Established 1995
ecology
 
Ecology by definition is the relationship between organisms and their environment

The terms “natural balance” often arise in discussion regarding pondkeeping. Unfortunately, many people defer to this believing it will serve them well in their overstocked and poorly filtered ponds.

The fact is the typical backyard pond is not natural - it is manmade. As such, a totally natural approach will usually not suffice 		   Pond Ecology
Our ponds are small closed systems with Eutrophic loads while we expect Oligotrophic visibility and characteristics

In the case of watergardens, hobbyists often expect everything to survive in harmony when introduced in just a weekend or two. The bio diversification is limited in our backyards coupled with an atypically high fish load. These parameters do not compare to a natural pond or lake that is many times larger and has evolved over a long period of time

A working balance can be difficult to achieve and can require a lengthy maturation process. Once man meddles, it seems he must constantly do so Water quality is paramount as must be viewed as a 24 hr. 365 day proposition

Bacteria, Phytoplankton, Zooplankton, Macrophytes and of course Koi are the main ecological players that a pond keeper should have a grasp of. Koi, being the keystone species, will quickly suffer if the system develops a weak link 		   Phytoplankton
Also known as algae, are ubiquitous and ready to welcome the neophyte hobbyist. Initially viewed with panic, with time and knowledge comes an understanding that algae are not harmful and draining the pond to rectify the situation will only reset it. Both string and planktonic algae are natural and impossible to prevent - but they can be controlled

A planktonic (free floating) algae bloom will turn the entire pond green very quickly and often subside in the same manner once the resources, namely phosphorus and nitrogen, have been exhausted

String algae is a green plant that typically grows on the liner, stone and on waterfalls. A short carpet is desired, long strands are a cosmetic nuisance and can be removed physically or controlled with products like pond balance and barley straw
   Zooplankton
These are small to microscopic animals comprised of 3 main categories - Protozoa, Rotifers and Crustaceans

The term plankton (same applies with phytoplankton) means "a lack of or very little controllable motility". In other words, they free float around in the water column with little control

Some examples of Zooplankton that are of consequence to the pondkeeper are potentially lethal protozoa parasites such as Costia and Tichodina while Crustaceans like Daphnia are beneficial and utilized to feed fry

Rotifers are found everywhere although in aquatic environments they prefer the littoral zone. Zooplankton fill a vital niche in the food chain feeding on algae and themselves providing food for small fish

   The Microbial Loop
Only fully grasped in the last 25 years, the microbial loop consists of tiny microscopic organisms including bacteria, ciliates and flagellates

These nano and pico sized plankton break down DOM (dissolved organic matter) which we find accumulating on the bottoms of our ponds. In ponds with ineffectual filters and/or no bottom drains the DOM levels often accumulate to such levels that the detritus goes anaerobic. At this point pathogenic bacteria begin to proliferate potentially causing a disease state in our fish

Ideally it is best to remove this debris with a bottom drain which is really just a vaccuum

click to Enlarge
   Macrophytes
Submersed plants obviously play a large role as aerators (daytime only) and are the food base in complex food webs found in nature. Therefore, the fauna found in a watergarden will be much greater in diversity and numbers than that found in the usually plant barren koi pond. Vegetable filters are also great at supporting colonies of bacteria for nitrification, removing solids as well as nitrates and ammonium

In a koi pond scenario, plants are best setup sequestered from the koi (in a header pond for example). One must realize that they take some time to get established so you must rely on other forms of filtration and not solely on a vegetable filter

Remember, oxygenating plants will remove O2 during cellular respiration (at night) so the irony is that if you have a lot of oxygenating plants, aeration becomes more critical than in a comparable pond with a smaller plant population

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Last Modified : October 1, 2008
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