Where have all these fish come from? Baffled.

[AInightingale]

We have a v small pond (a plastic insert type) in our garden which my children got when they were younger to try to attract frogs (it didn't). It was filthy so I cleaned it out a couple of months ago and filled it up with water from the hose. They were poking round it today and it's full of sticklebacks even though no-one put them there. There aren't any other ponds in the garden or streams running close by, or any way small fish could have got there. I am completely bamboozled, can some people with fish/wildlife knowledge enlighten me please.

My guess would be that they have come from other animals who can carry fish eggs in their digestive systems or on their bodies.

Possibly birds? There is a tree hangs above it with a magpies' nest in it, and I've seen birds drinking and bathing in the water.

No idea, but how good is that?

You should be asking how do I look after these fish and potential release to the wild.

All the best, bit jealous of your water feature.

May have been transported on birds' feet.

DH - into this kinda stuff - says either on bird's feet or on water plants that you've put in from somewhere else, either bought or wild.

My parents knew some people many years ago who dug a very large pond in their garden. Apart from filling it with water, they did nothing to it at all, and within a few years it was full of fish, frogs, newts, pond weed, irises and reeds round the edge, the lot. Someone told them that nature finds a way, and that birds can unwittingly carry eggs of fish and pond creatures on their legs. In their case, they blamed visiting ducks.

I love this!

Going to dig a big hole in the back garden now, no, idiot had it flagged, ready for retirement.

And what do you do in retirement if it is not gardening?
How dumb am I? Indian sandstone @ 20k+.

Shouldn't be allowed out. What would I give for fish now.

There are so few ponds now - in the wild they've decreased too. Everyone very safety-conscious. My parents had a pond which became a real frog sanctuary through benign neglect. We had dozens every spring but now the house is up for sale. I'd be really annoyed if the new owners filled it in. Should have specified that it comes with sitting frogs.