On 9/7/06 11:44, in article , "K"
wrote:

Sacha writes


We have
3 ponds here and a now 5 yo grand child. She is absolutely riveted by the
arrival of the frogs and toads in their dozens each spring, begs to be taken
out to see them on their march to the ponds on rainy nights, delights in the
spawn and then the tadpoles and spends quite some time trying to find the
little fingernail sized toads or frogs once they emerge.

Do you also take her down to the pond at night with a torch? During
breeding season there are far more frogs in there than you'd believe
from daytime spottings (we counted 170 this year). And newts are far
easier to spot at night.

We certainly do. The sight of dozens of amphibian eyes glittering in the
torchlight is quite something! Just recently we've noticed a considerable
increase in the numbers of children coming here and they are all absolutely
fascinated by the ponds, as are their elders! I'm looking forward to seeing
how the wildlife pond develops because it's in a new incarnation as a
wildlife pond. It was where we kept the ducks until they took off one dark
and stormy night! I put some toad spawn in there back in the spring so I'm
hoping it all hatched out - it certainly disappeared, anyway! We're
deliberately keeping that pond fish free to give frogs and toads a better
chance of increasing their numbers. And at this time of year, children and
adults also enjoy watching the dragon and damsel flies hovering around the
ponds while occasionally I ask visiting children if they want to hurl some
of the fish food into the pond - always a popular move.

--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(email address on website)