Does anyone know of a way to keep Blue Herons out of my pond? I've found 2 10" redear about 4 feet on the bank with holes in their heads. A friend of mine had this problem a few years ago and they were catching nice bass the same way. I guess the fish is too big for them to swallow.
I know "how" to get rid of them, but it's not legal! Would a scare crow type thing work?

I use staked lines. GBH's either walk the banks or wade in. They don't land in water unless they are sure it's shallow. If there is staked line in their way they can't get to the fish. I purchase furring strips from the local lumber yard and makes stakes out of them. Once I drive the stakes in at water's edge with a rubber mallet I screw in one inch dry wall screw 3 or 4 inches above the water line, another one up about 4 inches more and a third up a little farther.

I string cheap mono from Walmart in the 25 to 50 lb. test rang from screw to screw around the pond. Wrap the mono around each screw a few times and then loop it for it to hold.

It's not the eye sore you may think it is nor does it hinder pond use, and you only need a new stake when the bank turns. Two on a straight run at enough.

The idea is to have the lines low enough that the bird can not go under it but high enough it can't go over the top line.

3S rule!

Great Thinking Cecil!! I am going to have to put it to use

paint ball gun works too

Been there done that when I got a federal permit to kill a couple a year because I do some aquaculture. Guess what? Within a couple of weeks another one took it's place. The stakedlines work 24/7 vs. a gun that only works when you're there.

You would be amazed at the night activity of these birds on a full moon night while you're sawing logs.

Thanks Cecil! I will try that. Yes, when one "disappears" another always takes its place! They know when I'm around....

I have done Cecil's idea above last year and it's worked to some degree. One needs to remember that your pond water may play a role in this as well. Right now your pond is full I bet. In the middle of the summer at least mine will end up 4 feet from the fence I put in and the dang bird will land in a tree and just drop down in front of the fence! They are not stupid. If they want in your pond bad enough they will work it out. I would also go with the 30lbs or higher line. I used 20 and I have found a couple of spots where mine is broken. So either the bird got into it and couldn't get out or maybe a deer broke it I am not sure?? Either way it's the best idea like Cecil says that you can use 24/7.

RC

Yes they are smart! Back when I had the permit I swear they knew the range of my shotgun. Rifle isn't allowed for the permit and I wasn't comfortable using one with close neighbors. Besides I suck at accuracy with a rifle!

I went to 3 1/2 inch buckshot to "reach out and touch someone." LOL

RC51 yes if your water level goes down they will take advantage of that. Fortunately that is not a problem here as I have a high capacity well.

Cecil I bought a couple of those plastic alligators that Zep had mentioned, and they've actually worked well. I stuck them in the shallow part of my brood pond where my BG spawn, and not a footprint or sign of any creature.

I just used decoy weights, and let them float in about a 20' radius, and even varmints are avoiding the area. Time will tell, but so far they've been great.

Fireshot that's good to know! I always wondered if those alligators would work? Thanks for that info and keep us posted on that ok.

RC

Just an update...my alligator decoys have worked pretty well. In fact they have completely scared off the water-turkey, but I have been noticing a white bird with long sharp beak and a gray one that looks like he's outta the stone age in my ponds...the gator decoys don't seem to be scaring them.

Nice I have been thinking about getting one but wasn't sure if it was worth the money?? I have one area with no fence around it and it is shallow I thought about using one there and now I just might.

Thanks,
RC

RC like I say the gator decoy doesn't seem to be working for me on what I assume is a white heron and a gray heron....but worked against a water turkey.

Yeah you know if they could make one of them that had a battery operated motion sensor in it's head to make a growling sound and open it's mouth for about 5 seconds and slowly close!! Then I bet them birds would think twice!

It might worth it if it will keep cormorants away. I guess wading birds arn'te worried and a diving bird is.

If GBH's are the problem, but a GBH decoy through Cabela's or Bass Pro and stake it out and walla...end of problem...GBH's are extremely territorial and will not usually land where another one is already...It has worked for me 100%..they just fly on by..I had one anyways as a confidence decoy for waterfowl hunting here in Ky..They really do work..Or at least here they do...

http://www.basspro.com/Flambeau-Egret-and-Blue-Heron-Decoys/product/35028/

I wonder if it would work on a bird that is too far north to know what a gator is?

It'd be a fun project to build one with a jointed tail with an attached hose and pump to get it to swim back and forth like a water hose that is running and snaking back and forth in the water. You could put it on a timer to shut off randomly to make it more natural.

The ultimate would be motion activated sensor to get it to move close to anything that moves. Then a secondary sensor that causes it's mouth to open when it gets close to what activated it's sensor.

Cecil what's funny is I have wood ducks and they could care less. Maybe since they're resident, they're used to them.

Has anybody tried an electric fence?

Or they know that can get away before the gator gets close enough?



Yes I heard of people using them for herons. They claim when they make contact they do what can only be described as a break dance! They aren't that expensive really.

I knew a crayfish farm that is now out of business that used one with enough juice that killed herons on contact. Seems to me that would be dangerous.

300wsm from the patio makes a powderpuff! I look at it as no different than deer destroying my crops, or turkeys eating my freshly planted corn. the dang things look like a goose flying backwards when they are in the air....go hit Big Creek, The Wabash or even the Ohio! Just leave my little water hole alone!

Maybe I'll get a pet Gator! The plastic form....Cecil. Dead coyote would be a good choice, but here, they see any movement near my house they are airborn. across the pond would be 125 yd shot

You guys could make some of these out of used tires. They might work.

I have found my AR seems to deter them pretty well. Maybe I'm just looking for a reason to shoot 30 rounds in 5 seconds. $$$
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOuMLa0nvT4&list=UUtsKh7PcjwdZIzWlkTRYkyQ&index=4

Happy to hear this worked for you. Reviews seem to be 50-50.

Ditto. The birds aren't dummies and with some they will figure out the decoy is not real. And I have seen more than one on a pond so they must not always be territorial. I would say it's imperative to at least keep moving the decoy around.

I've "heard" that those whistling bottle rockets are a great deterrant(sp) . Even with Canadian geese!!!

A bottle works to make them fly off but mine just come back again and again. (Herons that is).

Cecil:

We caught a YP in the pond today that was about 10" long and had an old healed stab wound (chunk missing) from it's dorsal area, right behind the dorsal fin. It was completely healed up. The fish was released back into the pond.

I wonder if some strategically placed inexpensive battery powered motion detector alarms would scare Herons off? The Herons around my pond seem to be skittish of man made sounds. Might work for a small pond.

I haven't found anything that will consistently keep the BH's away from my pond. I bet the fishing line trick would work but mine is too big to try this on.

I do know that they can really take a large fish out of the population...like others here I've found eating size BG and LMB laying on the bank with stab wounds...assume that the BH was interrupted.

I quit worrying about Blue Herons and focus on Cormorants and Pelicans as they do a lot more fish damage than the 3 or 4 Blue Herons that live in the area.

Pelicans are a spring and fall problem; Cormorants mostly a spring problem.

I have found that scaring them off with things zinging into the water all around them works well on both species. A Cormorant hates to fly when cold and wet while a Pelican just plain hates to take flight unless he has to. It both cases it appears to be hard work. After 2 or three scare-offs the word gets around and the Pelicans disappear. Cormorants need multiple encouragements and will eventually give up as well.

The worst possible thing is to have Coromants and Pelicans on the pond at the same time as they work together to harvest your fish for you.

For zinging to work you need to live and work by your pond so you can keep fairly steady zinging pressure on the birds.

Now here again this could be improved. If the decoy had a swinging neck and head like a bobble head that would move with the wind that would make it look much more real. Or had a mechanism that you could set to make the birds neck move down towards the water every 10 minutes or something you could put the battery compartment in the body of the bird. It would just need a little movement and I think it would work much better!!

RC