Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations What do you think?

I reported last fall that I had a fish kill, which lasted about five weeks. Until then, I was amazed at how the fish were progressing in such a short amount of time. I had HBG, RE, SMB, YP, and WE. For forage, I had millions of FHM and GS. In total, I found maybe 100 dead fish--an assortment of all species. All SMB were lost, a couple WE, but very few HBG, which was the bulk of fish in the pond. Since then, we have seen NO fish at all and have been unable to get a single bite while fishing. Normally, I'd see millions of FHM immediately after ice out. Catching all species was ridiculously easy as well. With all the rain we've had, the water has remained pretty murky all spring. Still, the pond and fish behavior is completely changed from what it was in the past. I think I've been pretty patient with waiting to see signs of life, but I'm starting to feel I may have lost everything. The weather here was crazy last year. We had so much rain through July, none of the fields got planted, which meant no fertilizer or chemical runoff. Then we went 3 months with no rain, and the pond got a little low. Any thoughts??

Brook, all your species (except HBG) need pretty clear water to bite well. Unless you counted dead SMB equaling what were stocked, and no spawn has occurred, I seriously doubt all were lost. Also, the likelihood of a TOTAL fish kill is almost impossible. It's not uncommon to have slow/no biting in murkier water after ice out....just give it some time.

plain, uncoated minnow trap would at least tell you if there are small fish, forage or otherwise?

I would try out a large throw net or trap. Any chance of getting someone there with a large net to drag across? It may be the only way to know for sure.

Like they said, put a trap out, try a cast net, maybe put a set line out, either a worm or minnow on the bottom. Patients is a vertue.

How long would you proffesionals wait until he takes further action if life isn't seen? Once the water hits 55* or 60*

What is your water temp now?


Could be you have fewer predators with enough forage so your fish aren't hungry? But not a total fish kill.... Good luck, keep us posted

Brook,

Were you able to determine the cause of the fish kill last fall? Made any changes to help prevent it from happening again?

Thanks, all. I do not know the exact cause of the fish kill. From all the research I've done and the symptoms of the dead/dying fish, I assumed it was disulfuric acid??? that was released after turnover. I've tried but failed to find someone in my area to do a water analysis. I did have more FA last year, due, I think, to the cold, wet spring we had. I also get a good share of leaves blown into the pond. I'm just shocked at how completely changed this pond has become. It is still what I consider young, being built in the fall of 2012. It has always been teeming with aquatic life. Now, we see nothing but a couple turtles and bullfrog tadpoles--no fish or frogs at all. Its color has been off since last fall's event as well. It always cleared pretty quickly but now has a kind of milky, dirty hue to it. It receives good drainage and fills quickly. Regardless, I need to decide soon whether to restock and start over--or not. If the water is bad, the restocking would be foolish.

Where did you get the information about disulfuric acid being present in deep water of a stratified pond???. Disulfuric acid is a stronger acid than sulfuric acid. I have never read where even sulfuric acid is naturally produced in a pond. However, Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a common chemical produced during anaerobic conditions in a pond.

Did the pond have bottom aeration? Does the pond receive good wind action that results in wave action lapping the shoreline? You did not mention much about the shape, size, depth arrangement, and surrounding vegetation of the pond. You should also provide a link to your post or thread from last fall so members can see some background or history of your pond.

Sorry. I got my acid wrong. What I read fit the symptoms of my fish. Forgive me if I get it wrong, but I understand that a pond can turn over and release this (H2S), which damages gills and fish die in stages over a period of time. The SMB were the first and most extreme casualties, and the number dead closely equaled the number stocked. They were only 2 years old (12 inches),so I doubt any reproduction. Over the next five weeks, I continued to find around 20 per weekend dead--all species. I would see struggling fish in the shallows. The last dead fish were grass carp, a couple GS, and just a couple HBG. I have seen no sign of any fish since, and normally they are everywhere and have been easy to catch. I managed one ice fishing venture, where I probed the middle and deepest regions. Absolutely nothing.

The pond is a little under an acre, 12-14 feet at its deepest, square shaped, and does receive some wind. The north shore has trees, but the rest is covered in fescue. All banks are rather steep except for the four corners. I have little aquatic vegetation other than some WP.

I plan on having bottom aeration put in this summer, assuming I'm not wiped out by some medical bills I've encountered recently. I've contacted several sources in 3 different counties (health depts, local dnr, farm services, etc.) and can't find anyone to do a water test. I've even made a couple calls to Indiana. I hope I'm wrong and am just being impatient, but the changes in the pond and its inhabitants are definitely disturbing. Anyway, I must decide fairly soon if restocking will be necessary--if even possible. Again, I thank all.

It is easy to get chemical names incorrect. I suspect your fish kill was do to a strong turnover where water with no DO and loaded with H2S mixed up into the thin upper 5-6ft layer and ultimately killed most if not all the fish. As the summer progresses the H2S increases more & more to very high concentrations by late summer. Note there can be a few survivors that are small size who best tolerate DO loss. SMB are very sensitive to low DO and H2S so it makes sense they died first. I am positive the water coming out of winter is now good enough for restocking the pond. H2S relatively quickly dissipates and DO recovers to high saturated conditions by winter and then again in spring. If you install aeration and start it after May 20, begin aerating slowly for 1hr 1st day, 2hr second day and 3-4 hrs the 3rd day. Then the system can operate 24/7 if desired.