??Predator Quiz?? - Parts is Clues

In article ,
Bob Adkins writes:
On 9 Jul 2003 06:16:17 -0700, (Chad) wrote:


left evidence, close your eyes if your squimish, "parts laying
around".

You know what they say. "Parts is parts".

All seriousness aside, the parts are a good clue.

Herons and egrets bolt their catch down whole.

Mustelids (mink, otter, ferret, fisher) eat the goodies and discard the bony
parts and fins, more or less.

Raptors usually fly off with their prey and eat it elsewhere, and rarely on
the ground.

That narrows it down.

Sorry for the loss of your friend.

Bob

I had a recent attack at night on some 3-4" goldfish in a shallow pool - This isn't the first
attack,but it is the first where so many of the fish seemed to be scaled whole. Earlier, the
fish just were missing entirely. What sort of critter are we looking at here? I'm in
San Jose, CA. Neighbor has trapped a skunk, seen a bobcat. I doubt the deer had anything to
do with it, and we've seen coyotes infrequently. - There's also some interested house cats.

Thanks,
Richard

rds wrote
the first where so many of the fish seemed to be scaled whole.

yikes!
Could be a fish struggling to get away from a bullfrog or snake?


k30a

My first guess would be raccons because you said shallow pond. They
can eat them there leaving some scales or take them away. Coons are
very common here in San Jose. If attacked happened at night the
chances go up. If during the day it could be a cat. Coons will return
from time to time. I get them for about a week once a month.