Pond koi encyclopaedia

Ever wondered what an ectoparasite is? Or where a lateral line is on a goldfish and what it does? Find key pond keeping terms described and explored here.

A: Pond keepers A to Z … Aeration to Argulus

Aeration.

Aeration is vital in the artificially stocked koi pond to maintain sufficient oxygen concentration in the water for all oxygen consumers (fish, bacteria, invertebrates, algae at night etc.). Oxygen can be easily overlooked as a limiting factor of for fish and bio-filters with most ponds and . . . → Read More: A: Pond keepers A to Z … Aeration to Argulus

B: Pond keepers A to Z … Bacteria to Buying Koi

B Bacteria (Plural of bacterium)

We can’t see them, smell them or hear them yet their existence is fundamental to successful fishkeeping. If it wasn’t for these microscopic single-celled organisms, koi keeping would not exist (We wouldn’t exist either!) as they have such vital roles to play . . . → Read More: B: Pond keepers A to Z … Bacteria to Buying Koi

C: Pond keepers A to Z … Carp to Colour Enhancer

Carp This is where it all started.

Carp

A dull, black/grey food fish with a natural geographical range of Asia and the watershed of the Black and Caspian Sea.

It is quite easy to take koi to be a new species developed by man when we see how different . . . → Read More: C: Pond keepers A to Z … Carp to Colour Enhancer

D: Pond keepers A to Z … Depressing to Ectoparasite

D is for Depressing!

The majority of the D’s seem to be negative – disease, dropsy, Dactylogyrus, diet(my wife thinks so!) and I could have included death!

Dactylogyrus (Gill Fluke)

One of the many parasites of koi that will cause them to flick and scratch through irritation. The gills . . . → Read More: D: Pond keepers A to Z … Depressing to Ectoparasite

E: Pond keepers A to Z … Easter to Eye Fluke

Easter

Traditionally, Easter is the time that signals the start of the pond season in the UK. It is a very exciting and mouth watering time of the year. Never to be found at the same date from year to year, the length of the pond season . . . → Read More: E: Pond keepers A to Z … Easter to Eye Fluke

F: Pond keepers A to Z … Fibreglass to Fungus

Fibreglass

Considered to be the ultimate way of finishing of a koi pond, fibreglass offers many advantages as a choice of pond construction. However, applying fibreglass as a topcoat to a pond can be incredibly messy, expensive and hazardous to health with the real risk from fumes . . . → Read More: F: Pond keepers A to Z … Fibreglass to Fungus

G: Pond keepers A to Z … Genetics to Gut

Genetics

Genetics is the science of inheritance. Although the production of artificially occurring ornamental fish started well before the complexities of genetics were fully understood, the pioneers of goldfish breeders in particular grasped some of the fundamental principles and used them to supreme effect.

Wild-type dark carp will . . . → Read More: G: Pond keepers A to Z … Genetics to Gut

H & I: Pond keepers A to Z … Hormones To Isolation Tank

Hormones

From the Latin word for ‘arouse’. Hormones are regulatory substances that are released by specialised cells from all over the body, causing an effect on distant ‘target’ cells or organs.

Hormones are incredible biological chemicals that are transported throughout the body in the blood to produce quite . . . → Read More: H & I: Pond keepers A to Z … Hormones To Isolation Tank

J & K: Pond keeping J to K … Jumping to Koi

Jumping

An activity that koi keepers would rather not see in their koi. Very rarely an indicator of koi being full of the joys of life but more likely, unfortunately a behaviour borne out of irritation.

If jumping is a symptom of irritation, then it will usually be . . . → Read More: J & K: Pond keeping J to K … Jumping to Koi

L: Pond Keepers A to Z – Lateral Line To Leather Scales

Lateral Line

The lateral line is similar to a dot-to-dot picture, where the dots found along the flanks of a fish link to form a clearly visible line. Each dot is a hole in a scale which links to a tube running beneath the series of holes . . . → Read More: L: Pond Keepers A to Z – Lateral Line To Leather Scales

M: Pond Keepers A to Z – Malachite Green To Mucus

Malachite Green

Malachite is an intense dark green dye that is widely used in the treatment of many koi ailments. It has even historically been used as an antiseptic in the treatment of wounds in humans. Different grades are available but the less toxic zinc-free malachite green . . . → Read More: M: Pond Keepers A to Z – Malachite Green To Mucus

N: Pond Keeper’s A to Z: Netting to Nutrition

Netting (Noun)

Netting is a must to prevent koi being attacked, injured or removed by predators, be they herons or cats. Usually sold in a similar way to liners, where larger expanses are cut and sold off the roll, and smaller sizes are available pre-packed.

A dark mesh . . . → Read More: N: Pond Keeper’s A to Z: Netting to Nutrition

O: Pond keepers A to Z … Osmoregulation to Oxygen

Osmoregulation

Osmoregulation is concerned with the koi’s regulation of its internal tissue fluid concentration. Koi, like any other fish are essentially bodies filled with fluid, living in a liquid environment. Consequently, due to the process of osmosis, koi wage a constant battle against being diluted to death.

What . . . → Read More: O: Pond keepers A to Z … Osmoregulation to Oxygen

P: Pond Keepers A to Z – Parasites to Pond Pumps

Parasites

Just as a predator attacks and eats its prey, and a scavenger lives off dead organic matter, a parasite needs another animal on which to live.

The relationship between parasite and host is quite a natural one, with a balance being maintained between the host and the . . . → Read More: P: Pond Keepers A to Z – Parasites to Pond Pumps

Q, R & S: Pond Keeping Terms – Quarantine to Swim Bladder

Quarantine:

Quarantine is the procedure where newly imported or purchased Koi are subjected to a period of isolation. There are two objectives of quarantine:-

1. It is a resting period to reduce stress of newly imported Koi. Irrespective of many of the measures and improvements made in the . . . → Read More: Q, R & S: Pond Keeping Terms – Quarantine to Swim Bladder

T: Pond Keeping Terms – Tapeworm to Treatment

Tapeworm

Tapeworms are one of the largest parasites to affect koi. Living in the intestine or body cavity, these mouth-less parasites absorb nutrients directly through their skin from the koi.

They are considered to be rare in the hobby for several reasons.

1. They are difficult to diagnose as . . . → Read More: T: Pond Keeping Terms – Tapeworm to Treatment

U & V: Pond Keeping Terms – Undergravel to Vortex

Undergravel Filtration

A method of filtration that is perhaps best-suited to aquaria where maintenance is quite straight forward. The principle of undergravel filtration in ponds has to some degree been superseded by multi-chamber external filters, which can be maintained very effectively.

Underground filtration relies on a bed of . . . → Read More: U & V: Pond Keeping Terms – Undergravel to Vortex

W, X, Y, Z: Pond Keeping Terms – Water Quality to Zooplankton

Water Quality

A short entry in an encyclopaedia cannot do the topic of water quality justice. Water quality is concerned with providing a stable, quality environment through testing water and responding to any undesirable changes from the norm. It is vital to understand how it can be . . . → Read More: W, X, Y, Z: Pond Keeping Terms – Water Quality to Zooplankton



Kill blanketweed and string algae.