[Misc] Tadpole advice needed

[Daffy Duck]

Canadian Pond Weed is the best for oxygenating the water. You should be able to buy it at any aquatics centre.

When we had our pond the tadpoles just loved flaked fish food. So pick some up when you buy your pond weed.

 

[zefarelly]

I've just removed about 10kg of pond plants to give everything some breathing space . . .. . we have more newts than frogs in our pond.

since we removed Koi ( tool of the devil for British indiginous pond life) and goldfish our pond has thrived, its clean and clear and looks after itself 99% of the time. just needs an occaisionaly plant thin and top up. All we have are frogs, newts, Tench rudd and a rogue Gudgeon.

Coverage is important, I built up brick legs in ours with pavers on top to form a shelf, grasses and plants in pots on the shelf in the middle. pond is about 3000-4000 litres and about a metre deep.

Tads are vegetarian I think, until they grow legs. Newts love tadpoles, very tasty for them apparently.

 

[Mellotron]

Possibly my favourite NSC thread title ever.

That's all I have to contribute.

 

[attila]

Tadpoles are voracious meat eaters. Shove a bit in and you'll see.
25 years ago I found some bullfrog tadpoles in a garden centre. Since this thread is here I'll share the story via the poem I wrote about it.
Quite a few came into the country then. We made sure they didn't escape into the wild, it wouldn't have been a good idea.

THE BRITISH BULLFROG

Six inch sperm in garden centre
Strange, zygotic waggle dance
Disembodied, black placenta
Hitched a ride on foreign plants.
Uninvited and unwanted.
Poet says ‘I’ll take them home!’
Four enormous bullfrog tadpoles
In my pond and free to roam.

Press release from the Home Office:
It’s a witch hunt, there’s no doubt.
‘Catch these immigrant amphibians!
They’re illegal – stamp them out!
They’ll wipe out our native species!’
(Don’t tell me: they’re weird, they smell,
Nick our jobs and shag our pond life
And they’re on the dole as well.)

Crashing down, the eco-jackboot.
‘No, they can’t stay in your pond!
You’ll be fined at least a thousand
If you let these things abscond!’
Semen-like, they squirm in protest.
‘Freedom for the Southwick 4!’
But I know the awful verdict:
Custody for evermore.

Few months in an old aquarium
Then this macro-spunk grows legs
Diet of red meat and chicken –
Turn their snouts up at ants’ eggs…
One year more and they are sorted.
Asylum from Home Office doom.
Summer: big pit in the garden.
Winter: in our living room.

Now their diet is worms and crickets
(Big worms and big crickets, sure.)
Grow two inches every year
And we love them – sod the law!
Soon they’ll want some bigger victims
And the poet has a plan
Vengeance on the great oppressor
From our huge pit bullfrog clan….

Cats kill frogs – I’ve seen them do it
As a kid that lesson learned
Saw the corpse and shook with anger -
Soon the tables will be turned!
Pampered Kitty meets the posse.
Bullfrogs think ‘Mmm..nice and fat
One rich owner – what’s the flavour?
Yes! Our favourite! Kit-E-Kat!

Feline diet makes them bigger
Hungrier and sharper still
Militant amphibian army
Huge of mouth and iron of will.
Every kind of eco fascist
Down their throats the same old way
As they croak ‘No deportations!
British Bullfrogs – here to stay!’


(They ended up about 6 inches across and lived their lives out in the back garden. We still miss the croaking. )

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Don't put too many tadpoles in the bucket

Euphemism Du Jour - best said in a broad Aussie accent with a 'strewth mate' at the front

 

[pearl]

Ordinary pond weed - groenlandia - sold in pet shops
If you're near Southwick I'll give you a bit of free weed

and get them out of their tree!

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

I do hope you're going to kermit to this new project









I do hope alls well with you

Couldn't help but laugh though.

 

[Iovan The Sweeper]

Tadpoles are voracious meat eaters. Shove a bit in and you'll see.
25 years ago I found some bullfrog tadpoles in a garden centre. Since this thread is here I'll share the story via the poem I wrote about it.
Quite a few came into the country then. We made sure they didn't escape into the wild, it wouldn't have been a good idea.

THE BRITISH BULLFROG

Six inch sperm in garden centre
Strange, zygotic waggle dance
Disembodied, black placenta
Hitched a ride on foreign plants.
Uninvited and unwanted.
Poet says ‘I’ll take them home!’
Four enormous bullfrog tadpoles
In my pond and free to roam.

Press release from the Home Office:
It’s a witch hunt, there’s no doubt.
‘Catch these immigrant amphibians!
They’re illegal – stamp them out!
They’ll wipe out our native species!’
(Don’t tell me: they’re weird, they smell,
Nick our jobs and shag our pond life
And they’re on the dole as well.)

Crashing down, the eco-jackboot.
‘No, they can’t stay in your pond!
You’ll be fined at least a thousand
If you let these things abscond!’
Semen-like, they squirm in protest.
‘Freedom for the Southwick 4!’
But I know the awful verdict:
Custody for evermore.

Few months in an old aquarium
Then this macro-spunk grows legs
Diet of red meat and chicken –
Turn their snouts up at ants’ eggs…
One year more and they are sorted.
Asylum from Home Office doom.
Summer: big pit in the garden.
Winter: in our living room.

Now their diet is worms and crickets
(Big worms and big crickets, sure.)
Grow two inches every year
And we love them – sod the law!
Soon they’ll want some bigger victims
And the poet has a plan
Vengeance on the great oppressor
From our huge pit bullfrog clan….

Cats kill frogs – I’ve seen them do it
As a kid that lesson learned
Saw the corpse and shook with anger -
Soon the tables will be turned!
Pampered Kitty meets the posse.
Bullfrogs think ‘Mmm..nice and fat
One rich owner – what’s the flavour?
Yes! Our favourite! Kit-E-Kat!

Feline diet makes them bigger
Hungrier and sharper still
Militant amphibian army
Huge of mouth and iron of will.
Every kind of eco fascist
Down their throats the same old way
As they croak ‘No deportations!
British Bullfrogs – here to stay!’


(They ended up about 6 inches across and lived their lives out in the back garden. We still miss the croaking. )

I like it.

Meanwhile, is this possibly the only known song using a sample of a bullfrog?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzw7EY3exhw

 

[Iovan The Sweeper]

For the first time in a few years, the frog spawn in our cottage garden has hatched. The pond is in a shady spot with only green gloop and mosquito larvae in it. I want max frog development. I've scooped some tadpoles out and put them in a bucket in a sunnier spot but any tips on how to boost survival chances please? Ta.

Keep an eye out for these bad boys as they will prey on your tadpoles:

https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bugs/common-backswimmer

 

[mikeyjh]

I've just removed about 10kg of pond plants to give everything some breathing space . . .. . we have more newts than frogs in our pond.

since we removed Koi ( tool of the devil for British indiginous pond life) and goldfish our pond has thrived, its clean and clear and looks after itself 99% of the time. just needs an occaisionaly plant thin and top up. All we have are frogs, newts, Tench rudd and a rogue Gudgeon.

Coverage is important, I built up brick legs in ours with pavers on top to form a shelf, grasses and plants in pots on the shelf in the middle. pond is about 3000-4000 litres and about a metre deep.

Tads are vegetarian I think, until they grow legs. Newts love tadpoles, very tasty for them apparently.

This - We don't have any fish in our pond and the wildlife that adapted it within week was incredible. It is remarkable just to sit there and watch what's going on. I'm really struggle with plants though. The marginals seem to be doing okay, there is a water hawthorn down there somewhere that I haven't seen for a while. There's a couple of lillies that showed sign of flowering last summer but didn't. Oh, and two goes at frogbit has yielded no success.

I feel sorry for tadpoles, everything eats them - Watching the larvae of great diving beetles catch them is quite spectacular.

 

[zefarelly]

I like it.

Meanwhile, is this possibly the only known song using a sample of a bullfrog?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzw7EY3exhw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZwGrXnbMUw

no sample, but a winner nonetheless.

 

[fork me]

For the first time in a few years, the frog spawn in our cottage garden has hatched. The pond is in a shady spot with only green gloop and mosquito larvae in it. I want max frog development. I've scooped some tadpoles out and put them in a bucket in a sunnier spot but any tips on how to boost survival chances please? Ta.

Make sure you don't kick the bucket or they might all croak.

 

[sydney]

On a serious note, we had frogspawn in abundance in a small Brook next to our allotment.
But for the last 2 years, there has not been a sign of them or frogs.
Any suggestions

probably polluted ......amphibians need clean water , they are a great indicator of the general health of the waterways and local environs on the whole , we have an old fish pond down the back of the garden near the compost heap , the frogs love it , they are making a racket right now...they will eat the mozzie larvae too, i think the weeds causally remove oxygen from the water so try and keep it to a minimum , the tadpoles will find stuff to eat as they grow including each other .

 

[AmexRuislip]

probably polluted ......amphibians need clean water , they are a great indicator of the general health of the waterways and local environs on the whole , we have an old fish pond down the back of the garden near the compost heap , the frogs love it , they are making a racket right now...they will eat the mozzie larvae too, i think the weeds causally remove oxygen from the water so try and keep it to a minimum , the tadpoles will find stuff to eat as they grow including each other .

Noted, many thanks for the info

 

[mikeyjh]

probably polluted ......amphibians need clean water , they are a great indicator of the general health of the waterways and local environs on the whole , we have an old fish pond down the back of the garden near the compost heap , the frogs love it , they are making a racket right now...they will eat the mozzie larvae too, i think the weeds causally remove oxygen from the water so try and keep it to a minimum , the tadpoles will find stuff to eat as they grow including each other .

My water pressure dropped a couple of weeks ago - Went of to the tank on the mountain above the spring that is our supply. Had to fish out at least 30 frogs from it, including the one that was performing the role of a bung in the pipe. Not a nice thought but my French has come on no end. Put a new filter up there now. I was greatly re-assure by a local marvelling at the quality of our water, "the only live in clean water you know".....

 

[Kneon Light]

Canadian Pond Weed is the best for oxygenating the water. You should be able to buy it at any aquatics centre.

When we had our pond the tadpoles just loved flaked fish food. So pick some up when you buy your pond weed.

Canadian Pondweed should be avoided as it is a non native invasive that can actually cause harm to pondlife:
https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/canadian-waterweed

Hornwort is a much better option.

 

[BrightonCottager]

Where abouts are you?

Preston Park / Fiveways

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Still got this this one running around in my brain from when me kids were little. Used to have to spend bloody HOURS at a time with that VHS on auto-rewind. Who said time was a great healer?

 

[BrightonCottager]

Just thought I'd give you an update on amphibian developments. Thanks to advice on this thread I bought some British pondweed and put it in the pound and the bucket I'd transferred some of the tadpoles to. I also gave the bucket tadpoles some raw fish to eat although they didn't appear to like it. After a week or so I repatriated the bucket tadpoles to the pond and they all seem to love it - some are growing quite big. Yesterday I noticed a snail had fallen into the water and drowned and the tadpoles were really tucking in to it. Meanwhile thousands of tiny creatures are hatching elsewhere in the pond and swimming about. I spend many minutes gazing into the gloopy abyss. It's far more stimulating than watching Fulham last season.

 

[Easy 10]

We had a pond in the garden when I was a kid, and I was ENDLESSLY fascinated with the frogspawn. They thrived in that pond (lillypads and weeds in abundance). The only thing was, the sides of the pond was lined with a plastic canvas, so when those tadpoles turned into tiny little perfectly formed frogs, no bigger than your thumbnail, they'd crawl up onto the sides of the pond canvas to bask in the summer sun. And get dry. And get stuck.

It was a never-ending summer task for me to go to the pond and pour water over the tiny froggies on the sides, so I could tap them back into the water. Otherwise those dickheads would just get dried out and stuck to their doom.

I really loved those little frogs.