Environmental - Biosecurity, Ecosystems, Predation, Pollutants
Heron problem: train a crow!
A homeowner has been paying a crow in mealworms for chasing a hungry heron out of his garden after it stole hundreds of pounds worth of fish from his pond.
Simon McCabe, 51, says the heron has 'emptied' the pond in his back garden of koi carp and goldfish.
But ever since the crow started visiting the garden last month, the little bird has 'looked after' his pond community and he's not lost a fish since.
If you have chlorine or chloramine treated water, K.O.I. has always recommended the use of a water shut off timer whenever doing a pond refill. In fact, they are so cheap (and they do sometimes fail, that Spike now recommends using 2 of them, one after the other.
But there is another way that doesn't involve the use of ANY device. Read what the Fish Vet in Australia recommends.
This short article is the New Zealand government's position about Koi.
Koi should never be released into lakes or streams because of the environmental damage they do. Read this story about how bad the problem has become in one local lake...
It's kind of like an amazing dream coming to life. Your adorable little goldfish grows into a giant, chasing you around a pond.
Only in this case, 11-year-old Luke Hebb wasn't dreaming when he fished a 16-pound koi out of Lacombe Lake in St. Albert Wednesday morning.
If you've ever wondered what happens when an otter discovers a Koi pond in a botanical garden, read this story. The good news is that the aquarium folks jumped in and saved the remaining Koi.
Copper is ubiquitous in our environment - from pesticides to pipe. Some copper gets into our ponds and this study shows how even small amounts affect Koi in many damaging ways. This study goes into great detail to show the effects on the brain, blood, liver, gills, and kidneys based on very low exposure to copper.
This study evaluates the toxic residual pharmaceuticals in the water as they affect algae, the environment and fish. The results indicate that there are numerous other external factors that complicate the testing. An interesting study, not directly related to our Koi, but certainly affecting our water sources. The list of chemicals they tested for is staggering!
Heavy metals are toxic to fish, including our Koi. Understanding the effects of heavy metals, and which metals are toxic is useful to Koi keepers.
Attached are 2 studies showing the effects of 2 common pesticides - Cypermethrin and NeemAzal on Koi.
While it is winter here, it is the hottest part of the summer in Australia, and drought combined with high temperatures is killing thousands of fish in the NSW rivers. What is actually killing the fish?
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