Tropical Fish Forums

LittleMousling · Advisors Joined: 30 Dec 2004 Location: WNY, USA

The problem is that conditions change quickly in a pond - temperature, pH (rain, etc), hardness, nitrates - everything. There's a difference between a commercial fish pond in a greenhouse structure and a fairly normal pond in someone's backyard, and I just don't think Discus could handle it. Sorry. Lots of other great choices though! Mbuna would be my choice - bright and colorful even from the top, and fun to watch.
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Cher_Rox · Members Joined: 24 Jul 2005 Location: Arizona

Really good point. Plus... what would you be able to see of the discus from teh top anyways... LOL. I think I want a big fish. I would only be putting about two or three in the pond, to keep down on filth. The 'tank' of the month is awesome! It's a water garden. What big fish would you recommend?
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LittleMousling · Advisors Joined: 30 Dec 2004 Location: WNY, USA

Frontosa spring to mind - a small colony (6-8 fish) would be an incredible display.

Or perhaps some big CAs - A Midas, say, or albino oscars.
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Cher_Rox · Members Joined: 24 Jul 2005 Location: Arizona

The Midas are... well, just very appealing to me. LOL I was thinking about Oscars but since the have a ton of filth I wasn't sure... but I would still love it! Do all large fish, including Frontosa, just produce a lot of waste in general? Also, do frontosa need to be in a colony of that number... I was hoping for just about 3 BIG fish.

So far, I love the idea of Oscars or Frontosa. I'll keep looking too. Very Happy

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LittleMousling · Advisors Joined: 30 Dec 2004 Location: WNY, USA

Yes, all large fish produce a lot of waste; it's just a question of body mass. How many Neons would fill a 12" oscar - a thousand, maybe? So, no wonder they produce a lot of waste.

I wouldn't recommend fewer than six Frontosa, they're colony fish.
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nonamethefish · Moderators Joined: 06 Feb 2003

Other things to worry about would be birds coming in for fast food, nervous fish jumping out, and dragonflies dropping eggs into the pond which will cause noticeable damage if you are trying to raise fry in the pond.

Works wonderfully...if only I had enough extra fish to fill my ponds!

Cher_Rox · Members Joined: 24 Jul 2005 Location: Arizona

Well, I guess keeping two Oscars would be OK, right? I really don't want to have a lot of fish. I want it to be a bit more natural. So the less fish, the better.
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LittleMousling · Advisors Joined: 30 Dec 2004 Location: WNY, USA

Sure. And you can look for lighter-colored ones so you can see them easily in the pond.

We have heron problems in my area - we tried netting, which worked but was ugly, heavy plant growth, which worked but obscured the fish, and finally we found the perfect solution - string fishing line several times across the pond. It's nearly invisible, won't get in thw way of your plants, won't obscure the fish, but will keep herons out and the fish safe.

For other predators, I don't have suggestions - they're the only ones we've dealt with.
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Cher_Rox · Members Joined: 24 Jul 2005 Location: Arizona

Here in Arizona we don't normally have birds like that. Maybe some Hawks.. but usually you don't see those to often in the city. That sort of thing shouldn't really be a problem.
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klbrz · Regulars Joined: 23 Aug 2004 Location: Bahamas

I don't know the differences in temp. between arizona and the bahamas but I keep central american and african cichlids outside year round. Some of my friends use palm trees for shade. That seems to work very well.