Do Fish Get Sunburns?

Photo by Mary O'Brien Author

Yes! Fish can get sun burns and for this reason it is important to design your pond in a way to allow them to escape from direct sunlight. Here are a few solutions that are easy and can add beauty to your pond too.

Plants. There are a lot of plants that grow and cover the surface of your pond and they all are great for shade. Here are some examples of surface growing plants:

Lily pads. Photo from Flickr 

• Water lettuce
• This plant grows at a medium pace and is great for summer. It is cold sensitive and will die off when it starts to get cooler in the fall. Because these plants don't last they are inexpensive but they need to be repurchased every year.
• Water hyacinth
• This plant also grows at a medium pace and is nice because it has a purple flower. Hyacinths also die off for winter and need to be repurchased in the spring.
• Water lilies
• These are a rhizome or root based aquatic plant. While the roots grow in soil or rocks at the bottom of the pond the leaves and flowers cover the surface of the pond. These are a good choice because when the leaves and flowers die off for the winter the roots hibernate and bloom again in spring.  Removing the need to repurchase like the two previous plants mentioned.
• Duck weed. 
• This is the fastest growing of the bunch, as a result it can be a nuisance. Some people who end up with duck weed regret getting it and then can never get it out of their pond. Duck weed is a nutritious food source and fish and koi will gobble it up, for this reason some people who want it to take off and provide shade find that their koi eat it before it can become a nuisance. Which one you will end up being depends on fish and pond size. If you have a very large natural pond I would avoid duck weed because it will be harder to control. In smaller ponds that have koi in them you could probably risk it and not have to worry. Take some time to look at pictures either way and be sure its something you would enjoy seeing all over your pond. 

                                      

   Lily flower with water lettuce in background. Photo from Flickr.

Hiding places. This can be done a number of ways and new creative hiding places are being thought up every day. Some tried and true examples are:

• Rock caves.
• Be careful when making these and make sure they are stable so they don't collapse on your fish. Its a good idea to put some weight on it too cause you never know when kids, dogs, or midnight scavengers will use them to stand on in the water. Also don't make them too narrow because fish will try to make it through even if they don't fit and can get injuries from wedging themselves between the rocks. On that same note if you build a cave next to a pond wall be sure your fish have plenty of room to fit between the cave and the wall. 
• PVC Tunnels.
• These are nice but they tend to float so you will need to weigh them down by putting some rocks into or on top of the tubing. You can get tubing with very large diameters and I would recommend it. Just like with the rock caves if the tubing is too narrow or the rocks used to weigh it down narrow the opening too much you run the risk of your fish getting wedged and injuring themselves. Do not use metal tubes because they can rust or leech toxins into the water. 
• Bridges.
• Decorative or functional bridges that cover a part of your pond also make great shade and can be quite pretty too.