If none of your plants or rocks are disturbed and you found no scales, fins or carcasses with heads chewed off then it is NOT a raccoon.

Could be a heron or a kingfisher. They both take fish and leave no trace. If the missing fish were 8" long it is likely to be a heron.

I have seen a kingfisher take a 6" fish but 8" might be a bit big.

Look out the windows very early in the morning.

Herons injure fish by stabbing at them with their beak. Can leave scrapes and cuts.

You can cover the pond with a net or criss cross fishing line.

I did find some fish skin (well my dog did) in the back yard. But there has not been anything disturbed around the pond. Do you still think it is not a raccoon?

It might be a fox or a coyote but not a raccoon. A raccoon will dig into or dump pots and take fish out to play with them til they die. Then they ignore them. The heron is still the best choice for a culprit. They usually show up very early in the morning.

Thank you! I doubt it would be a fox or coyote since they don't come around the big city like the raccoons do. Heron it is. I will take measures to protect the fish from them.

Raccoons will turn over rocks or knock them into the water. They will tear up waterlilies, I've had them pulled right up out of their pots. They also tip pots over or off shelves into the deeper parts of the pond. They are very destructive in their search for food. They often just eat the heads. They don't dive for fish, they reach for them. Tame fish can think they are a person with food and come right to them...

Herons can spear them with their beaks a lot deeper than a raccoon can grab them.

I had fish missing and then one with punctures in it laying in the yard. I kept watch for several days and finally caught a hawk sitting 4 feet above the pond on the retaining wall watching them swimming. The next thing I knew he swooped down and tried to grab one. I put a net over the pond for the rest of that summer.

Our pond is pretty big, just the water surface area is 17 x 25 feet and then the rocks around it and the waterfall, I would need a pretty big net. I hope I don't have to go that route. We picked up a kitty litter box cover (large plastic one that looks like an igloo). I placed it at the bottom of the deepest part of the pond and hope that gives them at least a good place to hide for now till we can figure out something better.

You could consider getting a Sprinkler Scarecrow, here is a product, now sure how good but has good reviews. My friend has something similar and has good reviews for scare intruders off.

http://www.amazon.ca/Rittenhouse-amzn_ca_cro-102-Scarecrow-Activated-Sprinkler/dp/B004I3P992

I am considering getting one to play it safe

Pecan, we have a standalone fountain sitting on top a concrete block (open ends to the water). With floating plants around the pot. I've noticed that the fish hang out mostly under the pot or in the concrete block. And if they get spooked by movement, that is where they dart.

{{gwi:219982}}

You could make a floating plant island and anchor it to a couple of concrete block in the middle of your pond. I'm thinking that would provide similar type over-fin cover and still look nice.

~dianne

PS - one year I watched a hawk swoop down and grab it's prey of choice - our dogs toy snake. So maybe one of the bright orange fish decoy's might work?

People who live in cities are often unaware of the number of animals who survive and thrive in their neighborhoods. While foxes do tend to live where there are large areas of meadows and trees coyotes have become indigenous to cities. New York City has a large population of them. Central Park is a perfect breeding ground. You can check with your local Pest Control Agency to see what is common in your area.

I am an insomniac and often sit outside in the dark by my pond and watch the animals come to the pond. The variety is amazing but the raccoon is the most invasive, devious and destructive. They are also vastly entertaining.

The birds are a big problem because they are mostly protected. There are large numbers that hunt and eat fish including hawks. Nets and the Scarecrow are good protection but they don't always work. If you have a newly killed fish left behind you can see the way it was caught by the injuries. A hawk would leave several scratches from its claws on both sides while a heron would leave only one or two marks from its bill. Steep sides to the pond with no shelves or very deep ones prevent the heron's access. Overhanging branches and other obstructions inhibit the hawk's hunting method. A heron swallows the fish whole so it leaves no trace behind a successful hunt while a hawk tears the fish apart after landing. It might leave scraps behind.

Interesting information, thanks!

The fish that was injured seems to be healing quite well. I was concerned he might not make it. He had one small hole (probably from a bill) but also had scrapes on his side and his one eye was red and swolen.

I like the idea of floating plants anchored for cover. I put a kitty ltter box cover in the bottom for them to hide in, but they don't seem to use it. Floating plants would probably work much better.

Floating island planters work very well for cover, especially if you use evergreen plants

I found one of the missing fish swimming around in the pond. Weird because I had been doing a head count everyday for a week and he wasn't there. I don't know where he was hiding. Silly fish.

But the other missing fish was found as well. But there was just the skeleton left. We have an irrigation ditch that runs along the back of our property and we found the skeleton on the side of the ditch in one piece just picked clean.

Does that help narrow down the culprit of this fish murder? Are there specific animals/birds that would leave the skeleton in tact like that?

It is possible that the heron was startled and dropped it and various critters did the actual eating. Or it couldn't get it all the way down it's throat and gave up.