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Mallards and Koi POnds

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From: pat capalbo City: bellmore, NY
For two yers now, a mallard has nested in a area in my yard and the day the ducklings are hatcht the 12 of them walk into mmy Koi pond andf swim for a few hours and then they leave not be seen again until the nedxt year. Last yesar, we had many of our Koi die and I was wondering could the droppings from the mallard contaminate a koi pond and kill fish like that>
	Extension Message From: Laura Kammin Visiting Extension Specialist, Pollution Prevention Extension-Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant College Program lkammin@illinois.edu
It would take substantial bird droppings to change the chemistry of the water enough to be dangerous for the fish. If the ducklings were only in the koi pond less than a day, that should not be the issue. Did you have large temperature fluctuations last year? If the water gets too hot or too cold rapidly, the stress can kill fish.
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