Biggest predators of koi and goldfish is a subject pond owners must be aware of. Because natural predators of these fish will become big problem.
Brian Moore, of Serenity Ponds, talks about multiple enemies. The American mink, blue heron and the racoon can be a pond owner’s biggest nightmare.
Predators
The mink is the hardest to control. They come usually at the end of fall and beginning of spring. This is when the fish are moving at their absolute slowest. They are resting on the bottom, and have zero chance against these predators because they’ll slip right in and attack the fish right from the head. They’ll bring them outside the pond until they die.
The second predator would be the heron. They are really stealthy big birds which will generally land in your yard and will wait slowly to see if you have a shallow section or if your pond is shallow in general. They’ll just sit there like a statue until the fish gets used to it being there and not moving and that’s when the fish will come to it, then the heron will attack. They can take the fishes in whole, up to about nine inches. They will poke at the stomach of the bigger fishes that they can’t get and they’ll take it out of the pond.
The third would be the racoons which isn’t too much of an issue but they are in those shallow ponds. If they can wait, they have easy access to these fishes. They would wait for the fish and grab them with their claws. Racoons are actually quite smart. On many occasions, where I’ve gone to a pond and the racoons knocked the pump out of the water whether it is a pond or a waterfall. They drain the whole pond out and wait, then they go in for dinner.
Night Time Visitor
Racoons will come at night generally between 11:00 and usually 6:00 in the morning. A heron will come at 6:00 in the morning and the mink will come in the morning as well.
You can learn more from Brian at his website: www.serenityponds.org
I trust you now have a better understanding of the biggest predators of koi and goldfish.
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