Design for a Fish-Pond in Plan and Section MET DP820524

A fish pond or fishpond is a controlled

pond A pond is a small, still, land-based body of water formed by pooling inside a depression (geology), depression, either naturally or artificiality, artificially. A pond is smaller than a lake and there are no official criteria distinguishing ...

, small

artificial lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from t ...

retention basin A retention basin, sometimes called a retention pond, wet detention basin, or storm water management pond (SWMP), is an artificial pond with vegetation around the perimeter and a permanent pool of water in its design. It is used to manage ...

that is stocked with

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

and is used in

aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. Nelu ...

for

fish farming Fish farming or pisciculture involves commercial breeding of fish, most often for food, in fish tanks or artificial enclosures such as fish ponds. It is a particular type of aquaculture, which is the controlled cultivation and harvesting of ...

, for

recreational fishing Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is occupational fishing activities done for profit; or subsistence fishing, ...

, or for ornamental purposes. Fish ponds are a classical

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...

feature in

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

n residence, such as the Classical Gardens of Suzhou of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, the Imperial Palace of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and the Gyeongbokgung Palace of

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

. In

Medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

, it was also typical for

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which m ...

and

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

s (small, partly self-sufficient communities) to have a fish pond.

History

Records of the use of fish ponds can be found from the early Middle Ages. "The idealized eighth-century estate of Charlemagne's

capitulary A capitulary (medieval Latin ) was a series of legislative or Public administration, administrative acts emanating from the Franks, Frankish court of the Merovingian and Carolingian dynasties, especially that of Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Em ...

''de villis'' was to have artificial fishponds but two hundred years later, facilities for raising fish remained very rare, even on monastic estates.". As the Middle Ages progressed, fish ponds became a more common feature of urbanizing environments. Those with access to fish ponds had a controlled source of food, not unlike pastures for cattle and sheep, for use on days when it was not permitted to eat meat. However fish ponds were difficult to maintain. They were a mark of power and authority, since only rich nobles and institutions such as monasteries could afford to maintain them. In winter, supplying fresh food for a castle garrison was a constant struggle. Nobles had access to meat from deer parks, but this did not supply the needs of whole households. Though fish ponds required maintenance to keep them healthy, they were an elegant way of giving monasteries and noble houses access to fresh fish. Some of the more popular species of fish farmed in fish ponds were

carp The term carp (: carp) is a generic common name for numerous species of freshwater fish from the family (biology), family Cyprinidae, a very large clade of ray-finned fish mostly native to Eurasia. While carp are prized game fish, quarries and a ...

and pike. From the

14th century The 14th century lasted from 1 January 1301 (represented by the Roman numerals MCCCI) to 31 December 1400 (MCD). It is estimated that the century witnessed the death of more than 45 million lives from political and natural disasters in both Euro ...

onward these fish proved to be a popular feature of artificial fish ponds.

Aquaculture

Fish ponds have been used in

. They are or were common in: *

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, especially in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

( Rožmberk Pond,

Velké Dářko Velké Dářko is the largest pond ( fish pond) in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered ...

, Lake Mácha), where common carp may be kept. *

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, where medieval monks kept fish that could be eaten on

Friday Friday is the day of the week between Thursday and Saturday. In countries that adopt the traditional "Sunday-first" convention, it is the sixth day of the week. In countries adopting the ISO 8601-defined "Monday-first" convention, it is the fifth ...

s, in accordance with Catholic rules of fasting *

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, where the

Native Hawaiians Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was settled at least 800 years ago by Polynesian ...

used them extensively. * The

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

where milkfish, tilapia, crabs, lobsters, tiger shrimp, snails and others may be kept. *

, especially in

with koi,

trout Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...

, and white crucian carp. Fish ponds are also being promoted in

developing countries A developing country is a sovereign state with a less-developed Secondary sector of the economy, industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to developed countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. ...

. They provide a source of food and income from the sale of fish for small farmers and can also supply irrigation needs and water for livestock. The ecosystem and production services offered by carp farming in fish ponds have immense societal and economic advantages. For example, per production cycle, common carp aquaculture in the whole

Central and Eastern Europe Central and Eastern Europe is a geopolitical term encompassing the countries in Baltic region, Northeast Europe (primarily the Baltic states, Baltics), Central Europe (primarily the Visegrád Group), Eastern Europe, and Southeast Europe (primaril ...

fishponds offer at least 579 million € worth of services, some of which are realized while a larger part is intangible. European carp aquaculture in fishponds has a smaller footprint than other crop and livestock sectors in the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

Gallery

File:Fishing Pond - geograph.org.uk - 391512.jpg, Classic fishing pond used by the

Clay Cross Clay Cross is a town and a civil parishes in England, civil parish in the North East Derbyshire district of Derbyshire, England. It is a former industrial and mining town, about south of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Chesterfield. It is directly ...

Angling Club File:Brickpits fishing pond - geograph.org.uk - 1054267.jpg, Fishing pond on Grainthorpe Fen File:Coarse Fishing Pond at Green Lane Farm - geograph.org.uk - 513827.jpg,

Coarse fishing Coarse fishing (, ) is a phrase commonly used in United Kingdom, Great Britain and Ireland. It refers to the angling for rough fish, which are fish species considered undesirable as food or game fish. Freshwater game fish are all salmonids, parti ...

pond in England File:Fish Pond (Aquaculture) diagram.svg, Diagram of a fish pond used in aquaculture (and how it can be used for wastewater treatment) File:Pirton-Pool-by-Philip-Halling.jpg, Medieval fish pond File:0703 - Milano - Giardini della Guastalla - Peschiera - Foto Giovanni Dall'Orto 5-May-2007.jpg, Historic fish pond File:Fishing platform - geograph.org.uk - 1096040.jpg, Fishing platform, designed for wheelchair users, at the edge of a fish pond.

Notes

References

* * Aston M (1998
''Medieval fish, fisheries and fishponds in England''
Volumes 1–2. B.A.R. . * Chattopadhyay GN (1998
''Chemical Analysis of Fish Pond Soil and Water''
Daya Publishing House. . * Compton LV (1943
''Techniques of fishpond management''
U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. * Delincé G (1992
''The ecology of the fish pond ecosystem''
Kluwer Academic Publishers. . * Farber JM (1997
''Ancient Hawaiian fishponds: can restoration succeed on Molokaʻi?''
Neptune House Publications. . * Gopalakrishnan V and Coche AG (1994

Training Series No. 24,

FAO The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition ...

, Rome. . * Hoare J (1870
treatise on fishponds, addressed to the nobility and gentry of Sussex''
Wyman & sons, original from Harvard University. *

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

(1997
''Fishing for a living: the ecology and economics of fishponds in Central Europe''
. * FAO (1996) Simple methods for aquaculture

Training Series No. 21/1, Rome. * FAO (1995) Simple methods for aquaculture

FAO Training Series No. 20/1, Rome. * FAO (1992) Simple methods for aquaculture

FAO Training Series No. 20/2, Rome. * FAO (1989) Simple methods for aquaculture

Training Series No. 16/2, Rome. * FAO (1981) Simple methods for aquaculture

Training Series No.4, Rome. {{Clear Fish farming

Pond A pond is a small, still, land-based body of water formed by pooling inside a depression (geology), depression, either naturally or artificiality, artificially. A pond is smaller than a lake and there are no official criteria distinguishing ...

History

Aquaculture

Gallery

See also

Notes

References