April is proving to be a busy month (the Webmaster apologizes for the inexcusable lateness of this update). Little of that is goldfish Internet work, sadly. The re-constituted board of directors continues to work plans and issues to move the society forward. We are offering a $10 per year "eMembership" now, which provides the Goldfish Report to subscribers as a PDF file via email. We hope to get PayPal back on the Website as an accepted payment option; this, combined with the eMembership, should make it easier for many people (particularly international hobbyists) to join the society. We will, of course, always continue to supply the hardcopy Report by mail too.
In the area of new volunteers, Matt Lyon is helping Terry prepare the Report. Welcome Matt! Matt will gradually take over editing and content responsibilities, with Terry then focused on layout and production. There is a lot happening!
If you have let your membership lapse or have been thinking about joining the GFSA, now is a great time - here is a form you can print. To submit material for the Goldfish Report to Matt, please see the updated society contact info. Articles and photos in electronic form are particularly appreciated.
The current line-up of people filling the GFSA offices is on the society officers page. The events calendar covers 2003 events and activities.
Web Site News
For the Web site there are no current changes, but some ideas are being worked and have society approval. Paypal was mentioned above. Reprints of classic Report articles are being examined, the addition of care info to the site, providing the editor with his own news-and-views page, and an interactive on-line glossary for all those obscure goldfish terms.
Seasonal Advice
If you have been considering the idea of an outside pond, now is the time to do it! It is still early in the growing season in most places in North America, so water lilies and other plants installed in a new pond will bloom this year. There are many excellent sources of information on the Internet and in books. For ponds with goldfish, there are a couple of pointers: if you plan a capacity of 50 gallons or more per fish and a filtration system that will hourly move the full pond volume through, you will have far fewer health and maintenance issues than with more crowded scenarios. In general, ponds smaller that 200 gallons are hard to keep clear. Also floating plants like water lilies and water hyacinths are important; they moderate temperatures, green water, and help shield the fish from potential predators.