10 replies to this topic

[mattknepley]

It's been about as cold as it gets for a SC winter.

I reckon my outside pond fish have been adequately winter-exposed to a point where if they don't spawn, it isn't cuz they didn't get a seasonal cool-down!

 DSCF4958.JPG   304.83KB   1 downloads

 DSCF4956.JPG   180.15KB   0 downloads

 DSCF4959.JPG   212.55KB   0 downloads

~220 pounds of NANFA fishnerd can't be wrong. Or the 50 lbs of Twerp thrown in for good measure!

[Michael Wolfe]

I got a couple of those at my place as well... except I can actually see the flame chubs actively swimming around under the ice!

[mattknepley]

I haven't seen 'em swimming under the ice; I guess they're buried down in the plants, dead leaves, and whatnot. Curious to see how they behave once spring comes. I have a kiddie pool full o' gambusia that I don't worry about at all. Those things are the cockroaches of fish...

[Michael Wolfe]

What do you have out there? I dont see many swimming except for the flame chubs, they seem to not care about the cold.

[gerald]

I tried Gambusia in a 5-ft diam 10-in deep kiddie pool (on a concrete driveway) and they did not survive the winter, nor did Heterandria in a 15-gal tub (half-barrel).  Umbra have made it through the past 3 winters in the 5' pool.  Good to know flame chubs can take it; I would not have guessed that based on range.  Phil brought me some tank-bred flames last week when he came down for the Raleigh Aqu Soc event. 

[Michael Wolfe]

These are about a year and a half old now... they are Bob Muller captive bred individuals that I bought as tiny slivers at the Kentucky Convention.  I put half inside and half outside last year and they survived... then switched em in for out and out for in... and they seem to still be doing well.  I think remember Kathlina telling us that she saw them spawning very early (like in February in a flooded farmers field) and also mentioned breaking through the ice to see them.

[mattknepley]

What do you have out there? I dont see many swimming except for the flame chubs, they seem to not care about the cold.

I put Umbra in there last summer, but I think I lost them all shortly after being introduced into the pond. They did not "rehome" well at all. But it is possible there is one in there I have missed. In late fall I introduced several Etheostoma collis, and those are what I am most interested in. The pond is substantially deeper than the water I usually find them in (not to mention current-less), but my experience with E. collis in aquariums is that as long as they have thick plants to hide in and either low or no current, they're happy.

Other than that, there are a couple fry growing out in there, either threadfin or gizzard shad. They aren't thriving, however.

Gerald- the gambusia survived just fine last winter after being froze near-solid. Went out there just now to look in on 'em, and there's all sizes of 'em swimming around like the recent icing was nothing...

[mikez]

I envy your tub ponds. I tried one on my porch a few years back, froze clean to the bottom.

[FirstChAoS]

I hope they are well oxygenated to avoid winterkill.

 

http://www.aquaweed.... Fact Sheet.pdf

[gerald]

Good article ... thanks.  One thing it does not mention is that some plant species die back extensively and decay while others (e.g. Elodea canadensis) go dormant but don't die back as much.   Although I suppose in MI or NH with thick snow over the ice for months (rather than a week or 2 here in NC) it would likely die back more.

[mikez]

This will be a tough year in the northeast for winter kill. The water was low at the beginning of winter and the snow pack is record deep. Will be into April before it's gone.
My fishing buddy already found one of his shallow ponds to have stinky water when he drilled holes. He caught no fish, had no bites. A sure sign of winter kill.