Lake Tai is a freshwater lake in the eastern part of China. With an area of 2250 square kilometres, Lake Tai ranks the third-largest freshwater lake in China, after Lake Poyang and Lake Dongting. Lake Tai houses about 90 islands, ranging in size from a few square metres to several square kilometres. The lake is renowned for its unique ‘Taihu stones’, which are often used to decorate traditional Chinese gardens. The lake aiso known for its productive fishing industry. Since the late 1970s, harvesting food products such as fish and crabs has been invaluable to people living along the lakes and has contributed significantly to the economy of the surrounding area. The lake area is one of the ceramic centres in China, where Yixing pottery factories produce the world-famous Yixing clay teapots.