Turyňský rybník (also called Záplavy) is a

fish pond A fish pond or fishpond is a controlled pond, small artificial lake or retention basin that is stocked with fish and is used in aquaculture for fish farming, for recreational fishing, or for ornamental purposes. Fish ponds are a classical g ...

in the

Central Bohemian Region The Central Bohemian Region ( ; ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the central part of its historical region of Bohemia. Its administrative centre is in the Czech capital Prague, which lies in the centre of the regio ...

of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. With an area of , it is the largest body of water in

Kladno District Kladno District () is a Okres, district in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of Kladno. Administrative division Kladno District is divided into two Districts of the Czech Republic#Municipalities with extend ...

Etymology

The name Turyňský rybník ('Turyň's pond') is derived from a pagan God named Tur. When the pond was restored after the flooding of meadows in the locality, the locals also began to call it Záplavy (literally 'floods').

Location

The pond is located in the

, about west of

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. It lies mostly in the territory of

Kamenné Žehrovice Kamenné Žehrovice is a municipality and village in Kladno District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,600 inhabitants. Etymology The name Žehrovice is derived from the personal name Žehra, meaning "the village ...

, only a small part in the north extends into the territory of

Tuchlovice Tuchlovice is a municipality and village in Kladno District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,800 inhabitants. Administrative division Tuchlovice consists of two municipal parts (in brackets population according ...

. The pond is situated in the

Křivoklát Highlands Křivoklát () is a market town in Rakovník District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 700 inhabitants. It is known for the medieval Křivoklát Castle, protected as national cultural monument. Administrative d ...

, at an altitude of .

Characteristics

The pond is of medieval origin. It was abolished in the middle of the 19th century, but after the flood in 1949, it was spontaneously restored. The current area of the Turyňský rybník is . However, its area is expanding as a result of subsidence of the terrain, a result of mining in the region in the early 20th century. At the deepest point, the depth of Turyňský rybník is . The primary inflow and outflow is the Loděnice River. Turyňský rybník is in length, and wide at its widest point.

Use

The subsidence of the bottom has made the pond impossible to drain, therefore it is used only for

sport fishing Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is occupational fishing activities done for profit; or subsistence fishing, ...

instead of

fish farming Fish farming or pisciculture involves commercial breeding of fish, most often for food, in fish tanks or artificial enclosures such as fish ponds. It is a particular type of aquaculture, which is the controlled cultivation and harvesting of ...

. Swimming is prohibited here.

Nature

The northwestern part of Turyňský rybník is protected within the Záplavy Nature Reserve. The reserve has an area of and in addition to part of the pond, it also includes the wetlands around the Loděnice River at the mouth of the pond. The location is an important breeding ground and migration stop for water birds and wetland birds. Among the protected species of birds that nest here are the

common kingfisher The common kingfisher (''Alcedo atthis''), also known as the Eurasian kingfisher and river kingfisher, is a small kingfisher with seven subspecies recognized within its wide distribution across Eurasia and North Africa. It is resident in much of ...

, the

little egret The little egret (''Egretta garzetta'') is a species of small heron in the family Ardeidae. It is a white bird with a slender black beak, long black legs and, in the western race, yellow feet. As an aquatic bird, it feeds in shallow water and on ...

and the

Eurasian hoopoe The Eurasian hoopoe (''Upupa epops'') is the most widespread species of the genus '' Upupa''. It is a distinctive cinnamon coloured bird with black and white wings, a tall erectile crest, a broad white band across a black tail, and a long narrow ...

. Most of the fish typical for the Czech Republic live here (

Eurasian carp The common carp (''Cyprinus carpio''), also known as European carp, Eurasian carp, or simply carp, is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia.Fishbase''Cyprinus carpio'' Linnaeus, 1758/ref>Ark ...

tench The tench or doctor fish (''Tinca tinca'') is a freshwater, fresh- and brackish water, brackish-water fish of the order Cypriniformes found throughout Eurasia from Western Europe including Great Britain, Britain and Ireland east into Asia as far ...

common bream The common bream (''Abramis brama''), also known as the freshwater bream, bream, bronze bream, carp bream or sweaty bream, is a European species of freshwater fish in the family Leuciscidae. It is now considered to be the monotypic, only speci ...

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...

and others).

References

{{coord, 50, 8, 15, N, 14, 1, 25, E, display=title Kladno District Geography of the Central Bohemian Region