Big pond

[ferreron]

Hi to all.

I've been planning on making a big pond, 30x12 metres, and in a couple of weeks the bulldozer's coming, so I have to decide how deep it will be. In order to know, I think it would be convenient to first stablish what's going to be in it, and that's something I certainly don't know.

I first thought about using it to house some type of neotenic caudate, like axolotls. But I'm starting to get convinced that I might have to give in and settle for fish

Before I take any decission I'd like to hear your opinions. Maybe deeper water allows me to keep species that I had discarded because of the heat.

Maximum temps that often occur during summer are about 35ºC under the sun, the average being 30-32ºC, and descending to about 20ºC or less during the night. It's a shame that I don't have info about water temps, specially not about water protected from the sun. During winter, the minimum temperature would be -5ºC, maybe slightly less, in rare ocassions.

Thank you very much in advance. As I said I'd like to hear opinions about the depth and the innhabitants, which don't need to be caudates (although it would be lovely...) I'm open to everything

PS: local amphibians are not an option because we only have frogs and there are neighbours nearby.

 

[eljorgo]

hi! I have one by the same size (around 27m x16) with deep bettwen 0,70m and 2,00m. Now it have many plants, and it have no function. It was done at 2years. It´s full of anax imperator big larvaes and many frogs. Its impossible to insert some newts. Its have a flow of water from the top montains to the river besides and it´s constantly enter and leaving water. I have some old pictures and If you want I can post. I´ll try to get some actual ones. Its almost impossible to you have sucess because I think you will have the same darners problem....? And if no water flow the water will be a mess?
bye,

 

[felizycontento]

I think you have a bigger problem. How will you avoid newts scape from such large pond?

If you put non native amphibians, they could settle your environment and damage your local fauna.

 

[Azhael]

He forgot to mention the pond is fenced with a wall. It can be made pretty scape-proof.

 

[ferreron]

Re-reading my post it's obvious that I forgot to mention that I'm only looking for neotenous species. I'm "not considering" axolotls because I already have a pond with them, and since this pond is way way bigger, and the depth presumably allows to maintain colder water temps, I thought there might be another suitable species.

As Azhael commented, the parcel is surrounded by a wall. Although after the clarification, this comment is no longer relevant.

 

[megs]

You can always have mudpuppys. However, you probably wont see much to them. The same with other of the fully aquatic north american species.
How about turtles instead, they are much more fun outside. Or maybe you have some interesting native species around that could enter the pond in a naturel way. A friend of mine here in Denmark got a huge pond build for the native Epidalea viridis in the area. However small L vulgaris entered the pond and breed in 1000s. Watching the animals out there in deep water is amazing, and so many.

Martin

 

[ferreron]

Megs, I had already considered the idea of keeping Necturus, among other things because there's a possibility of acquiring CB animals (if I remember properly, someone reproduced them in France), but I didn't know if the conditions of the pond would be suitable for them, does anybody have experience keeping them outside in stagnant water? and about the depth, although eljorgo comented on his pond, can anybody tell me what the apropriate depth would be in order to keep the temps suitable during summer for Necturus maculosus? Maybe a meter and a half with areas two meters deep? I guess it's difficult to say, but I can set for a "this should be ok"

Talking about Epidalea calamita, the only local amphibian who "could reach" the pond, I intend to make some smaller ponds in the terrain outside the wall, so that they can use it easily.

 

[felizycontento]

I have two ponds in my garden.

One is at full sun and is about 40 cm deep. In summer the water get as warm as 38º C. It makes the pond insuitable for my floating plants.

The other one is much smaller and it is fully under the shadow of a fig tree. It is about 100 x 50 cm and about 80 cm deep. I have not tested the temperature but it alwais keep fresh at the hand tact. The plants that dies in the other one, keep growing during the summer at a very fast rate.

So it is very important to keep the pond under the shadow. In such huge ponds, you may create isles and plant some willow trees. In the shores you can also plant trees specialy in the south shore.

The increase of evaporation through creating some falls will also help. I can't help about how deep the pond should be.

 

[eljorgo]

You can make your filter, with some creativity... then can plant some elodeas, pistias, salvinias, to margin some papirus and you would have a nice water. If its totally exposed to the sun... darners willl come and very chlorella too!