ArticleScientific reports2022
A functional definition to distinguish ponds from lakes and wetlands.
Article in Scientific reports, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers.
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Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed.
- Spatio-temporal patterns and environmental controls of soil organic carbon stocks in global tidal wetlands since 2009.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Exploring Uncharted Waters: The Role of Artificial Aquatic Ecosystems in Freshwater Science.Ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- The promise and pitfalls of monitoring harmful algal blooms (HABs) with remote sensing in pond-sized waterbodies.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2026Article
- Multiscale environmental analysis on autotrophic euglenid communities: insights from DNA metabarcoding.Microbial ecology · 2026Article
- Depth-resolved carbon dioxide and methane concentrations in 522 lakes, ponds, and reservoirs worldwide.Scientific data · 2026Article
- Regional γ Diversity of Diatoms in Mediterranean and Alpine Temporary Ponds.Microbial ecology · 2025Article
- Velocity of Climate Change and the Vulnerability of Mountain Lake Landscapes.Environmental science & technology · 2025Article
- Global importance of nitrogen fixation across inland and coastal waters.Science (New York, N.Y.) · 2025Article
- Non-Floodplain Wetlands Are Carbon-Storage Powerhouses Across the United States.Earth's future · 2025Article
- A summer in the greater Paris: trophic status of peri-urban lakes shapes prokaryotic community structure and functional potential.Environmental microbiome · 2025Article
- Understanding the hydrological and landscape connectivity of lakes.Landscape ecology · 2025Article
- Factors Regulating the Potential for Freshwater Mineral Soil Wetlands to Function as Natural Climate Solutions.Wetlands (Wilmington, N.C.) · 2025Review
- Diversity and distribution of chironomids in Central European ponds.Ecology and evolution · 2024Article
- Climate change will reduce North American inland wetland areas and disrupt their seasonal regimes.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Climate change and the biodiversity of alpine ponds: Challenges and perspectives.Ecology and evolution · 2024Review
- Wetland productivity determines trade-off between biodiversity support and greenhouse gas production.Ecology and evolution · 2023Article
- Article
- Biodiversity patterns diverge along geographic temperature gradients.Global change biology · 2023Article
- Practical Guide to Measuring Wetland Carbon Pools and Fluxes.Wetlands (Wilmington, N.C.) · 2023Review
- Small Islands, Small Ponds, Small Communities-Water Beetles and Water Boatmen in the Faroe Islands.Insects · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
20 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Ponds are often identified by their small size and shallow depths, but the lack of a universal evidence-based definition hampers science and weakens legal protection. Here, we compile existing pond definitions, compare ecosystem metrics (e.g., metabolism, nutrient concentrations, and gas fluxes) among ponds, wetlands, and lakes, and propose an evidence-based pond definition. Compiled definitions often mentioned surface area and depth, but were largely qualitative and variable. Government legislation rarely defined ponds, despite commonly using the term. Ponds, as defined in published studies, varied in origin and hydroperiod and were often distinct from lakes and wetlands in water chemistry. We also compared how ecosystem metrics related to three variables often seen in waterbody definitions: waterbody size, maximum depth, and emergent vegetation cover. Most ecosystem metrics (e.g., water chemistry, gas fluxes, and metabolism) exhibited nonlinear relationships with these variables, with average threshold changes at 3.7 ± 1.8 ha (median: 1.5 ha) in surface area, 5.8 ± 2.5 m (median: 5.2 m) in depth, and 13.4 ± 6.3% (median: 8.2%) emergent vegetation cover. We use this evidence and prior definitions to define ponds as waterbodies that are small (< 5 ha), shallow (< 5 m), with < 30% emergent vegetation and we highlight areas for further study near these boundaries. This definition will inform the science, policy, and management of globally abundant and ecologically significant pond ecosystems.
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