The Saga of my breeding "Fiasco" for this year continues.......... After losing the eggs in the Showa spawn I decided to put all the fish from my heated tanks out in the big mud ponds. I was due to return to work and was thinking the three remaining egg viable females I had might mature and be better ready for a possible spawn whin I returned mid-June. There were about a dozen fish that had wintered over in the big pond and were un-sexed. Wife and I pulled seigned the dozen, did some sex checks and left the supposed females in. Put the females from the heated tanks in and two days later found I had missed a male long-fin Yamabuki. Now had eggs every where. Pulled the male long-fin out and sent him to the boy pond naming him "Y*******". Over the time I had left before returning to work I watched the eggs closly and never did see anything hatch. Left for work thinking this was another dud spawn. Went home last week for an emergency and had a few days to sit and feed the koi in the big ponds. Found I have what will probably turn out to be 2 or 3 thousand fry in the girl pond. Ther were at least 4 females involved. 2 Kohaku femal, 1 showa femal, and one long-fin Yamabuki female all with a male long-fin Yamabuki. "What a MESS" And then on top of this ..... In the male pond I also found fry. these fry are twice the size as the fry in the girl pond and by groth logic could have spawned 2-3 weeks earlier. There is only one conclusion I can make from this and that is that from the only three fish that would have been in this pond at the time (put in last year and wintered over.) One is a girl! I have a suspect in mind but have not pulled to confirm yet. will wait until the fry are large enough to sort and cull. Unfortunatly I would like to breed "High Quality" koi and my first breeding season ends up in flock spawns. And yet the breeders dream survives.... I find myself with the thrill of anticipation... Maybe a nice lon-fin Kin Showa or a Kin KI Utsuri etc. etc.