Earlier I wrote:

Message 1 in threadFrom: steve )
Subject: Do small hawks or kestrels ever hunt goldfish??? *
View this article onlyNewsgroups: rec.ponds
Date: 2004-04-23 23:51:51 PST

All my fish are hunkered down at the very bottom of my pond which is
3+ feet deep. One of my shubunkins is missing and I noticed their
terrified behaviour in mid day. I don't believe it is racoons because
my pond walls are very steep and they can't get the fish because they
sleep on the bottom at night (they have ripped up plants in shallow
areas though). I have never seen a herron in my neighborhood or at my
house and cats don't hang around the pond but there is a kestrel that
kills small birds in the area and it roosts occasionly in a large tree
near my pond. People tell me that kestrels don't go after fish but is
this true?? Eagles pull out large fish on nature shows and eagles are
not water birds so could'nt a kestrel/small hawk do the same to a
small fish?. Has anybody had experience with a fish killing kestrel or
small hawk? I believe that the attacks took place on my fish during
the day and I have never seen a racoon around here during the day.

It was not a kestrel like you all said. I knew it was not a racoon
because the fish were terrified during mid day and the pond was not
vandalized. It was a Blue Heron (more like a grubby brown/grey
herron) The ******* was HUGE like a 747. I was at my neighbors house
a block a way and he said a big blue Herron just flew by and I know
where he is going. I ran home and he was standing next to my pond and
at least 3 feet tall.
So much for my theory that it can't be a Heron! Well I put up some
netting and left a little spot open in the shallow end so small birds
can get a drink, hopefully that will work. Damn the bird was huge. He
did eat a lot of my mosqito fish which is o.k, after the initial
attack the goldfish got real smart, real quick. How he manage to find
my little pond is beyond me.