Massive Goldfish Invasion! How Can I Get Them Out?

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cooledwhip

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Hello everyone!! This is one of the first topics in the Field Reports section. I'm excited about that!! Anyway, I was at a local small park and it has lots of ponds and small lakes. I was on the bridge and I saw a GIANT GOLDFISH kinda on the side so i crawled down the rocks to see it. I grabbed it and it was still alive. I thought it was dead but it was just caught in some algae. I inspected him and I assume he was a comet goldfish but he looked very different from that. He had some finrot and a  couple of other parasites I'm guessing so I put him back, and expected he wouldn't make it.
 
I then went to one of the park guides (This really is a small park, but he wasn't a guide actually he just worked for the township and was cleaning trees and debris and stuff) He said that a long time ago a man dumped in a few goldfish and now they have massive nests and spawn everywhere in the lake. He says there are hundreds of them!! I thought this was really cool! The goldfish are a different species it looks like. Almost as if they have been selectively bred. I guess they kinda evolved and adapted to their environment so that means they have lost some and gained some parts of their body. It's really cool and I will just say that these guys have MASSIVE mouths. The only other fish in the lakes/ponds they are in are some bluegill, I saw some minnows, smaller fish, tadpoles, etc. No big game fish like largemouth bass. (Which I fish for and was upset to hear there are none, but more excited to hear the entire pond is filled with goldfish!!)
 
The guy said they are very invasive and they tried getting rid of them but it never worked out. It doesn't do too much damage but It's GOLDFISH in this pond... Haha
 
Anyway, I plan on going back and fishing/netting for a bunch of these guys so I can bring them home and do more research on them and observe them more. I also wanna put some in my mini pond. These guys are cool!!
 
How would I go about that? Should I use a REALLY tiny fishing hook or just throw a crayfish net in the middle of the lake?
 
They are about 6-8 inches in diameter. 
 
I can't wait to upload some pictures!! I have a couple of the one fish I did grab, but he had some fin rot like I said and didn't look the healthiest. I hope the ones I catch will be healthier!!
 
Goldfish or carp (which I suspect the dumped goldfish would have reverted to) should take almost any bait you wish to try them on, anything from earthworms to bread. I wouldnt use too small a hook since the goldfish will likely swallow it and then you wont be able to remove it without causing damage or death internally. I guess a circle hook would be the best to try since they are designed to catch the fish in the corner of the mouth without being swallowed whole. A float on the rig will probably also be good since goldfish wont really "strike" at a bait but rather suck at it and the gentle motion could easily be missed.
Alternatively if there are not lots of rocks and timbers in the water you could try throwing in some dry dog food (or cat) even chicken feed pellets to act as an attractant for the goldfish and then use a bait cast net to see if you can get them.
Just be sure that they are definantly allowed to be taken, goldfish/ carp in Australia are a major pest and must be killed when encountered and our other biggest pest Tilapia must be destroyed (killed) but are strictly no take, because they are not allowed to even be kept in aquariums. So always check with your local or states wildlife authority before taking any species even if it is to only photograph and later release the fish again.
 
On a side not in a lake in Tasmania that was overrun with wild goldfish the authorities set up a program of running electrical current through the water in front of a boat and scooping out all the stunned goldfish, from memory it took a couple of years but they have now eradicated the goldfish from the lake. There is a similar program taking place in British Columbia around Baker Creek and Dragon Lake.
 
Sounds good. It's not a state park just a small city park I can't wait to go back and get a lottaaa fish. xD
 
In my cement pond,there is a climbing perch and a goldfish.He eat everythings he meets.So i fishing for him and the goldfish eat the bait.but when i try to pull him up,he swimming away without the hook.The hook still on my line.then,I can't find him anymore
 
Put some Channel cats and Bullheads in any pond with Goldfish and the Goldfish will soon be pretty much a memory.
 
This thread is from 2016 ;)
 

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