White Pimple Appearance?

[Guest Moley]

Greetings to you all from a first time poster.

Some background: I inherited a garden goldfish pond (about 12' x 8' x 2'6") when I moved into this property over 25 years ago.

I knew nothing about keeping fish but the previous owner said the fish were hardy and all I needed to do was feed them in the summer.

To date, that's about all that I've done, with the exception of lifting out huge amounts of pond weed when it was expanding at a rapid rate.

The original fish have multiplied and presently number about 40 to 50, with no stock brought in.

I have no idea which particular breed of goldfish they are, other than to say they look like variants of the used to be common "funfair" prize!

The fish share the pond with the local amphibians with no obvious long term detriment to either species.

Just occasionally, perhaps once a year, I notice one or two fish with maybe a couple of what look like white pimples on them, similar to that you might find on a human. They tend to be the larger fish, which seem quite unaffected by their pimples and behave normally. I was told by a visitor that these pimples were a sign of the mating condition and I've gone along with that until I saw pictures of mating spots which were much smaller in size. The fairly rare times I find a deceased fish floating on the surface it's never one with these spots.

Does my description mean anything to anybody?

Thanks.

[Pixiefish]

Hi and welcome, Moley.

Yes these sound like breeding stars which are present on male goldfish during breeding times. I wonder how big the pond is with all those fish? We have many 'pondies' around here who can help you with pond management strategies should you need them. Check out the pond section.

[Guest Moley]

Pixiefish,

Thank you for your reply. It's confirmed what my colleague had said and I'll now stop being concerned about it.

Thanks also for the pointer towards the pond forum, I should find plenty in there to help dispel some of my ignorance.

Moley