I had a problem with a Kingfisher last year when he discovered my goldfish pond last year. He had quite a feast last year before I realized what was going on. I put a black netting, the kind that you put over fruit trees and bushes. Well I guess this spring the Kingfisher figured out that the net was not going to keep him from a meal. I found the mesh torn Sat. night and found another this morning. I caught him flying out of the tree overhead twice while I was working on the pond Sunday. I was wondering if anyone has had this problem or know someone who has. I heard if you put a herron statue in your pond that will keep another herron away. I was wondering if the herron would work on the Kingfisher. I saw plastic gators on the web, but here in the midwest we don't have them and I would figure the Kingfisher would not know that it was a predator to him. Thank you for and help.
Bob

Well there went my idea! A friend was having the same problem,and the net was enough to do the trick. Wouldn't you think that if the bird saw anything standing around the pond (heron) he'd be leary? You'd think birds,or any other animals would be cautious no matter if they had never seen the animal or not-(alligator) Like they would instinctively know to beware... Sorry,I guess I'm no help afterall... Someone help......

Maybe one of those "garden spinners" would turn him off (for awhile). You know those things that are shaped like an animal, and they have spinning parts???? I'd try that, or I've seen plastic alligators that actually open and close their mouths!!

Try chicken wire for a while - maybe this will keep it out. Just a thought....

Or maybe one of those motion activated things - you know the frogs that croak when you walk by, there are other animals too. Maybe that would scare it off.

I used to bird watch when I was younger... lol I'm a weirdo I know. My favorite place was the lake behind my house. We always had herons and other water birds, we even have kingfishers down here in florida. I noticed the kingfishers weren't necessarily afraid of the herons around the lake, probably because the kingfisher dives in and out and the heron stands around and is a little slower than it. You can try and it might work, if the area is small enough the king fisher may lose interest fairly quick. If you have anyway of removing the fish from the pond temporarily you would "exhaust" the kingfishers' food supply and he would have to move on.

Good luck though!

Well, for what this is worth, there is a terrible problem with pelicans, herons, pidgeons, etc coming into marinas and pooping on the boats, so a lot of people hang these fake owls to try to keep them away. I'm not sure how it works though, they still came around ours a lot (we didn't have an owl but nearby boats did) until the marina owner had his boys shoot at them with bb guns (I'm not condoning this, its just how they did it). But thats not something everyone is particularly in favor of.

Found this site for ya. Hawks and owls are a predator of
kingfishers. A plastic replica or shadow figure should
work to discourage them from the area. Although I like
the idea of moving them out of the pond like they were
all eaten.

http://www.fcps.k12.va.us/StratfordLanding..._kingfisher.htm

This is awesome for that check it out Watergarden Scarecrow

I am an animal lover by nature, but I will never hold myself back if anyone tries to harm my babies.. I would probably shoot that bird..

oh well, it is easier to say than done.. Although I am army trained, shot Machine guns and grenade launcher.. But to aim and shoot at something alive is the last thing I will ever do..

anyway, the best resolution is to get rid of the root.. try to capture it.. raise the net, so the bird has to walk in but unable to fly off directly until it walks out from the net again.. that is to have the net above the pond so the bird will have to walk underneath the net to feast.. when it is underneath, that's the best timing to strike and I bet the bird has no where to run but to be captured by you.. There, you get yourself another pet..

Or keep a dog nearby.. A scarecrow is only a temporary solution.. Birds will soon understand that is merely a fake ornament and they will even rest on the scarecrow just to piss you off..

Maybe you could try some of those colorful flags...They make all kind so of motions when the wind blows through, and their bright colors should scare the bird off enough....At least for a while!

I was going to say shoot that bird...harsh I know, but I live in harsh farmland, where the farmers know that is the only way to rid yourself of pests...

Get a dog to guard your pond! That might work

I believe Lachfa has the best idea. Place some chicken wire over the pond. I would then place the nylon netting over the top of the mesh and the Kingfisher may then "learn" that the nylon mesh is a formidable obstacle. I do not think that removing the fish for a time will work as the birds soon get to know when the pond is "re-stocked".
Friends of mine have tried glueing two small pieces of mirror together with a length of string in between and hanging them from tree or bush branches. The thought was that the mirror pieces twirling in the breeze would cause sun flashes and as a result scare any birds. I do not know if this was successful for very determined birds.
Catch and release in a different area is another option. Some would class 2ft underground as one of the "different areas" options.

If you do the chicken wire - here is what I made: I used five 2x2x? (how ever big your pond is) I nailed them together in a square with the 5th one in the middle as a brace. I then covered it in wire. I also use this in the summer with a tarp over it to shade the water if it gets really hot. I place it over two sawhorses, one on each side of the pond so the air can flow under the tarp and I can still enjoy the fish. I put this over the pond in the fall and winter to help keep the leaves out of the pond. It is easy to store - I put it on the shed roof when not in use. It is light weight and pretty easy to move around.

Thank You Everyone! Some great ideas. The only problem I might have with an owl or hawk figurine is that my bird feeder is about 30 ft away and it would probably scare all the birds away. The chicken wire idea might be my best route. The wire would also keep debris out. History: Mr. Kingfisher has been around for about 3 years. That is when I first noticed him (or her). I have a farm pond further in the back and that is where he stayed for the first year and a half. I watched him one day after a heavy rain, the pond overflowed it's banks, he dove down to the yard and snatched up a 3-4" crawfish. He went up into the tree and banged the crawfish against the limb about a dozen times and then swallowed it whole. I am glad someone else calls their fish babies. I got a fish pond about 7 foot diameter and 2 feet deep and is a molded concrete design. The fish pond was here when I bought the house 5 years ago. I have counted about 65 goldfish ranging from 1.5" to 10" (several generations). I know...I know...I need to thin out my fish. I am planning on selling or giving a lot of them away . But I do not need them thinned-out by the Kingfisher. I will let everyone know what I try and what works or does not work. Thanks again.