked a could of websites that
tell you how to sex a fish. As far as I am able to judge (granted, I
am really new at this) the fish appears to be female. I saw no
bruising this time. The gills were not gloppy or gooey and the tissue
didn't look like raw hamburger or anything. I guess it's hard to
judge the color in a dead fish, but the color was a deep pink, about
the color of healthy gums in people. The consistency of the belly
felt normal, as far as I was able to judge. I couldn't express
anything from the anal port. The mouth looked okay--no redness, no
white strings. I was aware of a slime coat but it didn't feel
particularly mucousy or thick on my fingers after I let go of the
fish. The fins and tail looked okay, no evidence of trauma or
unusual coloration or texture. The eyes looked normal as far as I
could see. There were a few scales missing, but I don't know if that
happened after the fish died or not.

I don't know why my fish are dying. It's very scarey. Anybody have
any thoughts about any anything else I ought to be doing?

Thanks.

Joan

Internal spawning injuries and/or infected eggs would account for what you see.
spawning bruises most certainly would look purplish. Ingrid