Found my first baby fish

[JustinNJ]

I was checking the pond out tonight via flashlight. What do I see one baby fish. Brown about an inch long.
I have koi and comets. This is my fourth year for a pond but the first baby I have ever seen.
So I guess something worked right this year.
So my questions are.
If its about a inch long when was it born?
Do the babies usually hide?
Could there be more?
Will the other fish try and eat them? Some of the koi are 10 inches long.
I'm assuming the frogs eat them as well. I do have a few frogs that hang out in the pond.
Do you you usually separate them?
My pond is not that big 250 gallons or so.

 

[sissy]

could be lots more and you may need to find them homes since you pond is small .More likely a spring baby .

 

[Tula]

At an inch, I agree with Sissy, probably a spring baby. I don't think your fish will eat it, once it resembles a fish....but frogs will. 10 inch koi really need more room than 250 gallons. Do you bring them inside in the winter?

 

[peter hillman]

Congratulations! Fish really like to eat other fish, especially little ones. But maybe you can find a suitable partisan to divide them till they get big enough to take care of themselves.

 

[sissy]

I have the floating plant holders with window screen to hold the plants and i put them in there .

 

[Mmathis]

Koi & goldfish aren't "born," they are hatched from eggs, and when they hatch, they are no more than about the size of an eyelash. So this little one has beaten all the odds! Fish will eat any eggs (and fry) they find. There may be others, but if you're just now seeing this one, it may be the only one. Depending on the size of your fish, I think a 1" baby will be fine -- made it this far. And yes, babies will be secretive. It's part of their survival instinct (as well as the drab color when they are that young). I found a couple of fry last fall -- I left them in the pond over winter and they survived. But winters can be hard on babies.

 

[JustinNJ]

At an inch, I agree with Sissy, probably a spring baby. I don't think your fish will eat it, once it resembles a fish....but frogs will. 10 inch koi really need more room than 250 gallons. Do you bring them inside in the winter?

Yes they go to the basement for the winter. I keep them in a 100 gallon rubbermade water bin.
I did not buy them that big, but they seem to be doing fine for their size.
I have 2 that are about 10", 3 that are about 8" and 9 comets that are 3-4".

 

[JustinNJ]

So I caught 2 of them, I think there may be a third.
I set up a bin in the basement to keep some plants alive for the winter. I put them in there with a bubbler.
What were those little guys eating in the pond? Not the big sticks thats for sure.
Should I feed them or let them nibble roots?
Once I bring the big fish in I'm going to make a floating basket for the plants so I might just add them in there, so there not with the big guys.

 

[Lisak1]

OK, not to beat a dead horse here and I know you aren't asking this question - but you have WAY too many fish in that size pond. And you keep them in a bin that's less than half that volume for the winter. Yes, I know they've been "fine" up until now but just because they haven't died doesn't mean they are in optimal health. One more stressor - a parasite, a temperature change, someone overfeeding the fish causing too much waste - and that could be the tipping point.

Please don't assume breeding means everything is A-OK. Animals breed. Nature is designed for survival. 250 gallons is not enough water for one koi, let alone five, plus goldfish. Please please please, before you come back and tell us all your fish are dying or dead - please consider expanding your pond or re-homing some of your fish. Your comets are probably fine in that size pond (although they will keep reproducing and soon you will have too many of those, too) but koi? No.

Sorry if this sounds like a lecture but this is such a prevalent problem. Small ponds need warning labels - not suitable for koi! Whether or not your fry survive will be a moot point if you carry on with your small pond and your heavy fish load.

 

[JustinNJ]

OK, not to beat a dead horse here and I know you aren't asking this question - but you have WAY too many fish in that size pond. And you keep them in a bin that's less than half that volume for the winter. Yes, I know they've been "fine" up until now but just because they haven't died doesn't mean they are in optimal health. One more stressor - a parasite, a temperature change, someone overfeeding the fish causing too much waste - and that could be the tipping point.

Please don't assume breeding means everything is A-OK. Animals breed. Nature is designed for survival. 250 gallons is not enough water for one koi, let alone five, plus goldfish. Please please please, before you come back and tell us all your fish are dying or dead - please consider expanding your pond or re-homing some of your fish. Your comets are probably fine in that size pond (although they will keep reproducing and soon you will have too many of those, too) but koi? No.

Sorry if this sounds like a lecture but this is such a prevalent problem. Small ponds need warning labels - not suitable for koi! Whether or not your fry survive will be a moot point if you carry on with your small pond and your heavy fish load.

I guess that means I need to build another pond.

I actually thought it was gallon of water per inch of fish.

 

[peter hillman]

I guess that means I need to build another pond.

I actually thought it was gallon of water per inch of fish.

New pond new pond new pond! I feel the excitement brewing.

 

[Lisak1]

I actually thought it was gallon of water per inch of fish.

I've heard variations on that - 100 gallons per fish, 1 foot for surface area per pound of fish, 1000 gallons for the 1st koi, 100 gallons for every additional... I don't know what the real answer is (and have a feeling a lot depends on individual pond set ups) but in general, with ponds and fish, less (fish) is more!

 

[CometKeith]

The numbers you hear a lot are either 10 gallons per inch or 20 gallons per inch of fish or 1 sq ft of surface area of the pond per inch of fish. That is the one I like the best, but these are just general guides and there are so many variables it is hard to follow an exact rule. My pond is 700 gallons and it is way too small for koi. If you want to have fun with your pond the key is to keep the bioload down and it will be easy to maintain. I have over 50 goldfish in my pond but only three of those were store bought and the rest were born in the pond. I recommend not to isolate babies to protect them because your pond will quickly get overun with fish. I let nature take its course and somehow the right number of fish just happens without me doing anything. Also re fish eating babies from what I understand is when the babies start to have some color the bigger fish recognize them as one of their own and leave them alone.You probably had 100's of babies at one time and these were the ones that survived.