Heron

[BrianR]

My small ( 3m x 2m ) garden pond has been visited by a heron and all my 12 goldfish have disappeared. I hope they might be hiding in the weed, traumatised, as when this happened last year they all suddenly reappeared two or three months later. If I buy a decoy heron and put it on the edge of the pond, will the fish be just as traumtised, and so I am wasting my money ?

 

[addy1]

If I buy a decoy heron and put it on the edge of the pond, will the fish be just as traumtised, and so I am wasting my money ?

They work sort of, but you need to move it now and then. I had alligator heads floating in mine, until the heron decided they were harmless. The only thing that has worked for me is hanging a wide weave net about 2 feet over the water. The heron can't strike, the net is not that intrusive, the fish are safe.

 

[j.w]

A net is all that works for me. I've tried pretty much everything else except perhaps 5 wiener dogs loose 24/7 around the pond

 

[pondering_life]

I have heard mixed reviews about decoy herons.
They are quite intelligent birds and can work them out pretty quickly in some cases
If they are prevalent in your area I would say netting would be the best form of defense to save you money on having to keep re stocking the pond
Hopefully your current fish are just hiding and will come out soon

 

[rubyduby]

Decoy has worked for me so far. I do move it occasionally. I was also worried that the fish would be spooked by it so I have it about four feet from the edge of the pond and they don't seem to be bothered by it. Before adding the decoy I lost some of my favorite koi. My pond is too big to net.

 

[Lisak1]

will the fish be just as traumtised, and so I am wasting my money ?

As others have said - your fish will get used to it, but so will the real heron. Some people have luck with water scarecrows - basically a sprinkler set to turn on with a blast of water if there's motion around the pond. But you have to remember to turn it off, or you'll be blasting yourself constantly. (That would totally be me, guaranteed.)

A net is the only surefire way to keep your fish safe if you're in the heron's hunting path. They are said to have the ability to "mark" areas where they have found fish and will return to those spots over and over again for years.

 

[addy1]

The herons still fly over our ponds every day, you can see them pause and look down.

 

[sissy]

I am glad I have never seen any here but I do have a couple of barn owls and they land by the pond but seems they are after mice and frogs and lizards .They only land about 6 feet from the pond on the arbor over my bridge and watch for anything moving in the grass .

 

[Spartamets]

My pond was "marked," and a net did not stop the heron. It poked through the netting for the fish. I built a fish cave, which has worked. The scarecrow works, too, but it seems to break every year (usually the hose blows a hole through the side at some point, because the pressure is on 24/7), and they aren't super cheap. I keep a football handy now; it's a big target. We can't kill herons, but I plan to give this one an opportunity to experience something new and give my pond a different mental marking next time it stops by.

 

[addy1]

My pond was "marked," and a net did not stop the heron. It poked through the netting for the fish.

With my wide weave above the water by about 2-3 feet the heron can't poke through it. It can not get a strike going. I had a water level net and a floating island, the heron landed on the island and tried to snatch fish though the water level, fine weave net. Tossed the island, tossed the fine weave net, went with wide weave, hung 2-3 feet over the water, which has worked since I installed it.
We are right in their flight path, there is a rookery west of us.