Pond

A pond is a bouk o staundin watter, either naitural or man-made, that is uisually smawer than a loch. Thay mey arise naiturally in fluidplains as pairt o a river seestem, or thay mey be somewhit isolatit depressions (examples include vernal puils an prairie potholes). Uisually thay contain shallae watter wi marsh an aquatic plants an ainimals. A few ainimals an aa mak ponds, includin baith alligators an beavers. The teep o life in a pond is generally determined bi a combination o factors includin watter level regime (parteecularly depth an duration o fluidin) an nutrient levels, but ither factors mey an aa be important, includin presence or absence o shadin bi trees, presence or absence o streams, effects o grazing ainimals, an salinity.

Claude Monet, 1916 - 1919

A pond in Swarzynice, Poland

Humans mak ponds an aw. A wide variety o man-made bouks o watter are classifee'd as ponds. Some ponds are creatit specifically for habitat restoration, includin watter treatment. Ithers, lik watter gairdens, watter featurs an koi ponds are designed for aesthetic ornamentation as laundscape or airchitectural featurs. Fish ponds are designed for commercial fish breedin, an solar ponds designed tae store thermal energy.

Staundin bodies o watter sic as puddles, ponds, an lochs are eften categorized separately frae flaein watter coorses, sic as a brook, creek, stream or river.