WATER QUALITY AND SOIL CONDITION OF FISH PONDS IN SOME

STATES OF INDIA IN RELATION TO FISH PRODUCTION

S. M. BANERJEA 1

Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore

INTRODUCTION

Maintenance of a healthy aquatic environment and production of sufficient

fish food organisms in ponds are two factors of primary importance for successful pond cultural operations. To keep the aquatic habitat favourable for existence,
physical and chemical factors like temperature, turbidity, colour, odour, pH, dissolved gases like oxygen, carbon dioxide and also reducing gases Hke hydrogen sulphide, methane working lethal on fish life, will excercise their influence individually
or synergetically, while the nutrient status of water and soil play the most important role in governing the production of plankton organisms or primary production in fish ponds. Rating of fish ponds on the basis of these factors is a difficult
problem because of the complexities influencing and governing these factors and
also for the fact that it is not possible to study the effect of any individual factor
under uniform optimal conditions. Nevertheless from a study of a large number
of ponds under diverse physical and chemical conditions it is possible to arrive at
some broad generalisation which can be gainfully used by fish farmers. It may be
remembered also that different fishes behave differently as to the suitabihty of
environmental condition and food habit. As the major carps, catla {Catla catla),
rohu (Labeo rohita) and mrigal (Cirrhina mrigala) are the widely cultivated fast-growing fishes in India these have been always used as standards except when otherwise mentioned.
The first study of water quality of a fish pond in India was probably done
by Sewell (1927) when he studied the mortality of fish in the Museum tank in
Calcutta. Pruthi (1932) also studied in detail the water condition of the same tank
in connection with mortality of fishes. Since then a number of workers have
studied the physico-chemical condition of inland waters either in connection with fish
mortality or as part of general hydrological survey. To mention a few of them,
there are the studies by Alikunhi et al. (1948), Ganapati et al. (1945, 1950, 1953),
Chacko and Srinivasan (1954), Thivy et al. (1948), Chacko et al. (1954), Ganapati
(1949, 1950), Ganapati and Chacko (1951), Chacko and Ganapati (1949), and
1. Present address: Soil Chemistry Unit,
47/1 Strand Road, Calcutta-7.

Central

Inland

Fisheries Research Institute,

116

S. M. BANERJEA

Mookherjea and Bhattacharya (1949). In some cases the water quality offish ponds
has also been studied to explain the factors responsible for the phenomenal growth
of fish in a pond (Chacko and Ganapati, 1950). Besides these stray observations,
a more systematic and extensive study of the physico-chemical quality of fishery
waters was taken up by Madras Fisheries Department in connection with Madras
rural piscicultural scheme (Menon et al. 1959). This contains data on physicochemical conditions of a number of ponds and tanks in various districts of Madras
and Andhra Pradesh.
The Central Inland Fisheries Research Sub-station at Cuttack (Orissa)
also carried out a survey of water quality of fish ponds in Orissa, Andhra Pradesh
and Madras State. The data collected by the author and his co-workers have been
incorporated in Fish Farmers' Calendar, Agricultural Situation in India (Government of India Publication, 1956). More recently Upadhyaya (1964) has analysed
the water samples from a large number of fish ponds from Uttar Pradesh and given
the range and average for individual water quality for ponds with high, average
and poor productivity.
While relatively more comprehensive data are available on water quality of
fish ponds in India, there has been practically very little study of the soils of fish
ponds.
The object of the present survey is firstly to have a basic knowledge of the
soil condition and water quality of fish ponds and secondly, which is considered
more important, to find a correlation between fish production and physico-chemical
condition of soil and water. With this end in view data collected from a large
number of fish ponds from Manipur, Assam, West Bengal, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh
and Andhra Pradesh, and also from a set of sixteen ponds in the same locality of
West Bengal are discussed in this paper.
METHOD

AND

MATERIAL

In the first phase of the study, soil and water samples from ninety fish ponds
were collected from the acid soil zone of Manipur (4 ponds) and Assam (12 ponds)
alluvial and deltaic soil of West Bengal (12 ponds) and Orissa (42 ponds), alluvial
soil zone of Madhya Pradesh (14 ponds) and alkaline soil of Andhra Pradesh (6
ponds) {vide Appendix 1). The ponds selected were mostly under the management
of State Fisheries Departments and were under regular cultivation for at least 3-4
years. A few ponds, belonging to private parties, which were under regular
cultivation, were also included in this study. As the main useful object of this
study is to find a correlation between fish production and soil and water quality,
more stress was laid upon the reliability of fish data in selecting ponds. Among
the ninety ponds studied fish data for eighty ponds were obtained from the State
Fisheries Department or owners of the ponds; the remaining ten ponds were choked with submerged aquatic vegetation. The ponds are mostly stocking ponds in
which no fertilisers have been used.

WATER QUALITY AND SOIL CONDITION OF FISH PONDS

117

Water samples were collected from sub-surface, about 15-20 cm below the
surface level of pond water. To make the sample representative, a number of
samples were collected from different places and mixed to have the final sample.
The sample was stored in a clean glass-stoppered bottle of one litre capacity,
fixed with toluene or chloroform and sent to laboratory for analysis. For analysis
of dissolved gases separate samples were collected and analysed on the spot. Temperature, turbidity and pH were also determined at the pond site. For chemical
analysis of water standard methods of American Public Health Association (1946)
were followed for almost all items, with slight modifications as was found necessary.
The turbidity was determined by the U.S. Geological Survey method and expressed
as parts per million in terms of dehydrated silica.
Samples for soil analysis were collected from the surface soil of the pond
bottom; a column of soil 10 cm deep from the soil-water interface was trapped by
the sampler. The soil sampler consisted of a metal cylinder of 5 cm diameter
and 20 cm height. This was fixed at the end of a long bamboo pole and operated
from a boat in case of deep ponds. Where the pond was shallow, the metal cylinder
was pressed directly into the surface soil and the soil taken out. The number of
soil samples collected from a pond varied from 6 to 20 depending on the size of the
pond. These samples were mixed thoroughly to prepare a composite sample for
analysis. The samples were air-dried before analysis, and then the percentage of
moisture in the air-dried sample was determined in a drying oven at 103 "C. Analysis was done from the air-dried sample but results were expressed on oven-dry
basis correcting for the percentage of moisture. For analysis of soil samples
methods recommended by the International Bureau of Soil Sciences were followed
throughout (Piper, 1949) with some modifications. For available nitrogen the
method of Subbiah and Asija (1956) was followed. It may be noted that the
analytical data for soil and water are based on one single collection. So to make
the collection representative of the mean condition of the pond as much as possible,
the time and the season of collection have been so adjusted as to make the
deviation from the mean condition the least. This was done from a study of the
diurnal fluctuations of the more variable physico-chemical properties of water and
the seasonal variation of soil condition and water quality in selected fish ponds
(Tables 1-3). The data on production of fish have been noted qualitatively as
high, medium and low respectively for approximate annual production of above
500 kg/ha, between 500-200 kg/ha and below 200 kg/ha. Out of these ninety
ponds studied, ten ponds were choked with weeds for which fish production data
have not been included.
In the second phase of the study observations on soil condition and water
quality were taken up on sixteen selected ponds in West Bengal within a radius of
about 30 km in the alluvial soil zone of Howrah district. Most of these ponds
were under the supervision of State Fisheries Department and were under regular

118

S. M. BANERJEA

cultivation with the same management practice for a number of years. Quantitative fish data were available for these ponds, which have been included in Table 4.
In another observation soil and water quality of three differently productive
fish farms in Orissa was studied. These fish farms were under the management
of the Central Inland Fisheries Research Sub-station or the State Fisheries Department and were situated within a radius of 70 km. A number of ponds from
each fish farm were sampled and the average and the range of the more important
soil and water qualities are presented in Table 6. Besides these observations soil
condition and water quality of four pairs of ponds from Assam, West Bengal,
Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh are presented in Table 7. The individual
ponds of each pair, though situated almost adjacently, showed marked variations
in their fish production.
From these four observations, an attempt has been
made to correlate the fish production in a pond with the physical and chemical
properties of its soil and water.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Of the physical factors, heat and light are essential in all waters for photosynthetic activity, which in turn is basic to productivity. Water temperature generally depends upon climate, sunlight and depth. To get an idea about the diurnal
and seasonal variations of thermal conditions in fish ponds in the tropics, data
in three fish ponds in Killa fish farm (Cuttack, Orissa) were collected. The diurnal
fluctuations in physico-chemical conditions are given in Table 1. It will be seen
from the table that temperature in a fish pond is generally minimum during the
early hours of morning and reaches a maximum value in the afternoon, showing
a range of variation of about 7" C.
In the summer months of April-May,
the range may be still greater exceeding 10" C. Ganapati and Srinivasan
(1956) have recorded a diurnal variation of 1.8 C in the winter month of
November and 9.9 C in April in a fish farm in Madras. It has, however, been
found that the wide fluctuation in temperature in a summer day does not have
any direct adverse effect on the fish. But in ponds with high organic content
in bottom mud, sometimes large-scale mortality takes place in summer months
in early morning especially if the surface water is suddenly cooled by a shower of
rain or a cold wind. This happens due to the overturn of thermally stratified
layers so that bottom layer of anaerobic decomposition zone with reducing gases
distributes itself throughout the volume of water and even the relatively oxygenrich surface layer of water suffers oxygen depletion. The more significant effect
of higher temperature is the increased rate of bio-chemical activity of the microbiota so that the release of nutrients by decomposition of organic matter at bottom
is more at higher temperature with consequent increase in the nutrient status of
water. Probst (1950) found an average increase in carp yield of 22 kg per hectare
for VC rise of temperature. Compared to the yield offish in ponds in temperate
zones, the natural waters in tropical areas generally show a higher production due

&
WATER QUALITY AND SOIL CONDITION OF FISH PONDS

119

to more heat budget in the ecosystem. It is also a common experience in the

tropics that the growth rate of fish is much higher in summer than in winter.
The temperature data of Killa Fish Farm showed that the temperature remained
below 25''C in January and December; for the months of February, March, October and November it generally fluctuated between 25*'C and SO'C; and for the rest
of the year it was between SO'C and 35''C. The maximum temperature of 35.4*C
was recorded in May and the minimum of 20.8C in January. Thus it is found
that for about 8 months in the year the temperature remains between 30 and 35 "C
which may be responsible for high productivity in tropical waters. Apart from
these, temperature plays a very important role in some physiological processes
like release of stimulii for breeding mechanisms in fish, both under natural and
artificial conditions (Hora, 1945; Chaudhuri, 1964),
Light is another physical factor of importance. As the primary production
or synthesis of carbohydrates is a photo-chemical process energised by light, availability of light energy to a fish pond greatly influences its productivity. Penetration of light to water phase is determined by turbidity which is measured optically
and represents the resultant effect of several factors such as suspended clay particles,
dispersion of plankton organisms, particulate organic matters and also the pigments
caused by the decomposition of organic matter. According to Smith (1934)
excessive turbidity has a pronoxmced effect in confining daily heat gains to the surface
layer of water. In general all fish ponds attain the highest turbidity during rains
in July and August due to turbid rain water entering the pond from the catchment area. This, however, represents a temporary phase, turbidity assuming its
normal value in October-November during the pre-winter period. In the ponds
studied it is generally found that turbidity varies between 10 and 15 ppm. While
highly turbid waters are undesirable for fish ponds, productive ponds are generally
found to have slightly turbid water. Probably an exchange process between the
adsorbed nutrients on the surface of the clay particles and soluble nutrients in
water help to maintain higher nutrient concentration in water.
Among the physico-chemical factors influencing aquatic productivity, pH,
alkalinity, dissolved gases like oxygen and carbon dioxide and dissolved inorganic
nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus are considered to be important. An attempt
has been made to find the favourable ranges for these factors for a fish pond by
processing the data as shown in Table 9. The procedure generally adopted
(Upadhyaya, 1964) is to determine these factors for a large number of productive,
improductive and moderately productive ponds and indicate the range and average
for the individual constituents. This method leads to rather inconclusive
results, obviously because variation of none of the individual factors was studied
under uniform condition of the other variables, so that the effect of one constituent
is sometimes obscured by the synergetic influence of others. It is rather difiicult
to say if at all any rigorous limit for the individual factors can be indicated from
such studies. What can be done at best is to have a number of conventional ranges

120

S. M. BANERJEA

for different factors and to determine the percentage of productive, unproductive

and medium productive ponds in each of these ranges. With this procedure the
favourable ranges for pH, alkalinity, dissolved oxygen, dissolved inorganic nitrogen
and phosphorus and N/P2O5 ratio have been determined.
Hydrogen-ion concentration (pH)
According to Roule (1930) the largest fish crops are usually produced in
water which is just on the alkaline side of neutrality between pH 7.0 and 8.0 The
limit above or below which pH has a harmful effect is given by Ohle (1938) as 4.8
and 10.8. Nees (1946), while reviewing the work of German scientists remarks that
categorically it can be said that a weak alkaline reaction (pH 7.0 to 8.0) has been
found in most productive fish ponds and that very acid waters are distinctly
undesirable.
In the present study it was observed that excepting the ponds in the acid
soil zones of Manipur and Assam which had a pH below 6.0 and the ponds of
Andhra Pradesh in alkaline soil showing water pH above 8.5, most of the ponds
had a pH between 6.5 and 8.5. This is generally the normal range of pH in freshwater ponds unless contaminated by acidic or alkaline wastes. Placing the 80
ponds with available fish data into 5 conventional ranges as with pH (1)<5.5
(2) 5.5 - 6.5 (3) 6.5 - 7.5 (4) 7.5 - 8.5 (5)>8.5 (Table 9), it is found that even in acid
soil zone of Manipur and Assam water pH does not record a valueless than 5.5.
Out of the 10 ponds having acidic pH between 5.5 to 6.5 all are found to be
unproductive while in a slightly acidic to a slightly alkaline reaction (pH range
6.5-7.5) 14 ponds out of 24 are productive, 9 are average and only 1 is unproductiveIn the next range of moderately alkaline reaction (pH 7.5 - 8.5), out of 34 ponds
7 are productive, 11 are average and 16 are unproductive, while of 12 ponds having
pH above 8.5 none is productive but 9 are of average production and 3 are unproductive. From these observations it may be concluded that both highly acidic
and highly alkaline waters are unfavourable for good production. Of these two
types the latter is relatively preferable. Water with an almost neutral reaction with
pH 6.5 - 7.5 is best suited for a fish pond and average production is expected in the
range of 7.5 - 8.5.
Alkalinity, carbonate, bicarbonate and free carbon dioxide
Alkalinity or acid-combining capacity of natural freshwater ponds is
generally caused by carbonates, and bicarbonates of calcium and magnesium,
calcium forming the major constituent. These along with dissolved carbon dioxide in water form an equilibrium system which is of primary importance in the
ecology of the environment.
In general calcareous water with alkalinities of more than 50 ppm are most
productive offish, waters with an alkalinity of less than 10 ppm rarely produce large
crops, water intermediate between these two groups may produce useful results

TABLE 1.

Diurnal fluctuations

in physico-chemical

Laldighi Pond-Barrackpore
24-1-1949
(Thick algal bloom)

condition of waters in fish ponds.

Killa Pond 49-Cuttack

12-2-1953
(Submerged aquatic vegetation)

T-C

pH

D. O. ppm

T C

pH

A.M.

19.9

8.6

4.0

23.7

8.2

9^ A.M.

21.0

8.2

7.2

26.6

D . O. ppm.

Killa Pond 47-Cuttack

12-2-1956
(Moderate phytoplankton cone.)
T-C

pH

D. O. ppm

4.0

24.5

8.2

6.8

8.8

10.0

27.4

8.4

8.2

12

Noon

24.0

9.7

13.2

28.9

9.2

12.8

28.7

8.6

9.0

P.M.

23.2

9.9

23.4

30.7

9.6

16.8

30.7

9.0

9.8

P.M.

22.0

9.2

13.2

28.0

8.8

10.8

28.4

8.8

9.2

P.M.

21.5

8.6

8.0

25.4

8.2

7.0

26.4

8.6

8.0

Mid Night

21.0

7.8

4.2

24.6

7.6

6.0

25.9

8.6

7.4

A.M.

20.5

6.6

3.2

24.0

6.8

5.2

25.5

8.4

6.6

Range

24.0-19.9

9.7-6.6

30.7-23.7

9.6-7.6

30.7-24.5

9.0-8.2

9.8-6.6

Average

21.7

8.4

26.5

8.4

27.2

8.6

8.1

12
3

23.4-3.2
9.6

16.8-4.4
9.1

>
H

m
>

>
a

F
o

i
D
H

KJ

TABLE

2.

Seasonal variations of water quality in fish ponds.

GORAKABAR

NIRALA KUTIR

EJ

CANTONMENT ROAD

Alkalinity Nitrate
Phosphate
Alkalinity
Nitrate Phosphate
Alkalinity
Nitrate Phosphate
(ppm CaCOj) (ppm N) (ppm P2O5) pH (ppmCaCos) (ppm N) (ppm P2O3) pH (ppm CaCOs) (ppm N) (ppm P2O5)

1958

pH

Jan

8.2

140

.04

.03

8.2

38

.03

.20

8.2

80

.04

.16

Feb

3.2

140

.05

.52

8.2

54

.04

.20

8.0

88

.05

.32

Mar

3.2

160

.08

.68

8.2

68

.06

.38

8.0

88

.06

.42

Apr

8.2

210

.08

1.20

8.1

90

.12

.40

8.2

90

.08

.52

May

8.2

252

.12

1.40

8.0

.18

1.20

8.2

92

.16

.32

Jun

8.0

140

.12

.76

8.1

48

.08

.80

8.0

72

.10

.72

Jul

8.2

132

.07

.78

8.2

40

.04

.78

8.0

30

.06

.52

Aug

8.4

136

.07

.70

8.1

40

.05

.76

8.4

44

.05

.40

Sep

8.4

140

.05

.70

8.2

42

.05

.68

8.4

48

.04

.35

Oct

8.3

140

.05

.60

8.3

40

.05

.46

8.4

48

.04

.30

>

Nov

8.3

144

.06

.32

8.3

42

.05

.38

8.4

54

.05

.25

Dec

8.4

146

.04

.35

8.3

38

.04

.30

8.4

62

.04

.20

Range

8.0-8.4

132-252

.04-.12

.30-1.40

8.0-8.3

38-137

.03-.18

.20-1.20

8.0-8.4

30-92

.04-1.6

.16-.92

Average

8.3

157

.07

.69

8.2

56.4

.07

8.2

66

.06

.42

137 -

>
z
m
ra

.55

TABLE

3. Seasonal variation of soil condition in fish ponds.

GORAKABAR

NIRALA KUTIR

1958

pH

Available N
(mg/100 g)

Available
P2O5
(mg/100 g)

pH

Jan

6.8

29.1

24.6

6.8

29.7

Feb

6.8

29.4

26.0

6.7

Mar

6.6

30.2

26.2

Apr

6.5

40.0

May

6.5

June

CANTONMENT ROAD

Available
Available N
P2O5
(mg/lOO g*) (mg/100 g)

Available
P2O5
(mg/100 g)

pH

Available N
(mg/100 g)

26.0

7.2

26.9

20.0

32.0

26.0

7.1

30.1

21.6

6.7

38.1

28.0

7.1

34.6

24.2

32.0

6.6

38.1

38.0

6.9

38.0

32.4

45.0

36.4

6.4

52.1

38.0

6.8

40.3

34.2

2
D

6.5

36.8

30.2

6.4

39.8

36.0

6.6

49.4

28.0

July

6.7

30.0

24.8

6.7

38.0

30.0

6.8

38.4

24.6

o
o

Aug

6.8

28.0

24.4

6.9

37.5

28.0

6.9

26.2

24.2

Sept

6.8

30.0

24.2

7.0

25.7

28.0

6.9

24.8

24.0

Oct

6.9

32.4

22.8

6.8

26.2

24.0

6.8

26.4

24.0

Nov

6.9

31.9

20.4

6.8

26.6

24.0

6.9

24.2

24.0

>

H
tn

>
>

CO

"Tl

Dec

6.9

30.0

20.6

6.9

28.5

22.0

6.9

21.8

21.8

Range

6.5-6.9

29.1-45.0

20.4-36.4

6.4-7.0

25.7-52.1

22.0-38.0

6.6-7.2

21.8-49.4

20.0-34.2

Average

6.7

33.6

26.1

6.6

29.0

6.9

31.8

25.3

34.4

124

S. M. BANERJEA

(Ohle, 1938). Moyle (1946), from a study of a large number of lakes and ponds in
Minnesota, gives the range of total alkalinity as 0.0 - 20.0 for low production,
20.0 - 40.0 for low to medium and 40.0 - 90.0 for medium to high production. All the
ponds above 90.0 ppm of total alkalinity have been found to be productive. In the
present study it was found that an alkalinity below 20 ppm was definitely indicative
of low production. All the 5 ponds falling in this range were unproductive. But
the influence of alkalinity in the range 20 to 50 ppm was not in any way significant
when compared to the other higher ranges as observed by Moyle (1946). It was
noticed that for ranges 20 - 50, 50 -100, 100 - 200 and above 200, 60 - 70 % of the
ponds were highly productive or of average production, the rest being unproductive. This shows that above 20 ppm total alkalinity cannot work as a limiting
factor. Its influence is probably obscured by other more important limiting factors
such as dissolved phosphorus and nitrogen.
Dissolved oxygen
Among the chemical substances in natural waters, oxygen is probably one
of primary importance both as a regulator of metabolic processes of plant and
animal community and as an indicator of water condition. Hutchinson (1957)
has aptly remarked that a series of oxygen determinations along with a knowledge
of turbidity and colour of water could provide more information about the
nature of water than any other chemical data. Ellis (1937) from a study of thousands of samples over a period of 5 years observed that below 3.0 ppm of dissolved
oxygen asphyxia from low oxygen can be expected and to maintain a favourable
condition for a varied fish fauna 5.0 ppm of dissolved oxygen is required. In the
present study it was noticed that dissolved oxygen ranged from a minimum value of
4.4 ppm to a maximum value of 10.8 ppm. This represents near about the mean
value for the day. It may be noted, however, that in ponds with a thick dispersion
of phytoplankton or with a dense growth of submerged aquatic plants dissolved
oxygen attains a minimum value in the early morning hours often times less than
3.0 ppm, {vide Table 1) and sometimes even less than 1.0 ppm. Though under
this extreme condition, associated with other detrimental factors, this low concentration of dissolved oxygen may cause large-scale mortality of fish, generally it is
found that the effect of this low oxygen alone does not cause any adverse consequence except that the fish suffer from slight distress during this period and congregate near the surface for respiration. Grouping the tanks according to four ranges
of dissolved oxygen as < 3.0, 3.0-5.0, 5.0-7.0,>7.0(Table9), it will be seen that there
is no pond with dissolved oxygen <3.0 ppm. While for the range 3.0-5.0 ppm,
out of 9 ponds only 1 is productive, the rest are unproductive or average. More
than 50 % of the ponds studied have dissolved oxgyen between 5.0-7.0 ppm and in
this range out of 43 ponds 11 are productive, 13 average and 19 unproductive. Out
of 28 ponds having dissolved oxygen greater than 7.0, 24 ponds are of average and
high production and 4 are unproductive. Thus it may be said that normally the
mean oxygen concentration in a pond does not show a value less than 3.0 ppm. In

WATER QUALITY AND SOIL CONDITION OF FISH PONDS

125

the range 3.0-5.0 ppm ponds are unproductive. For average or good production,
ponds should have dissolved oxygen concentration above 5.0 ppm. It may be
incidentally mentioned that very high concentration of dissolved oxygen leading to
a state of supersaturation sometimes becomes lethal to fish fry during the rearing
of spawn in nursery ponds (Alikunhi et al., 1952).
Dissolved nitrogen and phosphorus
Of the dissolved nutrients, nitrogen and phosphorus have been widely
studied and their role and importance in aquatic productivity is well recognised. As
a constituent of protein, nitrogen occupies a highly important place in aquatic
eco-system. Chu (1943) concluded from the results of laboratory experiments that
nitrogen and phosphorus naturally occur in quantities far below the upper limit for
optimal growth of plankton and often do not reach lower optimal concentrations,
the optimal limit of nitrogen being given by him as 0.3 to 1.3; these, however, may
not be applicable to natural conditions. Studies on dissolved inorganic nitrogen
showed that out of 80 ponds sampled, 17 had dissolved nitrogen concentration
below 0.1 ppm, 15 between 0.1-0.15 ppm, 22 between 0.15-0.20 ppm and 26 above
0.20 ppm. The percentages of productive ponds in these respective ranges were
0, 27, 27 and 42 showing that dissolved nitrogen below 0.1 ppm does not indicate
a productive condition. While in the range 0.1-0.20 ppm an average production
is expected, above 0.2 ppm (0.2-0.5) may be considered favourable as out of 26
ponds falling in this range II are productive, 8 are average and only 7 are
unproductive.
Ecologically phosphorus is often considered as the most critical single element in the maintenance of aquatic productivity. Moyle (1946), from a study of a
large number of lakes and ponds, gave the phosphorus fertility range as (1) 0.000.02 ppm low (2) 0.02-0.05 ppm fair (3) 0.05-0.10 ppm good (4) 0.10-0.20 ppm very
good (5) above 0.20 ppm excessive. He found good production of fish in the ponds
having phosphorus concentration 0.02-0.05 ppm, while for the other ranges all
ponds were found to be almost equally productive. In the present study it was
noticed that out of 22 ponds with dissolved phosphorus <0.05 ppm, one was productive, 5 average and 16 unproductive. While in the range 0.05-0.10 ppm out of 25
ponds 5 were productive, 13 average and 7 unproductive, in the range 0.10-0.20
ppm out of 14 ponds 5 were productive, 5 average and 4 unproductive. From
this it may be concluded that dissolved phosphorus below <0.05 ppm may be considered insufficient. While for the range 0.05-0.20 ppm medium to high production
is expected, highly productive fish ponds should have phosphorus concentration above 0.20 ppm. Moyle (1946) has expressed the dissolved phosphate as ppm
of P and in the present study it is expressed as ppm of P2O5. The findings are in
good agreement.
Some workers have emphasised that besides the absolute concentration the
ratio of the concentration of these two elements in water is also likely to influence

TABLE

4.

Soil condition, water quality and fish production in selected ponds in West Bengal.
ASOIL

CONDITION
Total

^
1^^

SI
No.

Name of pond,
location etc.

I I

I II

^
*0

s?

s^

*'

^
Z
c
o
t-l

IS

o
3
43 ON

a. n

fit

Exchangeable

Available

E
'en
C8
O
OH

,8

"

5- =?

u
bOoS

1 s

S6

^
ES
8 eg
"G ^

Is

MM

52

1 Girija Pukur (Bargachia)

Bengal 0.50 4.2-2.4
W.

30.1 24.6 42.8 6.6 .116 .081 .808 2.19 19.0

40.0 14.0 26.0

299

0.80 3.9-1.8

28.1 29.2 38.6 7.2 .122 .079 .853 2.25 17.6

39.0 14.0 23.5

352 116

2 Babur Pukur (Bargachia)

3 Sadar Pukur (Amta)
4 Kumar Pukur (Amta)
5 Bamum Pukur (Udong)
6 Chandi Pukur (Udong)

63

0.20 4.2-1.8

30.8 24.4 42.0 7.3 .128 .037 .864 1.73 13.5

42.0

4.2 31.0

317

59

0.60 4.2-1.8

20.6 30.2 46.0 6.9 .117 .030 .948 2.10 18.0

47.0

3.6 37.0

185

63

0.40 4.2-2.1

18.8 28.2 48.2 6.9 .117 .061 .782

.40

3.4

38.0

8.0 24.0

229

37

>
m

0.60 4.2-2.1

16.2 30.2 47.6 6.6 .097 .052 .837

.75

7.7

30.0

6.0 21.0

141

53

>

7 Surir Pukur (Pachla)

0.30 3.9-1.8

12.0 30.2 55.0 6.6 .167 .046 .704 1.44

8.6

39.0

4.6 33.5

349

53

8 Munshi Pukur (Pachla)

0.15 3.0-1.8

54.2 19.0 25.2 7.2 .131 .021 1.129 1.02

7.7

46.0

2.0 31.5

387

37

9 Bar Pukur (Sakrail)

0.30 3.0-1.8

29.2 25.4 40.4 7.4 .125 .082 .759 2.42 19.4

49.0 12.0 21.5

378

42

10 Jheel Pukur (Sakrail)

2.80 3.9-2.7

28.8 24.4 43.6 7.3 .109 .088 .721 1.04

9.5

39.0 16.0 21.0

255

26

11 School Pukur (Uluberia)

0.30 3.6-1.5

30.8 22.2 44.0 7.8 .090 .056 .918

7.7

21.0

12 Sitala Pukur (Uluberia)

0.25 3.9-2.7

22.6 28.2 46.0 7.7 .122 .074 .910 1.50 12.3

13 Hat Pukur (Bagnan)

0.80 3.6-1.5

14 Nandipukur (Bagnan)
15 Joka Pukur (Nakol)
16 Dhoba Pukur (Nakol)

0.50 3.6-1.8
0.33 2.7-1.2
0.20 2.7-1.2

6.0 19.0

229

63

35.0 12.0 26.0

326

79

24.6 28.2 44.0 6.8 .127 .080 .832 1.33 10.5

52.0 12.0 31.5

150

21

34.1 23.1 37.2 7.4 .124 .056 .510 1.23

9.9

47.0

19.8 29.0 45.6 7.7 .073 .071 .628

36.8 20.2 38.2 7.1 .082 .035 .629

5.5
7.7

22.0 10.0 15.5

28.0 4.0 15.5

88
97
106

74
48
42

.69

.40
.63

6.0 31.5

0\

*^

P*

Ui

<

i I

00

"

^O

g' f

-J

0>

za

(-t

I f

o.

II II
If
if 'I
II
II

C/5

& ^ "9

S.

a. o.

S a g

5 ,

o\ oo

00

-J

00

s>

*.

S)

I I

00
M

-~1

I I

oo

4^

0\

-J

_-4
00

isj

PH

a\

I I

Alkalinity
CO3

I I I

^
S^ ^
00 5 > hJ: ; g 5 c g

CaCOa
ppm
HCO3

7 J - j p N O N p N p 0 0 0 - . J ^
K J O O O N
b o b o b J
t s > 4 ^ b j

Dissolved oxygen
ppm

ON

Carbon dioxide
ppm

t - J M N O \ M 0 0 0 0 0 N O O 0 0 0 0 0 0 O

O b U g b < 3 i s > i ; J J ; U b b s < 3 b

' ^ ^ v . r i 0 o u i c n u i 0 ( . n u i ^ 0 u t < . n

Nitrate
N
ppm

i:*"
b
'""""">-'
"^ b
'-'
b
K> -"
K
>
0 \ 4 . o o 4 i . . t > . O N O v N J ^ l v > 5 4 . 0 \ ^ O N K >

Ammonia
N
ppm

b i ' > - i v J K "

Total
dissolved inorganic
nitrogen
ppm

"

.*" "

t ^ h j W M - p v l - i v j W W K J i -

h*

"

' - ' v o o N b

"

."

."

t~

1^

."

O i ( > o \ K j b \ L i 4 ^ s > l . f t b o b o

r"

N.

"

'

id

-J

'*

"

4k

4^

4>.

4>.

4^

..^

,4>.

4ii.

.^

yi

4^

4^

<.n

ui

ON

ui

KJ

'ON

i*j

K>

!.

ON

t^

bj

k>

o
U

o
-

8 8
LZl

"

b
t

o
f

o
0

o
4

o
U

o
^

o
J

o
U

'

p
I

o
O

o
i

o
J

N/P2O5
ratio
Temperature
-C
Turbidity

Dissloved
inorganic phosphate
(PjOsppm)

8 8 ^ 8 8 8 8 8 8 ^ ^ 8 8 8

Fish
Production
kg/ha/an

SONOd H S U i O N O U l a N O O l l O S QNV A i n v n D HaiVAV

>
H
tn
!
O

I
H

128

S. M. BANERJEA

aquatic productivity. Swingle and Smith (1939) estimated that nitrogen and
phosphorus were being utilised in the plankton growth at the ratios from 3:1 to 6:1.
When phosphorus is expressed as P2O5 these ratios become 1.3:1 to 2.6:1. It
should, however, be remembered that the ratio between these two elements is important only when concentration of either of them is low enough to limit productivity,
so that the absolute concentration as well as the ratio are to be considered together
for interpreting results of water analysis. To study the influence of N/P2O5 ratio
on production of fish, the ponds studied were grouped under 3 ranges, viz., N/
P2O5 ratio above 2.6, between 2.6-1.3 and below 1.3. It was noted that out of
24 ponds with N/P2O5 ratio > 2.6, 2 were productive, 7 average and 15 unproductive, while in the optimal range of 2.6-1.3, 7 were productive, 12 average and 10
unproductive and for ponds having N/P2O5 ratio below 1.3, out of 27 ponds 12
were productive, 11 average and only 4 unproductive. This shows that N/P2O5
ratio above 2.6 is definitely indicative of poor production but the range 2.6-1.3
does not appear to be strictly optimal in view of the finding that as the N/P2O5
ratio further decreases the productivity of ponds increases.
In addition to the 80 ponds of which water quality has been discussed
in relation to fish production 10 more ponds were studied which remained choked
with submerged aquatic vegetation. It is interesting to note that all these ponds
have water qualities favourable for a productive fish pond (excepting 2 ponds having
N/P2O5 ratio above 2.6). In these ponds fertility of water was probably diverted
towards unwanted productivity in the form of aquatic weeds.
SOIL CONDITION AND FISH PRODUCTION

In normal ponds not influenced by external factors the physical and chemical
properties of pond water are more or less a reflection of the properties of the bottom
soil. In this respect the major chemical factors of importance are pH, total nitrogen,
organic carbon, C/N ratio, available nitrogen, available phosphorus and exchangeable calcium.
Hydrogen ion concentration (pH)
As in water, pH of soil also is dependent on various factors. In mud
layers, not well aerated, when the oxygen supply falls short, the decomposition
of organic matter is slow and the products of decomposition are mainly reduced
or partially oxidised compounds like HjS, CH4, and short chain fatty acids. The
production of these compounds is undesirable inasmuch as they make the soil
strongly acidic and, unless it is naturally buffered, reduce the rate of bacterial
action, ultimately leading to less productivity. pH of a soil also influences
inorganic transformation of soluble phosphate and control the adsorption and release
of ions of essential nutrients at soil-water interface. Both for soil and for water a
slightly alkaline pH has been considered favourable for fish pond (Schaeperclaus,
1933). In the present study, grouping the pond soils according to their pH into

WATER QUALITY AND SOIL CONDITION OF FISH PONDS

129

five ranges as (1) <5.5 (2) 5.5-6.5 (3) 6.5-7.5 (4) 7.5-8.5 (5) >8.5 (Table 8),
it is observed that under highly acid condition, with pH <5.5 all the ponds are unproductive, while in moderately acid region (pH 5.5-6.5) out of 22 ponds 50% are
unproductive, 41% are average and 9% are productive; in near-neutral condition
(pH 6.5-7.5) about 50% of the ponds are productive, 15% average and 35% unproductive. In moderately alkaline region (pH 7.5-8.5) out of 25 ponds 28% are productive, 44% are average and 28% are unproductive, while in highly alkaline condition (pH>8.5), 50% of the ponds are unproductive and 50% average and none is
productive. From these observations it may be concluded that both highly acidic
and highly alkaline condition of the soil (pH <5.5 and >8.5) maybe considered undesirable for a fish pond. The optimal soil reaction may be taken as almost neutral
(pH 6.5-7.5) while moderately acid (pH 5.5-6.5) and moderately alkaline reaction
(pH 7.5-8.5) are likely to produce average yield of fish. Comparing between moderately acid and moderately alkaline condition it will be seen that the latter is relatively
better. The limits, however, may not be considered very rigorously.
Phosphorus
The importance of soil phosphorus for increasing the aquatic productivity
is well recognised. It is not the total quantity of phosphorus but its different
forms and conditions controlHng their release to water phase that are important.
Except under highly acid conditions most of the inorganic phosphorus in the
soil is bound up as insoluble Ca3(P04)2 and adsorbed phosphates on colloids. As
both these forms are rendered soluble under an acidic and reducing condition of the
soil, an acidic extractant 0.002 N.H2SO4 (Troug, 1930) has been used to determine
available phosphate. In addition phosphorus is also present in organic form which is
mineralised to soluble inorganic phosphate by bacteria. The process, however, may be
impeded under acid conditions. In view of these, the available phosphorus and not
total phosphorus has been considered more important in aquatic productivity. Ponds
studied have been grouped into four ranges of available phosphorus, viz., <3, 3-6,
6-12, >12 (Table 8), units being expressed as mg of P2O5 per 100 g of soil.
It will be seen that all the 28 ponds with available phosphorus less than 3 are unproductive. In the range 3-6, out of 27 ponds, 26 are average and 1 unproductive;
in the range 6-12,out of 18 ponds 14 are productive, 3 average and only 1 unproductive, while ponds with available phosphorus > 12\ all are productive. Thus the available phosphorus of soil shows a mote regular correlation with pond productivity.
Soil phosphorus level below 3 may be considered indicative of poor production and
that between 3 and 6 of average production; ponds having available phosphorus
above 6 are productive.
Nitrogen
While phosphorus deficiency is very common in pond soil and for its
availability we have to depend on the inherent phosphorus status of the soil, the
case of nitrogen is quite different because of the unlimited supply of atmospheric

130

S. M. BANERJEA ,

nitrogen as a natural resource of the element. Nitrogen in soil is present mostly

in organic form, the fraction present as amino-acids, peptides and easily decomposable
proteins is called available form of nitrogen, determined by decomposition with
alkali-permanganate. In the present study grouping the ponds under five ranges for
available nitrogen it was noted that generally production was poor in ponds with
available nitrogen below 25, the unit being expressed as mg of N per 100 g of soil.
In both the ranges 25-50 and 50-75 the production is average and above 75 of available nitrogen there is no marked difference in production from the previous ranges.
As the correlation is rather irregular no definite conclusion could be drawn. If,
however, the percentages of productive ponds in different ranges are considered, the
range 50-75 may be taken as relatively more favourable. The irregularity in correlation between available nitrogen and fish production is probably due to diversities
of processes contributing towards total and available nitrogen in the soil.
Organic carbon and C/N ratio
Compared to the mineral constituents of the soil, organic compounds
are more varied and complex. According to Meehean (1935) bacterial activity
depends not only on the carbon content but also on the ratio of C/N in the
parent substance. It is low when the ratio falls below 10:1 and good when the
ratio is 20:1 or higher. The importance of carbohydrates and C/N ratio in
nitrogen fixation has also been indicated by Nees (1946). Most of the ponds
studied had an organic carbon content less than 2.5 %; out of 80 ponds 20 had a value
less than 0.5%, while 52 ponds had 0.5 to 2.5% of organic carbon. Grouping the
ponds on the basis of their organic content it was noted that organic carbon less than
0.5% may be considered too low for a fish pond. In the range 0.5-1.5% average
production was observed, while 1.5-2.5% appeared to be optimal. Out of 17 ponds
in this range 14 are productive and 3 are unproductive. Of the ponds having organic
carbon above 2.5%, 50% are unproductive and 16% are productive, showing that
very high organic content also may not be desirable for a pond soil.
To study the relation between C/N ratio of soil and productivity, ponds have
been grouped under four ranges of C/N ratio, viz., <5, 5-10, 10-15 and >15. It is
seen that C/N ratio <5 is definitely indicative of poor production, relatively better
production is found in the range 5-10, but the range 10-15 represents the best condition, only 4 ponds being unproductive out of 27 falling in this range. The ratio of
C/N above 15, however, appears to be less favourable than 10-15 range; this is some,
what at variance with the findings of Meehean (1935).
Calcium
Calcium is generally present in the soil as carbonate. Barret (1953) has
shown that the amount of exchangeable phosphate in pond mud is inversely related
to the marl-organic matter ratio, so that in highly organic soil with low calcium,

WATER QUALITY AND SOIL CONDITION OF FISH PONDS

131

soluble phosphorus remains adsorbed in an exchangeable form; where sediments

were very low in organic matter and very high in marl, phosphorus probably became
fixed in insoluble precipitate.
As the availability of calcium from soil to water phase is likely to be influenced
more by exchangeable calcium, a correlation was attempted between exchangeable
calcium in soil and productivity of ponds. It was, however, noted that by grouping
ponds under 4 ranges of exchangeable calcium, viz. <100, 100-200,200-300 and > 300
(mg/lOOg of soil) and noting the number of productive, average and unproductive
ponds in each range, no marked influence of exchangeable calcium upon productivity
could be noticed.
The production of fish is presented in Table 4 along with the results of
the physical and chemical analysis of soil and water. It will be seen from the table
that excepting one pond showing a slightly acidic pH (6.8) all the pond waters are
slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline in reaction, pH ranging from 7.2 to 8.2;
dissolved oxygen also shows a fairly high concentration, varying between 6.2 and 8.2
ppm, none of the ponds having D.O. below 5.0 ppm. Thus both pH and D.O.
may be considered not unfavourable for productive fish pond. Total alkalinity
also shows a fairly high value, none of the ponds having a value less than 50 ppm.
It may be noted that total alkalinity of all the ponds is constituted of bicarbonate
only in equilibrium with a fair concentration of free carbon dioxide but no
carbonate. The more variable factors are dissolved inorganic nitrogen and
phosphorus.
Physical and chemical analysis of the bottom soil shows that physically all the
soils excepting one are clayey in texture, the clay content ranging from 25.2 to 55.0%.
Sandy soil generally bespeaks of poor productivity as the main source of nutrient
are clay and silt fraction. According to Nees (1946) an ideal pond soil should not
be too sandy to allow too much leaching of the nutrients; it should neither be too
clayey to keep all the nutrients adsorbed in it. In this respect all the soils appeared
to be near ideal condition. Among the more important chemical factors, soil pH
registered a value between 6.6 and 7.7, organic carbon showed more variable values
ranging from 0.4 to 2.4 %, C/N ratio ranged from 3.4 to 19.4, available nitrogen ranged
from 21.0 to 49.0, available P2O5 from 2.0 to 16.0 and exchangeable calcium from
88.0 to 387.0 mg per 100 g of soil.
To find the correlation between the more important physico-chemical properties of water and soil likely to influence production, a statistical analysis of the
data was taken up and the co-efficient of correlation of the variables determining
water and soil quality, with production offishis presented in Table 5.
By applying the 't' test where t == r (\/R-^)/1-T^ (r = correlation co-eflficient
and n = number of pairs of observations) the following results aie obtained:

132

S. M. BANERJEA

A. Soil condition
The correlation between fish production and organic carbon and that of fish
production and available phosphorus are found to be significant, the latter being
highly significant at both 5 % and 1 % levels.
B. Water quality
In this case the correlation between the fish production and dissolved phosphorus and that between fish production and N/P2O5 ratio are seen to be significant
at both 5 % and 1 % levels. It is significant to note that dissolved phosphorus value
is very high in all these ponds but even then this variable is significantly correlated
with fish production. So also is the N/P2O5 ratio for which values 1.3 or lower
were found to be favourable. This shows that in freshwater ponds under natural
conditions it is difficult to demarcate the upper optimal value for dissolved phosphorus
and also lower optimal value for N/P2O5 ratio, the optimal range 2.6-1.3 may not
be strictly valid.
After determining the approximate ranges of important soil and water qualities for productive and unproductive fish ponds it was next considered necessary to
test the validity of these findings in practical field. To do this three fish farms in
Orissa, viz., (1) Killa farm (Cuttack), (2) Brickfield farm (Puri), (3) Chaudwar farm
(Chaudwar) were selected. These farms were under the management of the Central
Inland Fisheries Research Sub-station, Cuttack, for a number of years and the ponds
were used as nurseries for rearing spawn and fry and also for short-term rearing experiments with fingerlings. Some ponds were also used as stocking ponds for rearing
the major carps, catla, rohu and mrigal from which average production could be
obtained. It was observed for a number of years that for all fish cultural operations
these three farms showed a marked difference in their production efficiency. The
Killa farm could be called a highly productive farm, Puri farm an average one and
Chaudwar poorly productive. To find out if this difference in production character
could be explained from the soil and water quality of the ponds, on the basis of the
aforementioned findings, a number of ponds (14-16) at random were selected at
each farm and their soil condition and water quality determined. The results are
presented in Table 6. Examining the data it will be found that the average pH of
water in all thefishfarms varies from slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline reaction
and as such may be considered optimal. Alkalinity shows the lowest value of 68
ppm in the unproductive Chaudwar faim but is not below 20 ppm to work unfavourably. The dissolved nitrogen also shows a fairly high value but the deficient character
of water is exhibited by its low dissolved phosphorus (0.06 ppm) as compared to
0.45 ppm and 0.35 ppm in Killa and Brickfield farm. N/P2O5 ratio in water, inversely
related with productivity, is also relatively high (2.3) as compared to those in other
farms (0.47 and 0.57). Similarly comparing the soil conditions of the farms it will be
noted that the unproductive Chaudwar farm is deficient in organic carbon and available phosphorus; C/N ratio for Chaudwar farm also records a low value less than

TABLE 5.

Soil
coaditton

coefficient
of correlation
with fish
production

Correlation

D.F.

between soil condition,

't' value

water quality and

Water
quality

fish

>

production.

H
W

CoefiBcient of
correlation with
fish production

D.F.

14

'i' value

>
r
H

0.471

pH

0.048

0.651

4.228**

Alkalinity

0.045

0.169

C/N

0.272

1.099

Dissolved N

0.222

0.874

>
z
o
o
r
o
o
z
o

Av. N

0.031

0.116

Dissolved P2O5

0.593

3.423**

Av. P2O5

0.964

51.019**

N/P2O5

0.562

3.074

Ex. Ca

0.036

0.135

D. 0 .

0.407

1.828

pH

0.124

Org. C

14

0.180

11

** Highly significant

23
Ui

X
hS
O

z
D

TABLE

6. Soil condition and water quality of differently productive fish farms.

UJ

SOIL CONDITIONS
N?
a

c J

Name of fish farm

Productivity

o "

Killa farm, Cuttack

Available

pH

Zt;
1

Total

1=

"S
U

"|
2

N%

P205%

K20%

N
P2O5
K2O
mg/lOOg mg/lOOg mg/lOOg

High

16 Range 6.8-7.2 0.74-1.24 23.1-29.0 0.032-.043 0.120-0.138 0.150-0.586 25.4-28.8 27.8-30.6 28.4-30.0
Average 7.1
0.96
24.0
0.040
0.134
0.548
26.8
29.6
29.2

2 Brickfield farm, Puri

Medium

16 Range 6.7-6.9 0.48-0.74 18.5-19.5 0.026-0.038 0.060-0.078 0.584-0.608 20.0-24.4 5.2-6.4

Average 6.8
0.61
19.0
0.032
0.064
0.592
22.2
5.9

3 Choudwar farm.
Choudwar

Low

14 Range 6.7-7.0 0.22-0.34 4.2-5.1 0.052-O.067 0.063-0.075 0.410-0.472 32.3-41.4 1.6-2.6

Average 6.8
0.26
4.5
0.058
0.067
0.435
37.0
2.2

4.0-5.6
4.8

12.8-14.6
13.6

Z
g

>
WATER
Productivity

pH.

No. of
ponds

QUALITY

Alkalinity

Dissolved
P2O5

Dissolved N .
NO3-N

NH4-N

Total

N/P2O5ratio

1 Killa farm, Cuttack

High

16

Range
Average

8.0-8.4
8.1

133-166
146

0.15-0.65
0.45

0.13-0.16
0.15

.05-.08
.06

.21

.47

2 Brickfield farm.
Puri

Medium

16

Range
Average

7.1-7.8
7.4

85-100
93

0.20-0.50
0.35

0.08-0.20
0.15

.04-.07
.05

.20

.57

Low

14

Range
Average

8.0-8.2
8.1

58-80
68

0.04-0.10
0.06

0.04-0.14
0.11

.01-.05
.03

.14

2.3

Choudwar farm.
Choudwar

TABLE

7. Soil condition and water quality of pairs of productive and unproductive ponds situated adjacently.

Name of pond

Productivity

pH

Org.
C

Soil condition
C/N Av. N Av.PjOj

Ex.
Ca

pH

Water quality
D.O. Alkalinity Dissolved
Nitrogen

Dissolved N/P2O5
Phosphate

Barali Pond (Sibsagar)

Assam

High

6.0 1.920

10.6

98.0

8.0

62

6.7

6.8

18

0.17

0.01

17.0

Chaliha Pond
(Sibsagar) Assam

Low

6.2 0.540

3.3

68.3

2.0

53

6.2

6.4

20

0.05

0.01

5.0

Jheel Pukur (Hooghly)

West Bengal

High

7.2 0.400

10.0

19.0

6.0

110

6.6

5.2

30

0.11

0.C8

1.4

Mukherjee Pukur
(Hooghly) W. Bengal

Medium

6.2 0.400

12.5

11.8

3.2

114

7.0

7.2

70

0.10

0.08

1.3

Chotinati (Raipur)
Madhya Pradesh

V. High

7.2 1.520

7.6

59.9

30.0

65

7.5

6.2

88

0.33

0.25

1.3

Gotiardih

Low

6.9 0.408

3.0

29.7

2.0

28

7.4

6.2

40

0.12

0.03

4.0

P.P. 22 (Sunkesula)
Andhra Pradesh

Medium

8.9 0.500

15.1

19.5

4.5

452

8.6

9.6

214

0.16

0.12

1.3

P.P. 26

Low

8.9 0.370

12.3

17.8

1.5

463

8.9

5.6

274

0.16

0.13

1.2

>
-i
tn

O
C

>
r

>
z
D
Ui

i
a
o
z
o
11

"

TABLE 8.
Range
pH

Relation between soil condition and productivity

No. of ponds

Total

Productive

No. of ponds

Range

Average

Unproductive Available N
mg/lOOg

of fish ponds.

Total

Productive

Average

Unproductive

<25

39

21

14

5.5-6.5

22

11

25-50

27

10

11

6.5-7.5

25

13

50-75

11

7.5-8.5

25

11

>75

<5.5

>8.5

Av. P2O5
mg/lOOg

Organic Carbon
(%)
20

11

<3

28

28

>
z
rn

0.5-1.5

37

19

12

3-6

27

26

1.5-2.5

17

14

6-12

18

14

>12

<.5

7)
(1

>2.5

C/N ratio

Ex. calcium
mg/100 g

<5

<100

17

5-10

18

100-200

18

10-15

27

11

12

200-300

18

>15

31

11

13

>300

27

15

>

TABLE
Range
pH

9. Relation between water quality and productivity of fish ponds.

Range

No. of ponds
Total

Productive

Average

Unproductive

Alkalinity
CaCOs ppm

No. of ponds
Total

Productive

Average

Unproductive

<5.5

<20

5.5-6.5

10

10

20-50

11

6.5-7.5

24

14

50-100

20

7.5-8.5

34

11

16

100-200

32

13

10

0
C
>
r

>8.5

12

>200

12

>

>

D
Dissolved inorganic
phosphate (P2O5 ppm)

Dissolved
inorganic N. (ppm)
<0.1

17

0.1-0.15

15

0.15-0.20
>0.20

22
26

6
11

22

16

0.05-0.10

26

13

0.10-0.20

>0.20

14

18

N/P
ratio

<3

3-5

5-7

43

11

. >7

28

10

<0.05

Dissolved
oxygen (ppm)

V9

zw

>2.6

24

15

2.6-1.3

29

12

10

13

19

<1.3

27

12

11

14

-J

138

S. M. BANERJEA

5.0, as compared to those in othei farms (24.0 and 19.0). The Brickfield farm with
average production shows the value of organic carbon, available phosphorus and
C/N ratio intermediate between those of productive Killa farm and unproductive
Chaudwar farm.
The validity of the findings in respect of favourable ranges of soil and water
quality was tested in another way. In agricultural practice it is generally found that
adjoining plots produce the same crop yield but in fish culture practices it is
sometimes found that 2 ponds situated almost adjacently and with the same management practices show a marked difference in their production of fish. The reason
obviously is to be sought in the inherent fertility status of soil and water. Results of
analyses of soil and water of four pairs of such ponds from Assam, West Bengal,
Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh are presented in Table 7. Examining
the data it will be seen that from a study of water quality alone it is difficult to
find out the cause of difference in productivity. As regards pH, D.O., and alkalinity
there was no marked difference between the individuals of each pair and when a
deficiency condition for a particular factor was noted, as for alkalinity, dissolved
phosphate and N/P2O5 ratio in Assam ponds it was true for both the individuals.
Studying the most significant water qualities influencing productivity, viz., dissolved
phosphate and N/P2O5 ratio it was observed that only in case of Madhya Pradesh
ponds the productive ponds showed an optimal condition (dissolved phosphate 0.25
ppm and N/P2O5 ratio 1.3) as against very deficient condition for unproductive
ponds (phosphate 0.03 ppm and N/P2P5 ratio 4.0). In this pair, alkalinity and
dissolved nitrogen were also relatively much higher in the productive pond.
Examination of the soil qualities of the ponds, however, could explain the
difference in their productivity more correctly. Comparing the ponds of Assam it
was seen that both the ponds had acidic pH (6.0 and 6.2) but the productive pond
had organic carbon 1.92%, C/N ratio 10.6, available P2O5 8.0 mg per 100 g, all
these values being in the favourable range for a productive pond as against the deficient soil conditions in respect of these factors for the unproductive pond, viz., organic
carbon 0.54%, C/N ratio 3.3 and available P2O5 2.0 mg per 100 g. Available nitrogen was high for both the ponds but the productive pond had a relatively much higher
value. In the same way in the ponds from West Bengal the relatively low production
in one pond could be attributed to the moderately acidic reaction of the soil with
low available phosphorus. A very marked difference in production was observed
in 2 ponds at Raipur area of Madhya Pradesh. Here it was noted that the poor production of one pond was due to its deficient condition in organic carbon (0.408%),
C/N ratio (3.0), available nitrogen (29.7), available phosphorus (2.0), these being
much higher and in the optimal range in the productive pond. The Sunkesula fish
farm in Andhra Pradesh with a highly alkaline soil is an unproductive fish farm.
Among the unproductive ponds a marked difference in fish yield was observed in two
nearly adjacent ponds. Study of one such pair of ponds showed that excepting the
high C/N ratio (15.1 and 12.3) the soils of both ponds were highly alkaline in reaction.

WATER QUALITY AND SOIL CONDITION OF FISH PONDS

139

poor in organic carbon and low in available nitrogen. The only difference observed
was that in the productive pond (medium) the available phosphorus was 4.5 mg per
100 g and in the unproductive pond it was 1.5 mg per 100 g.
In the study of differently productive fish farms where a large number of ponds
from each farm was analysed the average soil and water qualities both served as
indices of productivity. In case of individual ponds, however, it was noted that soil
quality gave a more reliable indication than water quality. Among the more important soil properties responsible for productivity, available soil phosphorus appeared
to be the most important. When there was a marked difference in productivity between two ponds most of the important soil qualities showed a marked variation
(cf ponds from M.P.); when the difference was less marked one or two soil qualities
differed. It was, however, noted that in all cases available soil phosphorus was a
concomitant factor.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

To get a general idea of the soil condition and the water quality of fish ponds
cultivating mainly Indian major carps and also to find the most favourable range
for the more important soil and water qualities influencing fish production, water
and soil samples of a large number of fish ponds were examined. Physical factors
like heat and light were discussed in a general way. Diurnal and seasonal fluctuations of temperature as determined in ponds at a fish farm in Cuttack (Orissa) were
discussed, indicating the better heat and light conditions for tropical waters. As
regards chemical quality of water it was observed that highly acid waters (pH<5.5)
is rather uncommon even in the acid soil zones having soil pH <5.5. A near neutral
condition of pH (6.5-7.5) was most favourable for productive ponds. Acid waters
(pH 5.5-6.5) and highly alkaline waters (pH> 8.5) are unproductive; pH 7.5-8.5 could
be considered favourable for average production. Very low total alkalinity (<20
ppm) was definitely indicative of poor production, above 20 ppm, alkaUnity does not
appear to influence productivity. In well-aerated fish ponds, dissolved oxygen of
surface water was never too low, a value of < 3.0 ppm working detrimental to fish
and other aquatic lives. Dissolved oxygen below 5.0 ppm could be considered unfavourable for a productive fish pond. Under normal conditions a fair concentration
of D.O. (> 7.0 ppm) generally bespeaks of a healthy environment and productive
water. Regarding the dissolved nutrients both nitiogen and phosphorus occur in
water in very low concentrations. Dissolved inorganic nitrogen below 0.1 ppm may
be considered as indicative of poor productivity; in the range 0.1 to 0.2 ppm the ponds
are of average production and above 0.2 ppm of nitrogen is favourable for productive
pond. Dissolved phosphate (as P2O5) < 0.05 ppm may be considered undesirable
for a productive fish pond; in the range 0.05 - 0.20 ppm medium to high production
is expected and highly productivefishponds generally have a phosphate concentration
> 0.2 ppm. However, due to its quick turnover from water phase, dissolved phosphorus may not be considered as a reliable index for productivity. Besides their

140

S. M. BANERJEA

absolute concentrations the ratio N/P2OJ is also likely to influence aquatic productivity; 1.3: 1 to 2.6 : 1 was considered the optimal ratio. It was shown that, inversely
related with fish production, N/P2O5 ratio above 2.6 is definitely indicative of poor
production but the range 2.6 to 1.3 does not appear to be strictly optimal in
view of the finding that as N/P2O5 ratio further decreases, the productivity of
ponds increases.
It was observed that both highly acid (pH <5.5) and highly alkaline (pH> 8.5)
condition of the soil may be considered undesirable for a fish pond. The optimal
soil reaction is a near-neutral condition (pH 6.5-7.5) while average production
is expected from moderately acid (pH 5.5-6.5) and moderately alkaline (pH 7.5-8.5)
soil. Between these two, moderately alkaline condition is relatively better.
Available soil phosphorus (.002 N.H2SO4 extract) shows the most regular
correlation with fish production. Soil phosphorus level below 3.0 (mg P2O5/IOO g)
is definitely indicative of poor production and in the range 3.0-6.0 ponds are of
average production while ponds having phosphorus concentration above 6.0 are
productive.
Available nitrogen below 25 (mg N per 100 g of soil) bespeaks of poor production, in the range 25-75 production is high, average or low, and few ponds have
nitrogen level above 75.
Most of the ponds studied had an organic carbon content less than 2.5 %.
Organic carbon less than 0.5% could be considered too low for fish ponds; in the
range 0.5-1.5 productivity was average while the range 1.5-2.5 appeared to be optimal.
Very high organic content of the soil above 2.5 % is rather undesirable. Studying
the ratio of organic carbon to total nitrogen it was found that C/N ratio below 5.0
indicated poor production; average production was shown in the range 5-10 and the
range 10-15 appeared to be optimal.
Exchangeable calcium in soil did not show any correlation with production
of fish in ponds.
In the second phase of the study observations were carried out on soil and water
quality of 16 selected ponds in the same soil zone in West Bengal. The data were
analysed statistically. It was noted that among the factors studied, viz. pH, organic
carbon, C/N ratio, available nitrogen, available phosphorus and exchangeable calcium
of soil, the correlation between fish production and organic carbon and that between
available phosphorus and fish production were significant at both 5 % and 1 % level.
As regards water quality it was noted that dissolved inorganic phosphate and N/P2O5
ratio were significantly conelated with fish production, while poor correlation was
shown for pH, dissolved oxygen and dissolved nitrogen. To test the validity of these
findings soil condition and water quality of 3 fish farms in Oiissa, one productive,
one average and one unproductive, were examined and it was obseived that high or

WATER QUALITY AND SOIL CONDITION OF FISH PONDS

141

low production offishin these farms could be explained from the average condition
of more important soil and water qualities. In another test soil condition and water
quality of two individual ponds situated almost adjacently and under the same
management practice but still differing in yield of fish, were examined. Here also
it was noticed that poor or high production offishcould be explained on the basis of
soil and water qualities of the ponds. In case of individual ponds, however, soil
condition served as a more reliable index than water quality.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The author expresses his thanks to Dr. B.S. Bhimachar, Director, Central
Inland Fisheries Research Institute, and Dr. H. Chaudhuri, Officer in-charge, Cuttack
Sub-station, for kindly going through the manuscript and suggesting improvements.
The author also extends his thanks to Sarvasri G.N. Saha, D.Kr. Chatterjee and S.R.
Ghosh for their help in the analysis of samples from Andhra Pradesh and Manipur.

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ALIKUNHI, K.H., V. RAMACHANDRA AMD H . CHAUDHURI.

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1946. Standard methods for the examination of water

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BARRET, R . H . 1953. Relationship between alkalinity and absorption and regeneration of added
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Hydrobiological investigations of the

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GANAPATI, S.V., P.I. CHACKO AND R. SRINIVASAN.

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Hydrobiological conditions of the

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APPENDIX 1

Names and location offish ponds from which observations were made
Manipur

Assam
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

P.P. (1) Raha

P.P. (2) Raha
Chaliha Sibsagar
Barali Sibsagar
P.P. (6) Joysagar
P.P.(7) Joysagar
Agri Pond, Gauhati
Farm Pond, Gauhati
P.P. (11) Janglabalagar
F.P. (12) Janglabalagar
Nursery (1) Gourisagar
F.P. (12) Gourisagar
West Bengal

13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24

Maidan (1) Calcutta

Maidan (2) Calcutta
National Lib (1) Calcutta
National Lib (2) Calcutta
Hospital Pond, Kamarahati
Kachari Talab Barrackpore
Laldighi Barrackpore
Dhobi Pond, Kamarhati
Gorey Pukur Hooghly
Dighi Pukur Hooghly
Mukherjee Pukur Hoogbly
Jhul Pukur Hooghly

25.
26.
27.
28.

Loktak lake
Takmu Lake
P.P. Ning Thoukhong
P.P. Lamphil
Orissa

29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.

P.P. (9) Choudwar

P.P. (16) Chudwar
Lib. Pond Kujang
Office Pond Kujang
Pub. Pond Nuapara
P.P. (5) Nuapara
P.P. (6) Jaipur
F.P. (7) Jaipur
F.P. Birbati
F.P. (2) Padampur
F.P. (15) Padampur
F.P. (12) Balasore
F.P. (15) Balasore
S.T. (1) Bonth
N.P. Bonth
F.P. (4) Amarda
F.P. (5) Amarda
F.P. (1) Dhenkanal
F.P. (2) Dhenkanal
F.P. (9) Angul

144

S. M. BANERJEA
APPENDIX 1 (contd.)

Orissa (coatd.)
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
57.
58.
59.
60.
61.
62.
63.
64.
65.
66.
67.
68.
69.
70.

F.P. (9A) Angul

F.P. (3) Athmallik
F.P. (4) Athmallik
F.P. (6) Keonjhar
F.P. (7) Keonjhar
F.P. (9) Bolangir
F.P. (11) Bolangir
F.P. (1) Jeypore
F.P. (2) Jeypore
Public pond, Jeypore
F.P. (7) Puri
F.P. (8) Puri
(2) H.K. Pur, Puri
(3) H. K. Pur, Puri
F. P. (6) Berhampur
F.P. (9) Berhampur
F.P. (S.T.) P. Kemedi
F.P.(17) P. Kemedi
F.P (1) Belgunta
F.P. (2) Belgunta
F. P. (28) Sambalpur
F.P. (29) Sambalpur

71.
72.
73.
74.
75.
76.
77.
78.
79.
80.
81.
82.
83.
84.

Madhva Pradesh
Rajbondha (Raipur)
Baijnath (Raipur)
K. Arjuni (Bilaspur)
Kunarpur (Bilaspur)
Purena (Damoh)
Belatal (Damoh)
Chotinati (Raipur)
Gotiardhi (Raipur)
Keradih (Raipur)
Jail tank (Raipur)
Khan Talab (Bhandara)
Sagar Talab (Bhandara)
Bara Talab (Warora)
Dada Talab (Warora)

85.
86.
87.
88.
89.
90.

F.P.l-A
F.P. 3
F.P. 4
F.P. 22
F.P. 26
F.P. 28

Andhra Pradesh
(Sunkesula)
(Sunkesula)
(Sunkesula)
(Sunkesula)
(Sunkesula)
(Sunkesula)