More Details On The Pond and Water Quality

Every pond has its own unique set of parameters which impact the quality of the habitat. As I have said before the pond is fed primarily from rainfall and from what was 4 springs near the head of the pond. Due to the topography the pond gets very little run-off water when it rains even in a downpour. Essentially it just gets what is within the immediate slope of the banks. Consequently it does not get a material influx or dirty or contaminated water. That's generally good.

On the downside, however, when we experience drier than normal years the inflow of water is restricted. When it is extremely dry (such as last year) apparently the ground water level drops and the inflow from the springs is diminished or ceases entirely as far as we know. Normally the water level in the pond goes up during the winter and begins dropping in the late spring and through the summer as evaporation starts taking its toll. At one time the pond would rise enough each year to top the overflow pipe periodically. I haven't seen it that high in several years. Currently the pond is about 15-18 inches below the full level, already down 2-4 inches from its high point 3-4 weeks ago.

Since the pond has little in the way of dirty water flowing in, the water can often be relatively clear. In some years it is very clear, almost to the extent that it is like a big aquarium. In other years it is more cloudy (such as this year) depending on the algae blooms, etc. And, being a rather small pond and not excessively deep it is subject to larger swings in temperature than a larger body of water, particularly in a hot, dry summer.

The bottom drops off rather rapidly as you leave the banks around the deeper end of the ponds. Currently one can see the bottom fairly well out about 6-8 feet from the edge where the water is 3-5 feet deep at the deep end of the pond. I'm not sure how deep the pond is throughout, but its deepest point is likely 8-10 feet deep if the pond is at a full level.