Leaf consumers?

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andyroo said:
Common pleco?
Maybe a goby?
How about Red Tail Cat - they'll eat anything, yes? ;)
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Is the pond outside? Redtail cats won’t eat plants, they prefer meaty foods like other fish but often are fed pellets. What fish are currently in the pond
 
It is going to be hard to find something that will consume a lot of leaves, and it depends on what kind. I don't know if it would work but maybe a wood eating pleco like a clown or royals. Otherwise I would think something like shrimp or crawfish could help, but it would take a lot. Other than that it is going to take a lot of microinvertebrates. If this is a large natural bottom pond they might break down, in a small liner pond I don't think this will work.
 
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Yearly removal of leaves from a pond is just part of pond ownership.

Don't fall prey to the mindset so common among aquarists these days, i.e. "There is too much ________ (fill in the blank with required material) in my tank/pond and I don't want to actually clean it up myself...so what can I buy that will eat it?"

Sometimes...ya just gotta do the work. :)
 
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jjohnwm said:
Yearly removal of leaves from a pond is just part of pond ownership.

Don't fall prey to the mindset so common among aquarists these days, i.e. "There is too much ________ (fill in the blank with required material) in my tank/pond and I don't want to actually clean it up myself...so what can I buy that will eat it?"

Sometimes...ya just gotta do the work. :)
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lol that's me
 
Some turtles will eat your leaves depending what leaves they are. River cooters eat a lot of plant matter. I have no leaves in my pond as the turtles eat them. Only trouble is, there is a good chance they would eat your pond plants.
 
Yes, outdoor pond.
Leaves are mostly of the tropical cedar (Cedrela odorata), apparently very tannin'y. These are wind-blown seasonally and will be partially controlled-for with the pending bamboo arowana jump-fence.
Substrate is to be essentially bare (cement) with the lilies potted, thus net-scoop-able at both surface & bottom; however, was hoping to add sunken bamboo as refugia from the arowana.

Snails-various are already in there including mystery & ramshorn, both of which eat leaves, and Ostracod (etc) that also do.
I've only access to common pleco on this island, an important/nasty invasive in several waterways thus import restrictions on that family. I've one mid-size on-hand to be introduced this week as they don't seem to bother with lilies. I do worry about the snails, though.
I've got filament barbs that absolutely hammer on greenery, but likely won't be good for the lilies. Confirm?

Tannins are more of a worry than the leaves themselves - both for aesthetics (dark) & -vs- concrete over time, though this would be a long time. Tell me about tannins removal/control - abundant water changes, certainly. Charcoal in the filter also, if I remember correctly(?)
 
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