Fish eaten in pond

[pvoel]

Hello, I would be gratefull in anybody has any idea of where the fish have gone,
My parents live on the edge of some moorland in South wales, they have a very large pond at the bottom of the garden which has been a home to around 300 fish ( gold fish, ghost and others). This year only eight of them have came to the surface.
My mum is sure that she has spotted a terrapin or something similar climbing onto a lilly pad is it possible that she has and they could have eaten the fish or is more likely to be a mink or an otter, We have found no remains of fish though.
Please could somebody shine some light on our problem, many thanks vicky

[galanthus]

Herons maybe ? If there is a terrapin in your pond that would certainly have a go at stuffing a few.

[Dogghound]

Herons, cats, mink, foxes, otters are all predators of fish, the terrapin as well. Although if you say around 292 fish have been wiped out with only 8 remaining unlikely it was just a terrapin. Disease?

[gemini]

Hi Vicky, you say there is no dead fish, or partly eaten bodies?.
Well how far away from your parent house is the pond? all the fish could have been stolen, its not unusual for that to happen, I know someone who had their pond completly emptied .it was netted and they didnt know until someone caugh the perps doing it to their pond!!

[Kayleigh]

I used to put goldfish in a horses trough to keep biting insects down. The trough was really small I thought the fish had disappeared. They were hiding at the bottom. Your pond is a lot bigger, your fish could just be hiding.

[pvoel]

Hi thanks for all responses, we put out a humane mink trap nothing has been caught! all fish have now gone also more from their ornamental pond, we think that it is now a cat as it has been knocking things over!

[wildmanofthewoods]

You didn't say how large the fish were, i know they can be expensive, is someone stealing them?

[aeshna5]

Many things take fish, but I suspect a Heron may be the main culprit.

[almostnormal]

given that the pond is a lrage one, and in the country i'd suggest that a heron (or several herons) are the most likely offenders. you can ward off herons by putting a thin line of wire/cotton/fishing line around the edge of the pond, as they won't cross over it, and they prefer to walk slowly into feeding grounds.

[pvoel]

Yeah , your probably right it being a heron with the days being longer we probably miss them early in the morning ( I was being foolish to think it was a cat) Fish sizes ranged from 10" down to babies.