Oh my, how horrid, I'm so sorry.
It looks like it was pecked from a bird.
Joann

It looks too small for a heron beak though, doesn't it (please say yes!)? The fish is/was approx. 10-12" long, I think (I'm bad w/ guesstimating size). You can see DH's thumb through the bag in the photo for some sort of size comparison (although he DOES wear a size 15 ring LOL)

I also wondered if it might be a raccoon nail...as if it came from the "back" in this pic...and then when it came out, pulled off the scale or something. I *know* there is a mama raccoon in the backyard and although the pond is deep, they like to wallow around in the marginal areas (bodies literally halfway out of the water).

I dunno but now I'm freaked out. The other fish act like business as usual.

Well, I just buried her in the yard w/ her 2 frozen friends that passed away this last winter and were "in waiting" in the deep freeze(no honey, don't open that bag!!! LOL).

I hope nothing digs them up!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm assuming b/c they're buried in dirt, the smell won't give them away. I may be assuming wrong. If so, you are going to see a thread and a half on this one!

Almoast makes ya want to get a security camera out at the pond doesn't it? I always wonder what goes on out there at night and when I'm not at home. I'm so sorry you lost your beautiful fishie : (

I'm so sorry, Andrea! I sure hope you find the culprit soon. What's surprising is that the other fish are acting normal, not like they should be frightened of a predator. :(

Brenda

So sorry about you fish...looks like a nice one. I am not sure about the Heron...I've had two goldfish speared but it didn't leave a hole like that. Sure hope you can find out what happened.

PJ

I'm sorry you're fish got killed! PJ

Oh Andrea, I'm so sorry for your koi baby... You need a cup of tea (glass of ice tea?) and a few chocolates. Here's a virtual hug too.

*virtual hug*

Feel better yet?

:( Mary

Andrea, Yes it is a small holes less than the size of a scale. I don't think that a claw from a racoon could go thru the skull on a fish as that is pretty thick bone. The surprising thing is the other fish are not showing signs of a Heron attack but I would guess that it is a Heron or that type bird. Your pond being deep it would be hard for a Heron to get a fish other than standing on the side and bending over to get one. Normally this scares the other fish badly and they won't eat for a day or two but not in this case. I am sorry for your loss. The only other thing that I can think of is it possible that it was shot. That hole is about the size of a BB or pellet. Could some kids have used her for target practice. I know that the hole is not round but I don't know what a BB or pellet would look like bouncing off the skull. That would also explain why the fish are not scared.
Mike

I believe it was a heron.
There are small nocturnal herons like Night Herons and Green Herons that could easily make a hole just like that. Being that the koi was too big for the small nocturnal heron, it would have just jabbed and yanked out.

Too bad your handsome black kitty didn't get the heron. ;)

A raccoon would have left your pond a mess.
And it would have NEVER left a big koi like that floating in a pond. The koi would be outside the pond, mauled and half eaten, scales and guts all over your patio.

Does it sound like I've been there and done that? :(

My raccoon trap was just set outside the kitchen window less than 20 minutes ago.

:-(

I'm so sorry about your fishy!

I think a raccoon paw/claws would leave more than one wound as they have many fingers and would at least cause some lacerations in a parallel direction not just a single puncture wound. The same for teeth. There would be more than a single wound from a bite.

Looking at your picture it may have been a bird peck through the skull or maybe a BB shot striking the fish at a slight angle.

It likely was a very fast fatal injury and your beloved fish did not know what even happened. :-(

I hope sincerely it NEVER happens again!

C3D

Well, these replies somehow make me feel better! Oddly, I told my husband (before reading these) that I wondered if someone shot the fish. There was something odd about the 2 dead baby racoons we found. The first one definitely looked like a cat kill b/c it was...uh...torn up. The other one looked like nothing had happened to it...like it was just dead. From looking at the fish, I would guess it died the same night as baby raccoon #2. I wonder if someone shot the baby and the pellets went in the pond. Where the raccoon was, it would have lined up about 6 feet from the pond.

Makes me think something went on we don't know about, eh? Even though they wallow in the marginal areas, there is only one area that they wallow in that any animal could reach them. Anything that gets near them when they're in there spooks them so it seems odd that an animal of any kind could just cruise up and nab her.

She was also on the opposite side of the pond from where she would have had to have died and w/ an injury like that, I couldn't see her making it out of the marginal area and swimming all the way across through all of the waterlilies, etc.

BB or pellet gun IS seeming likely w/ the dead raccoon scene.

Chicka - thanks for the "quick death" consolation. Although I'll miss her and her beautiful, bright and flashy self - knowing she didn't suffer makes it ok now.

Oh, how sad. Glad to hear she wouldn't have suffered. I found my poor goldie flopping on the side of the pond with 1/3 of her sliced off. My husband put her out of misery, it was an awful thing to witness.

I'm just wondering if the scaring around the wound is a clue. It looks to me like the outline of a cross section of beak that maybe left a bruise around the wound???
I think we need a forensic expert.

Hmmm...I see what you mean, jeanner. It also looks like on the right side of the hole, that scale could be "folded" in to reveal that the hole is actually larger than it appears. She smelled really bad so we weren't examining her up close and personal. LOL Poor little girl. I know I'm laughing but I do that when I'm upset (goes over GREAT at funerals!).

I need to call CSI. hehe That or sleep in the yard and if a green or night heron comes a-stalkin...I'll get up and screech like a maddened predator!

...I forgot to ask: Does it help to have a light by the pond or not? I have a spotlight that I can setup by the pond. Does that help to deter predators?

I dont think it was shot.. my best guess is a bird of some sorts. If it was shot chances are the bb or lead pellet would still be in the fish or possibly exited out the gill. The entry wound would also be much cleaner if it was shot.. I am sorry for your loss as I have lost two fish as well to birds, I would hate to exhume the fish but if it was a pellet it possibly exited the gill and would show a winding mark through the fish. A bird attack would be straight and leave a clean mark through the body. I have installed pond netting after my two fish loses to birds and I hate it. I added the aligator but dont trust it.. with the coons that died a shotgun blast maybe 8 shot would cause a wound like your fish had; this would not be the same as a pellet gun and would not leave the same signature.. have you seen any damage to your liner? Anyway again I am sorry for your loss.. I have been there before...

It is very suspicious that you found two dead baby raccoons and your dead fish in the same area. What predator would kill both species and leave them? My guess would be the two legged type, and that is both scarey and sad. How far is your pond from your home? How accessable is it to someone without your knowledge? I am very sorry for your loss.

I have a motion activated light by my pond, and it works wonders.
No more raccoons or herons.
Not only that, but when the light gets activated, all my cats and my dog know there is something out there. The cats go stealthily creeping out the cat door, and the dog (an 8.5 pound Silky Terrier) sounds like Cujo. No predator is gonna stick around for all that!

My raccoon trap is empty this morning. :(

Also, I don't know much about them (about as much as I know about raccoons, which is everything I've read about them on this site), but did you mention on another thread that you also found a dead opossum in your yard, too?

Would the chance of an opossum being the culprit be as likely as a raccoon?

Brenda

I'm so sorry about your fish, Andrea, and I tend to agree with the others that it may be somebody with a pelet gun. I'd sure opt for a camera, or at least motion sensor lights.

This morning I looked at at the pond and saw a very young heron, the size of a large crow, walking all around and over my netted pond. What a comical scene it was as he searched and searched for a way to get into the pond! I got a distant shot through the glass door with the camera. He has his neck tucked in, so it's hard to tell it's a heron, but it sure is shaped like one.
Lil
{{gwi:217198}}

Lil, that is not a 'very young heron', that is a full grown green heron.

The same kind of bird that would have killed ademinks fish very easily.

Here is a link that might be useful: Green Heron Info

I'm gettin ready to do a "Greenlydia! here in a minute!
Yipes!

roflol...that's hilarious lillly!!! I'm literally laughing out loud. hehehe

You know, I have *never* seen a heron here - we are in the middle of the city-city...know what I mean?

HOWEVER...the next door neighbors just told me that a couple of weeks ago, they saw a full grown heron (blue heron) that was circling our yard looking to land. It got spooked by something and so never came in.

Hearing that from them makes me wonder........????

But then all of the other dead animals...????

EEEEEEEEEEK, what's going on???

Brenda, I think that opossum are strictly scavengers and not killers. They're too daggone slow in more ways than one. LOL

But what I think Brenda was saying is there are so many different animals showing up dead around there. So it may be a person killing them?
Lil

Yes, I see now (2 cups of coffee and functioning now lol).

Perhaps I should post "no shooting allowed" signs? MY WORD.LOL

"NO HUNTING OR FISHING ALLOWED! LIVE ANIMAL SANCTUARY"
And then put up a camera!
Could be someone was shooting at the raccoon and hit the fish. Is your pond holding water okay?
Lil

Seems to be ok - all I see is normal evaporation. I've been contemplating digging pretty girl back up but I think she ain't gonna be so pretty no mo'. LOL The smell was BAD yesterday...can't imagine today. Plus, her bunkmates need to RIP - I think I'll just remain in the dark. LOL

Ok, here is the worst part of the story:

Last year, had "Bunners"...wild rabbit that became tame and would eat peanut butter on a cracker out of my hand (who knew they liked PB????). He was precious and would come when you call. Well, some @#$#)@(%U#) IDIOT was flying down our BRICK street and hit and killed bunners. I bawled like a baby when I found him. I picked up his little bunners body and buried it in the backyard. Pardon me...just reliving the moment. LOL

Ok, so anyway, I planted him near the same spot. Well yesterday, I thought I had avoided him but ended up digging up a leg bone!!!!! roflol It came in handy though b/c I had to flip Neon baby over in the hole and so I used his leg bone. haaaaaa!!!

I know, I am just a weirdo...let's all say it together. LOL

Is any one else beginning to feel that if we keep ademink posting to this thread, we might find Jimmy Hoffa?

...................*crickets chirp*.......

lol

LMAO!!! Ok, not because little Bunners passed on, though. *ahem*

I actually DID mean to suggest the opossum, but I know not of that which I speak!

Not since Tana (the dog) dug up Inga's (the dog's) skull. I know nothing. Except I feel your pain and willies, Andrea!

Brenda

O man. You girls have me in tears. I'm wiping my cheeks here.

So, Andrea, I guess you're going to have to go at your pond with the fish line and the stakes. You could put little target practice cards on the stakes.

:) Mary

*There's a part of the back yard where I don't dig*
*There are two kitties back there*
*with nice wild plants growing all around*

LOL..We moved into this house almost 4 years ago...oh wow...next week 4 years! Anyhoo, about 1.5 years ago, I was in the backyard and stepped in the omnipresent low spot in the yard. I noticed there was a hard rock in the bottom covered by long grass and decided to pull it out of there. I stuck my digging fork down there and popped it out and it was a GRAVESTONE that said "Libby". Well, one thing we knew about the house we lived in was that 2 people have died in it - one older lady and one young girl many many years ago from TB. So I'm like OMG, LIBBY THE TB GIRL IS BURIED IN MY FREAKING BACKYARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I ran across the street to a man's house who's family has lived in the neighborhood for about 80 years and banged on his door. He answered and I am holding this big gravestone and screeched, "WHO IS LIBBY???? IS SHE THE DEAD GIRL????!!!!" lol

He calmly informed me that she was the family dog of the people who lived there before me.

RIP Libby.

LOL

sounds like a cat did that. cats will kill things for fun kinda like a toy to them. being you have 2 dead uneaten baby racoons that all points fingers to a domestic animal.
a cat probably swatted at the fish and killed it
the cat probably wanted to play with it, tried to scoop it out and it got too badly damaged to survive

I would have reacted the same way! This is beginning to sound like "The Pet Cemetery"!

We have a few skeletons in our yard as well. One green heron: Just after I'd installed our pond, 11 years ago, we had a visit from a green heron. The day he appeared, we were installing the icemaker in our frig. I shoo'ed the bird away, as DH beckoned me for assistance. So, I asked my son (then 14 yrs. old) to keep an eye out for the fish monger and shoo him away should he return. The next thing I know, my son says he got a fish and I got him. The green heron had returned scooped up a fish and retreated for lunch on the fence. My son shot him with a pellet gun. I was shocked, and asked why he shot the bird; it was a protected species and I'd asked him to shoo the bird away. His answer was he'd misunderstood me to say shoot the bird. Anyone who knows me, knows I'm an animal lover who would never kill anything, unless it threatened human life. I was flabbergasted to say the least, but also concerned. The bird had fallen into my neighbor's yard; I didn't know if he'd wounded it or killed it, but knew we had to discretely check its status. Not wanting to draw attention to my son's mistake, he barreled over the fence w/the use of our ladder and recovered the evidence. The bird was dead, but the fish was alive (and continued to survive). "Jimmy Heron" is buried in our backyard..........along with about 10 rats (probably more), a couple of fish and one oppossum.

The oppossum was dog kill. That about killed me! Our Samyoid has a thing for oppossums; I've taken 2 to the vet's for repair. Thank goodness the Samyoid has gone blind...........probably an oppossum curse put upon her rather than the diabetes.

The rats.......one thing the Chamber of Commerce will never tell you about, is the rats in Tampa! When we moved here I was totally disgusted! The house had been empty for 6 months, the yard totally overgrown with vegetation. Our first night in the house, we heard a noise which sounded like a herd of buffalo crossing the roof. It was 4 days before we identified the culprits, and then I was ready to move!

DH decided to put out rat traps. He was not discouraged by their numbers. I swore off any responsibilities w/traps. The first night of traps, we were sitting at the table having dinner. First, you could hear the snap of one trap, followed by many more. Sounded like the percussion section of an orchestra. I thought I'd lose my dinner. Believe me, it took only that one experience for DH to decide there had to be a better way to rid the homestead of rats. The better way, of course was to clear the property of hiding places, and at the time, it didn't seem we could move fast enough. We cleared out 4 trees (I still have 17 on the property) and all the undergrowth; then the house was tented. When I mentioned this to one of our neighbors, the neighbor's reation was, "Oh, yes, grove rats" like they were domestic pets! (Our neighborhood used to be an orange grove. Rats eat the fruit off of the trees. When they developed it, not all the rats ran away; they remained to prosper.) A few days after we'd cleared the landscaping, another neighbor was alarmed when she said she had NO idea why she suddenly had rats under her decking, but would have to deal with it. I stiffled a laugh.

Another neighbor told me he and the previous owner of our home used to sit in the back yard with pellet guns and shoot rats as they ran along the fencetop. Since he lived directly behind us, they always made sure they hunted together to avoid injury or damaging the other's home. They buried a few rats in the yard as well.

So, that's the buried treasures in our back yard....so far.

Dear Ademink...........I COULD tell some fairly amusing stories here of various animal kills around the homestead, but I shall restrain myself because I know what it feels like to lose a favorite animal. It's sad and it hurts, even if it is "just a fish" which I don't believe in anyway. But in my really humble opinion and 15 years of ponding experience, especially with Great Blue Herons, I have to say that I think your fish died from a Heron jab. I have seen too many of my own with these same sorts of wounds to have too much doubt as to the cause. A full grown Great Blue will pretty much cave the entire head in and "score" the fish, but a juvie will, and often does, not strike hard enough, the fish will get away only to die under cover somewhere else in the pond. The fact that your other fish did not freak and hide for a day or two doesn't mean anything as this is also something I can personally vouch for........that a Great Blue can be standing right on the edge of the pond finishing off the last of one fish and the others are lined up like the idiots at a Disneyland "E" ride! Anyway, toots, I am very sorry about your fish and I could be totally wrong about how it died. There were some other very viable options offered here. Great Blues are a "protected" species here in Washington State, but those of us with ponds and no fear of guns will not hesitate for an instant to dispatch one of them. They really are magnificent birds, but I believe I have the right to protect my "livestock," to say nothing of my pets! Perhaps when the sadness has passed, I will tell you the story of the cow in my pond! Talk about a BBQ...........
Greenlydia

Ok, consider my mourning period over...I've got to hear this story (especially if YOU are tellin' it LOL)!!!!!

LOL at disneyland

Andrea, I'm really sorry about your loss. The heron theory sounds right, don't know about the raccoons though. As far as the fish not hiding after a heron attack, I suspect mine wouldn't now that I've trained them to come to me for food. In the past I left my fish as wild as possible and a heron attack could mean I wouldn't see the fish for days. But I've recently caught FROGS fishing at my feeding ring. And I got a brief glimpse of a juvenile water snake. Sigh. It never ends.

I'm with Mary on the fishline. It does seem to do the trick here. Herons do fly over, but keep going.

Sharon

I just spent 15 minutes registering for GardenWeb.com so that I could reply to this thread -- it starts out sad and serious and ends ridiculous and absolutely hilarious! It's a shame that people who aren't trying to find out what killed their fish will never read about poor Libby the TB girl, the difference between shooing and shooting, and about greenlydia's pondcow!

Seriously, some people pay for this kind of entertainment, but it's free on Gardenweb.com!

roflol! I forgot about this thread and it IS hilarious! I love where one of Brenda's dogs digs up another one's skull. haaaaaa!!!

Maureen, you need to search for a thread called "What fell into the pond?" I'll have to see if I can find it and link it here.

LOL!!! Oh, man, I'd totally forgotten about this thread! I was laughing so HARD at Andrea's, "WHO IS LIBBY???? IS SHE THE DEAD GIRL????!!!!"

*tears of laughter running down my cheeks*

Brenda

AhhhhHaaaa, Just about peed my britches all over again! No, you cannot buy humor on tape, video, TV or on radio like you find here.

It's the Jimmy Hoffa search that gets the tears rolling down my cheeks all over again. Ooo, o, o, o. My sides are aching.

Well.
That was the entertainment today, now I have to go outside and work - pond maintenance. Heehee.

:) Mary