Frogs

My small pond is in the same state as the one in this forum owned by Phill except that last weekend it was invaded by 12 frogs who have had a jolly time mating cotiuously! this has resulted in quite a lot of frogspawn 3/4 of which I am giving away for a large start up pond.
Is now the best time to remove all of last (and some previous) year's debris being careful not to damage the remaining spawn. What about the frogs, how are they to be protected during this operation?

 

Hi dwjay,
you`ll have to be quick as the spawn will hatch in a few weeks and then you`ll have thousands of tadpoles to worry about
On the otherhand the mating could continue through until april so it really depends on how badly you need to clean the pond.

If want to remove the adult frogs during the cleaning, put them in a tub with some damp vegetation..not a water filled one as they`ll drown
Put any frogspawn in a bucket of pond water so you can put it back afterwards.
Frogs are resilient and will return to the pond

 

Thanks Hex. I think it'll be worth it to start straight away.
I presume that if fish are introduced thy'll eat the spawn/tadpoles and after this generation of adults there'll be no more?
Is it possible to arrange co-existance in a small pond?
D

 

Natural selection will allow some of the spawn to survive.
As they lay thousands of eggs a small percentage will still be a lot... i`d just let nature do it`s thing

 

Watch out for newts too they sometimes overwinter at the bottoms of ponds, mine have and even baby newts still with gills can be in the pond this time of year if they hatched late last year. There are all sorts of creatuers on the mulm at the bottom so keep your eyes open. As advised never put tadpoles in tap water always the same water they were hatched in.

 

Both my Dad and I have so many frogs in our ponds we have to take them to Sutton Park. We got 45 out of my Dads pond last year and a bucket full of spawn that blocked the pump. His pond is only small about 4x3 feet . I havn't had so many since I put a net over my pond to stop the heron. They are a nightmare. They killed one of my dads big goldfish. One of the frogs wrapped itself round the fish and killed it. :eek:
In the early summer the gardens are full of tiny little frogs. :rolleyes:

 

I'm soooo jealous!!! I have two boys and we are all frog mad!! We put in a small pond early last year, and had two frogs take up residence..... haven't seen any froggy frolics yet, though - I thought it was too early and cold.... will have to go and check it every day now.....

 

My pond produces hundreds of very small frogs and when the time is right they have this urge to leave often in batches some with their tails still on. Many fry in the sun others try to make it across a large lawn the fatality rate is enormous, but as mentioned above some do survive. My sparrows etc do not seem to regard them as food and the adult frogs ignore them. It is always good at the end of the summer to see a few that have made it, still quite small, and 40 yards away from the pond in the veg garden.

 

Its to early and cold yet for my spawn to arrive,they are mateing and nearly ready though.Yes the fish do eat most of them but some always survive.......The fun starts when the frogs start to mature and our cat brings them into the house squeeling unharmed.

 

Our dog spends hours in the summer tormenting the frogs. She puts them on their backs and waits for them to try and turn over then she hits them with her paw. I spend ages rescuing them. I don't like to see them harmed even if I don't like them that much.Thats one of the reasons I take them to the park over the road.

 

our frogs had a lovely time between cat and dog - cat use d to torment them, and then kill them - it's horrible to hear frogs sqealing! The dog used to roll on them until they burst! Yuck! So if you've got dogs, maybe the kids wouldn't appreciate frog-popping!

 

Our frogs stay in the "pond" (8ft allotment tank)all winter but they are always slow to breed. They haven't started yet. The newts will eventually follow them and so far we have never had toads.

 

I'm keeping out of this one :D

 

Oh dear!!! If, by chance, we do get frogspawn in our pond, and it doesn't get ruined by the dog, when the froglets do start to migrate, I wouldn't be able to let them fry!!! I'll be there morning, noon and night rescuing them - and if the dog DID get one - then she'll be in BIG TROUBLE!!!!!! I have already thought about putting up a higher fence round the pond!! And I am sooooo desperate for toads and newts too....

Frogesque - why are you keeping out of this one??? I thought you'd be there telling everyone how cute frogs are..... and I've already banned hubby from mowing the lawn if we do get babies when its time for them to leave the pond..... :eek:

 

My dogs don' t bother the frogs, they all tried picking them up as puppies and found they were not at all nice! the cats also leave them alone, fortunately, I think they might have encountered a toad and found it tastes horrible. I don't think I'll get newts, my 'pond' is only a large barrel...You really do have to try and turn a blind eye to all the tiny froglets- their 'migration' doesn't last long. As Hans says, you'll find the odd survivors all over the garden in some very unlikely spots!