Carp Stream 鲤鱼溪

About Carp Stream

The stream is fed by dozens of mountain torrents off Ziyun Mountain and carries many thousands of large coloured carp through the village. Tradition holds that at the end of the Southern Song the ancestors of the Zheng family, newly settled at Puyuan, put carp into the water both to keep it clear and to guard against poisoning, and laid down a clan rule that the fish were to be protected and never caught or eaten. The rule held through wars and famines. Dead carp are buried at a fish tomb, a stone marked with the words for fish tomb standing between paired trees on the bank, and a written elegy accompanies the burial, a practice that grew into the local fish-sacrifice custom.

The stream itself was engineered for the fish. Houses along it were built with L-shaped drains under the road surface where carp could shelter when the water rose, calamus was planted at the edge for the fish to hold on to during floods, and local cobbles were used to build the street embankment, lay paths and set steps in the flow, keeping the water moving and creating conditions for the carp to spawn against the current. Puyuan village has been named a national historic and cultural village, and the fish-protecting custom is listed as Fujian provincial intangible cultural heritage. The Liyuxi and Jiulongji scenic area became a national 4A tourist area in 2013, received national scenic and historic interest area status in 2017, and in 2018 was made the fourth core park of the Ningde Global Geopark; the stream has also been designated a national fish-culture theme park.

What to look for

• The carp themselves, which move through the stream under a clan rule forbidding anyone to catch or eat them
• The fish tomb, marked by a stone inscribed with those two characters, standing between paired trees on the bank
• The cobble embankment, paths and flow steps built into the stream to help the fish spawn against the current
• The China Carp Culture Museum, with display areas on the bond between people and fish
• The Liyuxi folk museum, a 200 square metre old dwelling with hands-on crafts including pottery throwing, palm-fibre coat making and paper cutting

Location & getting there

Getting to Carp Stream

Identify the main visitor approach and any separately managed houses, museums or performances. Ask before entering residential spaces or photographing residents.

• Search for 鲤鱼溪 with 宁德市 and 周宁县.