Pond drying up- But how to round up/save the fish? - 07/24/09 01:13 AM
I did research in the various forums, and couldn't find anything on this question and felt this forum was the best place for this question. And please don't laugh too hard about the following... it ain't funny to me!
We have a small pond near Midway, Texas that thanks to the lovely 105 degree temperatures of late, has literally "collapsed". It used to be about 6- 8 ft deep and now at its deepest is about 2 feet deep - again, thanks to no rain of significance. It is not leaking. It has always done well until this year with the prolonged drought and lack of recharge. (Others have had rain but we haven't been so fortunate).
It's a smaller pond, probably maybe now 75 feet- if that- wide. We dug a new deeper pond (stock tank size) not far away last year that was full and is holding water quite well.
I feel that I need to transport these critters in the little pond to a new home- the new tank. (By the way, I have stocked the new tank with the "brothers and sisters" of the small tank fish/minnows- and they love it.)
There are lots of minnows and the rest are perch of all sizes, and I really hate to lose them if I don't have to.
I suppose I could run well water into it, but the water comes from a community well and I think (know) the neighbors would frown upon such a thing.
Obviously a seine (sp) or net comes to mind, but I will probably have to do the job by "me, myself and I" (aka alone).... and usually (I think) seines require two folks?
Thus, any ideas from any of you as to how to "round up" the little devils up efficiently by myself? And yes, I realize this is a great opportunity to clean out the little pond, which it needs. But my concern now is that I really have no real clue how to get em out to save the fish by myself. Or maybe I should just wait and hope for rain?
Sure would appreciate any thoughts. I just can't see the wife helping on this, and the neighbors are gone on vacation, and the thing is going dry alarmingly fast (but no fish kill yet!)
I really would appreciate thoughts on this rather unusual request, and and yes, I do subscribe to Pond Boss, and I read it cover to cover. Great stuff!
Taylor
We have a small pond near Midway, Texas that thanks to the lovely 105 degree temperatures of late, has literally "collapsed". It used to be about 6- 8 ft deep and now at its deepest is about 2 feet deep - again, thanks to no rain of significance. It is not leaking. It has always done well until this year with the prolonged drought and lack of recharge. (Others have had rain but we haven't been so fortunate).
It's a smaller pond, probably maybe now 75 feet- if that- wide. We dug a new deeper pond (stock tank size) not far away last year that was full and is holding water quite well.
I feel that I need to transport these critters in the little pond to a new home- the new tank. (By the way, I have stocked the new tank with the "brothers and sisters" of the small tank fish/minnows- and they love it.)
There are lots of minnows and the rest are perch of all sizes, and I really hate to lose them if I don't have to.
I suppose I could run well water into it, but the water comes from a community well and I think (know) the neighbors would frown upon such a thing.
Obviously a seine (sp) or net comes to mind, but I will probably have to do the job by "me, myself and I" (aka alone).... and usually (I think) seines require two folks?
Thus, any ideas from any of you as to how to "round up" the little devils up efficiently by myself? And yes, I realize this is a great opportunity to clean out the little pond, which it needs. But my concern now is that I really have no real clue how to get em out to save the fish by myself. Or maybe I should just wait and hope for rain?
Sure would appreciate any thoughts. I just can't see the wife helping on this, and the neighbors are gone on vacation, and the thing is going dry alarmingly fast (but no fish kill yet!)
I really would appreciate thoughts on this rather unusual request, and and yes, I do subscribe to Pond Boss, and I read it cover to cover. Great stuff!
Taylor