Fish For High Elevation Outdoor Ponds

[4Nines]

I've been working on my outdoor water feature that has a large pond at the top that overflows down a river rock stream to another large pond. I would like to stock both ponds with some fish and I'm looking for suggestions on hardy fish that will do well at 8,000ft elevation in the arid mountains of New Mexico. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Rocky998]

I've been working on my outdoor water feature that has a large pond at the top that overflows down a river rock stream to another large pond. I would like to stock both ponds with some fish and I'm looking for suggestions on hardy fish that will do well at 8,000ft elevation in the arid mountains of New Mexico. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

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I personally don't have any recommendations but it's a beautiful pond!

 

[Colin_T]

What are the pond dimensions (length x width x height)?

What is the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness) and pH of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).

 

[Back in the fold]

My very first thought would be some type of fish native to your area in New Mexico. There must be some small minnows that are around there. If not , then goldfish.

 

[emeraldking]

I've been working on my outdoor water feature that has a large pond at the top that overflows down a river rock stream to another large pond. I would like to stock both ponds with some fish and I'm looking for suggestions on hardy fish that will do well at 8,000ft elevation in the arid mountains of New Mexico. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

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There are a number of wild swordtail strains that would do well. Same goes for a number of Goodeids.

 

[4Nines]

What are the pond dimensions (length x width x height)?

What is the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness) and pH of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).

Each pond is about 5’x5’x2’. I haven’t done a water test yet, but they have essentially been filled with rain water.

 

[4Nines]

I ended up going down to the local aquarium/fish store and picked out some goldfish, koi and butterfly koi. I also added a couple of inpond pumps and filters with lights.

Pennington Aquagarden, Inpond 5 in 1 Pond & Water Pump, Filter, UV Clarifier, LED Spotlight and Fountain, All in One solution for a Clean, Clear, and Beautiful pond, for Ponds up to 300 Gallons https://a.co/d/cb5M2Fu

I made some fish caves out of rocks I had around the property and so far, everyone seems happy!

 

[Colin_T]

The koi are going to get to large for the ponds. Most koi carp reach 18 inches+ and they can grow to over 3 feet in length. They won't get to 3ft in your ponds but they might hit a foot.

 

[4Nines]

The koi are going to get to large for the ponds. Most koi carp reach 18 inches+ and they can grow to over 3 feet in length. They won't get to 3ft in your ponds but they might hit a foot.

Any idea how long it will take them to get too large for my tank? A couple of years?

 

[Colin_T]

1 to 2 years depending on food. Lots of food and water changes and they can reach 12 inches in a year, but more likely in the smaller ponds it will take 2 years.

 

[4Nines]

1 to 2 years depending on food. Lots of food and water changes and they can reach 12 inches in a year, but more likely in the smaller ponds it will take 2 years.

Will cold weather slow their growth? It looks like I will probably only be able to feed them in the summertime because that's the only time it will be over 60 degrees. So I probably only have another two months of feeding or so.

 

[4Nines]

My Koi really seem to like this food:

TetraPond Koi Vibrance 1.43... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002APOE0/?tag=ff0d01-20

Any other food recommendations or will that about cover it for the warm feeding season?

 

[Colin_T]

Yes, cold water will slow their growth rate.

The koi food should be fine but they also need plant matter in their diet. If you can grow Duckweed on the surface of the ponds, the fish should eat that too.

 

[4Nines]

Yes, cold water will slow their growth rate.

The koi food should be fine but they also need plant matter in their diet. If you can grow Duckweed on the surface of the ponds, the fish should eat that too.

Great, thanks for the advice!

 

[4Nines]

I had my first predator from what I can tell. I just pulled a snake out of the pond. Any ideas on how to keep snakes away?