Sticklebacks are a great addition to any small garden pond you have just built. Unfortunately, they may affect the amphibian and insect population.
The most effective way to maintain a sustainable ecosystem in your small pond is to avoid putting larger animals like koi into the pond.
In nature, fish have their habitat and associate with other members of wildlife. Such species can overwhelm small garden ponds and prey on smaller animals such as frogs or new tadpoles.
They may even pollute it unless you have filters.
This is why it is beneficial to have separate fish ponds to maintain different types of fish.
What are Sticklebacks?
The threespine stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus, is a tiny fish species with an average body length of 5cm. It is found in fresh waters and salt waters.
In laboratory conditions, sticklebacks can live up to five years.
When the fish are kept in a captive setting, such as a fish pond, they can live up to eight years on average.
How do Sticklebacks Behave?
Regardless of the type of habitat, threespine sticklebacks are social and shoal.
Threespine sticklebacks utilize these groups as safety against attacks from potential predators.
What Do Sticklebacks Eat?
Sticklebacks, as already noted, are predatory animals.
Their predation is mostly on crustaceans and larval insects, though they do consume some zooplanktons.
Their predation cycle is made up of four stages: searching, chasing, attacking, and capturing prey.
What Eats Sticklebacks?
Sticklebacks are preyed on by some predators such as perch, salmom, trout, pike, kingfishers, herons.
However, larger species that also prey on sticklebacks do so because they are small, slow moving fish that aggregate in groups.
However, this species of fish has evolved to defend themselves against attack.
They can do this because they possess bony lateral plates and several dorsal spines and a pelvic girdle with two anterior processes, pelvic spines and posterior processes.
They also employ behavioral responses to predatory attacks, by moving in large darvection groups, finding cover behind vegetation, and inspecting predators.
How do Sticklebacks Reproduce?
Prior to the breeding season, the males display their reproductive phenotype. They have blue eyes and their underbelly and throats are red.
Once breeding occurs, the male separates from other fish and builds a nest (located in vegetation such as grass, reeds, algae, etc.) and claims territory.
The male then tries to entice as many females as possible into the best nest to lay eggs before fertilizing them all, usually in one shot.
The male attends to the eggs until babies hatch, which typically happens within ten days after fertilization depending on how warm the water is.
Threespine sticklebacks prefer to breed in inland freshwater and saltwater sources such as lakes, rivers, sea beds, drainage canals, and etc.
These fish reach sexual maturity at 1-2 years of age, and breeding happens once a year from late spring through the first few weeks of summer.
What is the Ideal Stickleback Population?
In small garden ponds, due to their high reproduction rate, it is best to make your male to female ratio 2:5 (2 males for every 5 females).
This species is generally adaptable, but they are aggressive during the breeding season.
How do I Take Care of Sticklebacks?
Here’s how to take care of the sticklebacks in your garden pond.
Feeding Instructions
If your pond has sufficient invertebrates, you don’t need to feed your sticklebacks.
In the event of a dwindling supply (which occurs in winter and other unhelpful months), you will have to rely on feeding the fish bloodworm, daphnia, shrimp, etc.
Fish flakes can also offer a varied and balanced meal.
Aquarium Care
It’s important to keep your pond water clean, oxygenated, and without contamination.
Regarding oxygen, you can provide it artificially by using a pump or also obtain it from natural pond weeds like Elodea crispa.
When you put the fish in the water, do a partial water change of about 10%.
Make sure you use a dechlorinator during a water change process so you don’t create damage caused by chlorine and other contaminants to your fish and pond.
What Fish Species Should I Avoid?
While sticklebacks are valuable to your pond ecosystem, here are the species you need to avoid if you plant to engage in fish farming.
- Perches, chubs, and saugers are excluded due to their predatory nature.
- Wels catfish and pike are excluded because these fish get quite large and are predatory.
- Tropical fish are excluded because they cannot survive our winters.
- Fancy goldfish are ruled out because they are oversensitive, not hardy, and poor swimmers.
Wrapping Up
Fish farmers appreciate sticklebacks for their low maintenance and ability to weather the harshest environments.
They will reproduce themselves rapidly when your pond has a bio diversity of insects, amphibians, and clear with oxygen rich water.
The time between birth and sexual reproduction is anywhere from one to two years.
On a final note, sticklebacks are highly adaptable in whatever conditions you provide. This means they are capable of surviving in captivity and the wild.