On 25/05/2016 09:16, wrote:
On Tue, 24 May 2016 23:15:18 +0100, Charlie Pridham
wrote:

On 24/05/2016 12:25, Chris Hogg wrote:
On 24 May 2016 11:14:22 GMT, David wrote:

I haven't seen tadpoles around here (in various ponds and other bits of
water) where I would expect to see them.



Didn't see any toadspawn in our pond this year, even though plenty in
previous years, but we did have a mass of frogspawn for the first
time. The taddies hatched OK but seemed to disappear fairly quickly. I
think the goldfish ate them,

SAme here, thought we were going to have lots but there are very few
tadpoles around the edge of the pond, so either they are very late or we
are in for a lean year

We had a good number of frog tadpoles this year and they hatched
fairly early. A friend who had none asked if they could have some
so I agreed they could take a few, their pond is reasonably close so
water conditions will be much the same both being just wildlife ponds
with similar plants.
When they came collect our tadpoles seemed much fewer in number so
only a few got moved. Since then I have overhauled the underwater
video camera and observed on the TV that when things got colder the
tadpoles went down deep and some were almost living in the silt at the
bottom. as things have warmed up the numbers look very healthy again
as they have returned to near the surface or even right on it where a
rock is just under and they rest on it.
We also have a few Newts and they can be bad news for tadpoles as they
eat them, sometimes a pond is either a "Newt" pond or a "Frog" Pond.
ATM ours seems to maintain a balance of both as there is plenty of
other aquatic life in it that the Newts can catch and the Tadpoles
have now matured enough to be too big to eat. back legs are appearing.
When it is warm there are about 20 frogs visible on various logs
,plants and pond edge supervising things.

Oh just remembered , for a while one of the garden blackbirds appeared
to have got the knack of catching a few tadpoles, certainly spent a
lot of time on the "beach" but seems to have stopped now and is
picking up small slugs instead, good for him.

Our location is on the Hampshire/Corset/ Wiltshire Borders


G.Harman

Our blackbirds have also learnt that trick and often look like Puffins
with a beak full (how do they do that?) they are out of luck this year
though as the edges of the pond are not black with tadpoles as normal

--
Charlie Pridham, Gardening in Cornwall
www.roselandhouse.co.uk
National collections of Clematis viticella & Lapageria rosea