The last few nights have seen an increase in vocal activity around our pond.
Last night, it started to lose its beauty about 3 AM. I went out and in a
matter of 2 minutes counted a dozen and a half gulf coast toads (Houston,
TX). This morning the hornwort is covered with strings of eggs. On the one
hand this would indicate a healthy environment. On the other it likely
indicates that we will be inundated with toads. Any natural suggestions for
toad and tadpole control?

Thanks, John

Hi John,

I am a second year ponder. Last year when i saw a million tadpoles, i
thought there would be toads everywhere. Well, there isn't. Apparently
the birds get their share of babies. I wouldn't worry about it.

OR, you could take some of the unwanted bullfrogs in this group.






On Sat, 24 Apr 2004 17:14:55 GMT, "John A. Kostelac"
wrote:

The last few nights have seen an increase in vocal activity around
our pond.
Last night, it started to lose its beauty about 3 AM. I went out and
in a
matter of 2 minutes counted a dozen and a half gulf coast toads
(Houston,
TX). This morning the hornwort is covered with strings of eggs. On
the one
hand this would indicate a healthy environment. On the other it
likely
indicates that we will be inundated with toads. Any natural
suggestions for
toad and tadpole control?

Thanks, John

Thanks to all.

What's the deal with bull frogs? One response mentioned them. Are they worse
than the toads?

As for chemistry, I am not too concerned about chem changes. I can't seem to
get the chemistry t ever move for any reason. We have a slightly different
pond than I have read about on the list. About five years ago we put in a
scuba diving swimming pool. It is 13 feet deep and comes to close to 50,000
gallons. After a duck invasion we converted part of the shallow area to bog
filter/shallow fish and plant area leaving about 44,000 gallons for the fish
and us to swim in. It has really livened up scuba practice. The chemistry
has always been odd, but steady as a rock.

pH ~ 8.8 -9.0
ammonia=0
nitrite=0
nitrate=max 20ppm
TA=250
KH300
salt=0.06%

We have a huge variety of fish from koi to pacu to angels, including
guppies, goldfish, gourami's, tiger barbs, clown barbs, 10 very large plecos
(no string algae ever), tin foil barbs (large), sword tails (millions of
babies), water striders (not invited), two small red eared sliders, and
occasionally 3 humans. We turn the pond over via waterfall and 240 watts UV
about 3 times a day. Additionally we have a large particle filter systems
that runs all the water through in about 3 days and a diatomaceous earth (60
sqft) filter that turns the pond over 3 times a day. Add to this a booster
pump that pushes about 8000 GPH in a nice circle around the main bowl of the
pool to provide current. The net is clear water kept at 77F all year round.
Total aquatic fun.

I have been trying to convince the pH to come down to about 8.0 for the last
4 weeks to no avail. I have been adding about 20 oz muriatic acid each
evening to one of the treatment tanks that all the water passes through.
Again, not budging. Neither is the TA. But everyone eats and plays and grows
and BREEDS like mad. Even the tiger barbs were observed scattering eggs
(though none hatched that we could tell). So that ends up a minor worry. I
had tried a large bale of peat and running the pond water over it to see if
it would lower the pH, but after 3 weeks I saw no diff. Any ideas anyone?

Thanks,

John


"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
The last few nights have seen an increase in vocal activity around our
pond.
Last night, it started to lose its beauty about 3 AM. I went out and in a
matter of 2 minutes counted a dozen and a half gulf coast toads (Houston,
TX). This morning the hornwort is covered with strings of eggs. On the one
hand this would indicate a healthy environment. On the other it likely
indicates that we will be inundated with toads. Any natural suggestions
for
toad and tadpole control?

Thanks, John

John,
Your pond sounds soo enticing and interesting. Got any pictures
you can put up? On a freebie website of course.

Nedra
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pines/4836
http://community.webshots.com/user/nedra118

"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
Thanks to all.

What's the deal with bull frogs? One response mentioned them. Are they
worse
than the toads?

As for chemistry, I am not too concerned about chem changes. I can't seem
to
get the chemistry t ever move for any reason. We have a slightly different
pond than I have read about on the list. About five years ago we put in a
scuba diving swimming pool. It is 13 feet deep and comes to close to
50,000
gallons. After a duck invasion we converted part of the shallow area to
bog
filter/shallow fish and plant area leaving about 44,000 gallons for the
fish
and us to swim in. It has really livened up scuba practice. The chemistry
has always been odd, but steady as a rock.

pH ~ 8.8 -9.0
ammonia=0
nitrite=0
nitrate=max 20ppm
TA=250
KH300
salt=0.06%

We have a huge variety of fish from koi to pacu to angels, including
guppies, goldfish, gourami's, tiger barbs, clown barbs, 10 very large
plecos
(no string algae ever), tin foil barbs (large), sword tails (millions of
babies), water striders (not invited), two small red eared sliders, and
occasionally 3 humans. We turn the pond over via waterfall and 240 watts
UV
about 3 times a day. Additionally we have a large particle filter systems
that runs all the water through in about 3 days and a diatomaceous earth
(60
sqft) filter that turns the pond over 3 times a day. Add to this a booster
pump that pushes about 8000 GPH in a nice circle around the main bowl of
the
pool to provide current. The net is clear water kept at 77F all year
round.
Total aquatic fun.

I have been trying to convince the pH to come down to about 8.0 for the
last
4 weeks to no avail. I have been adding about 20 oz muriatic acid each
evening to one of the treatment tanks that all the water passes through.
Again, not budging. Neither is the TA. But everyone eats and plays and
grows
and BREEDS like mad. Even the tiger barbs were observed scattering eggs
(though none hatched that we could tell). So that ends up a minor worry. I
had tried a large bale of peat and running the pond water over it to see
if
it would lower the pH, but after 3 weeks I saw no diff. Any ideas anyone?

Thanks,

John


"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
The last few nights have seen an increase in vocal activity around our
pond.
Last night, it started to lose its beauty about 3 AM. I went out and in
a
matter of 2 minutes counted a dozen and a half gulf coast toads
(Houston,
TX). This morning the hornwort is covered with strings of eggs. On the
one
hand this would indicate a healthy environment. On the other it likely
indicates that we will be inundated with toads. Any natural suggestions
for
toad and tadpole control?

Thanks, John

John wrote
What's the deal with bull frogs?

After tearing myself away from the description of your pond... wow!
Anyway.
Bullfrogs can wreck havoc in a small pond or in a pond where all the fish are
pets as they will eat fish and other frogs. And snakes and mice and small
children if they could.

They can be very helpful for population control in larger ponds where the fish
are overpopulating the pond.

I am trying to raise local pacific treefrogs in my fishless bog and the lady
bullfrog I'm sure ate all of last year's hatch or ate any returning treefrogs
this spring. I'm trying to catch her and move her.

West of the Rockies bullfrogs are not native and wildlife biologist are blaming
them for the reduction in native frog species out here.
They were imported out west to become frog leg dinners and escaped.


kathy :-)
A HREF="http://www.onceuponapond.com/"Once upon a pond/A

On Sat, 24 Apr 2004 23:58:45 GMT, "Snooze"
wrote:


"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
Thanks to all.

What's the deal with bull frogs? One response mentioned them. Are
they
worse
than the toads?


Bullfrogs view anything that moves and fits in the mouth as food.
That can
be a problem if you have small fish or any tadpoles, or frogs that
you want
to raise.

Sameer

Or bare toes in tall grass!

I have only one pic of it just now. It is at www.johnkostelac.com. My wife
shot it.


"Nedra" wrote in message
ink.net...
John,
Your pond sounds soo enticing and interesting. Got any pictures
you can put up? On a freebie website of course.

Nedra
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pines/4836
http://community.webshots.com/user/nedra118

"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
Thanks to all.

What's the deal with bull frogs? One response mentioned them. Are they
worse
than the toads?

As for chemistry, I am not too concerned about chem changes. I can't
seem
to
get the chemistry t ever move for any reason. We have a slightly
different
pond than I have read about on the list. About five years ago we put in
a
scuba diving swimming pool. It is 13 feet deep and comes to close to
50,000
gallons. After a duck invasion we converted part of the shallow area to
bog
filter/shallow fish and plant area leaving about 44,000 gallons for the
fish
and us to swim in. It has really livened up scuba practice. The
chemistry
has always been odd, but steady as a rock.

pH ~ 8.8 -9.0
ammonia=0
nitrite=0
nitrate=max 20ppm
TA=250
KH300
salt=0.06%

We have a huge variety of fish from koi to pacu to angels, including
guppies, goldfish, gourami's, tiger barbs, clown barbs, 10 very large
plecos
(no string algae ever), tin foil barbs (large), sword tails (millions of
babies), water striders (not invited), two small red eared sliders, and
occasionally 3 humans. We turn the pond over via waterfall and 240 watts
UV
about 3 times a day. Additionally we have a large particle filter
systems
that runs all the water through in about 3 days and a diatomaceous earth
(60
sqft) filter that turns the pond over 3 times a day. Add to this a
booster
pump that pushes about 8000 GPH in a nice circle around the main bowl of
the
pool to provide current. The net is clear water kept at 77F all year
round.
Total aquatic fun.

I have been trying to convince the pH to come down to about 8.0 for the
last
4 weeks to no avail. I have been adding about 20 oz muriatic acid each
evening to one of the treatment tanks that all the water passes through.
Again, not budging. Neither is the TA. But everyone eats and plays and
grows
and BREEDS like mad. Even the tiger barbs were observed scattering eggs
(though none hatched that we could tell). So that ends up a minor worry.
I
had tried a large bale of peat and running the pond water over it to see
if
it would lower the pH, but after 3 weeks I saw no diff. Any ideas
anyone?

Thanks,

John


"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
The last few nights have seen an increase in vocal activity around our
pond.
Last night, it started to lose its beauty about 3 AM. I went out and
in
a
matter of 2 minutes counted a dozen and a half gulf coast toads
(Houston,
TX). This morning the hornwort is covered with strings of eggs. On the
one
hand this would indicate a healthy environment. On the other it likely
indicates that we will be inundated with toads. Any natural
suggestions
for
toad and tadpole control?

Thanks, John

The toadpoles here in the house hatched about an hour ago. (Counted 7
so far) That was 4 days after laying. Wow. I also spotted a mystery
creature in the aquarium. I saw it only for 2 seconds and it's either
a teeny new born fish or a damsel fly nymph. Time will tell. Right now
it is near invisable.

If i had a good flashlight handy i would go look in the pond, but
will hold out until tomorrow to see if those eggs also hatched.

I love spring.

John A. Kostelac wrote:

I have only one pic of it just now. It is at www.johnkostelac.com. My wife
shot it.

Sounds a little extreme.

Thanks to your wife, John! Stunning picture. Please take more..

Nedra
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pines/4836
http://community.webshots.com/user/nedra118

"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
I have only one pic of it just now. It is at www.johnkostelac.com. My wife
shot it.


"Nedra" wrote in message
ink.net...
John,
Your pond sounds soo enticing and interesting. Got any pictures
you can put up? On a freebie website of course.

Nedra
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pines/4836
http://community.webshots.com/user/nedra118

"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
Thanks to all.

What's the deal with bull frogs? One response mentioned them. Are they
worse
than the toads?

As for chemistry, I am not too concerned about chem changes. I can't
seem
to
get the chemistry t ever move for any reason. We have a slightly
different
pond than I have read about on the list. About five years ago we put
in
a
scuba diving swimming pool. It is 13 feet deep and comes to close to
50,000
gallons. After a duck invasion we converted part of the shallow area
to
bog
filter/shallow fish and plant area leaving about 44,000 gallons for
the
fish
and us to swim in. It has really livened up scuba practice. The
chemistry
has always been odd, but steady as a rock.

pH ~ 8.8 -9.0
ammonia=0
nitrite=0
nitrate=max 20ppm
TA=250
KH300
salt=0.06%

We have a huge variety of fish from koi to pacu to angels, including
guppies, goldfish, gourami's, tiger barbs, clown barbs, 10 very large
plecos
(no string algae ever), tin foil barbs (large), sword tails (millions
of
babies), water striders (not invited), two small red eared sliders,
and
occasionally 3 humans. We turn the pond over via waterfall and 240
watts
UV
about 3 times a day. Additionally we have a large particle filter
systems
that runs all the water through in about 3 days and a diatomaceous
earth
(60
sqft) filter that turns the pond over 3 times a day. Add to this a
booster
pump that pushes about 8000 GPH in a nice circle around the main bowl
of
the
pool to provide current. The net is clear water kept at 77F all year
round.
Total aquatic fun.

I have been trying to convince the pH to come down to about 8.0 for
the
last
4 weeks to no avail. I have been adding about 20 oz muriatic acid each
evening to one of the treatment tanks that all the water passes
through.
Again, not budging. Neither is the TA. But everyone eats and plays and
grows
and BREEDS like mad. Even the tiger barbs were observed scattering
eggs
(though none hatched that we could tell). So that ends up a minor
worry.
I
had tried a large bale of peat and running the pond water over it to
see
if
it would lower the pH, but after 3 weeks I saw no diff. Any ideas
anyone?

Thanks,

John


"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
The last few nights have seen an increase in vocal activity around
our
pond.
Last night, it started to lose its beauty about 3 AM. I went out and
in
a
matter of 2 minutes counted a dozen and a half gulf coast toads
(Houston,
TX). This morning the hornwort is covered with strings of eggs. On
the
one
hand this would indicate a healthy environment. On the other it
likely
indicates that we will be inundated with toads. Any natural
suggestions
for
toad and tadpole control?

Thanks, John

Im in Corpus and used to have the same problem until my koi got over two
feet.

Now the eggs get consumed as soon as they are laid FREE caviar!. Lol

But I still have over 20 toads doing the mating game after every rain
storm

I noticed that we now have tadpoles, but I can't find any eggs. I guess
somebody in there liked the free meal.

John

"matrix" wrote in message
...
Im in Corpus and used to have the same problem until my koi got over two
feet.

Now the eggs get consumed as soon as they are laid FREE caviar!. Lol

But I still have over 20 toads doing the mating game after every rain
storm

Try baking soda. It has a wonderful habit of wanting to reach 8.4 and keep
it there . . . it will raise a lower pH and lower a higher pH. Your KH is
already high, and a little higher won't hurt. 1 lb. per 1000 gals. will
raise KH by 70 points (dH = 17.9 x number of drops). You may wish to check
the "specific needs" for your more exotic fish, but a higher KH will not
hurt the koi (which is what I mostly know about).

Lee
PS: BTW, I'd *kill* for your pond!


"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
Thanks to all.

What's the deal with bull frogs? One response mentioned them. Are they
worse
than the toads?

As for chemistry, I am not too concerned about chem changes. I can't seem
to
get the chemistry t ever move for any reason. We have a slightly different
pond than I have read about on the list. About five years ago we put in a
scuba diving swimming pool. It is 13 feet deep and comes to close to
50,000
gallons. After a duck invasion we converted part of the shallow area to
bog
filter/shallow fish and plant area leaving about 44,000 gallons for the
fish
and us to swim in. It has really livened up scuba practice. The chemistry
has always been odd, but steady as a rock.

pH ~ 8.8 -9.0
ammonia=0
nitrite=0
nitrate=max 20ppm
TA=250
KH300
salt=0.06%

We have a huge variety of fish from koi to pacu to angels, including
guppies, goldfish, gourami's, tiger barbs, clown barbs, 10 very large
plecos
(no string algae ever), tin foil barbs (large), sword tails (millions of
babies), water striders (not invited), two small red eared sliders, and
occasionally 3 humans. We turn the pond over via waterfall and 240 watts
UV
about 3 times a day. Additionally we have a large particle filter systems
that runs all the water through in about 3 days and a diatomaceous earth
(60
sqft) filter that turns the pond over 3 times a day. Add to this a booster
pump that pushes about 8000 GPH in a nice circle around the main bowl of
the
pool to provide current. The net is clear water kept at 77F all year
round.
Total aquatic fun.

I have been trying to convince the pH to come down to about 8.0 for the
last
4 weeks to no avail. I have been adding about 20 oz muriatic acid each
evening to one of the treatment tanks that all the water passes through.
Again, not budging. Neither is the TA. But everyone eats and plays and
grows
and BREEDS like mad. Even the tiger barbs were observed scattering eggs
(though none hatched that we could tell). So that ends up a minor worry. I
had tried a large bale of peat and running the pond water over it to see
if
it would lower the pH, but after 3 weeks I saw no diff. Any ideas anyone?

Thanks,

John


"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
The last few nights have seen an increase in vocal activity around our
pond.
Last night, it started to lose its beauty about 3 AM. I went out and in
a
matter of 2 minutes counted a dozen and a half gulf coast toads
(Houston,
TX). This morning the hornwort is covered with strings of eggs. On the
one
hand this would indicate a healthy environment. On the other it likely
indicates that we will be inundated with toads. Any natural suggestions
for
toad and tadpole control?

Thanks, John

We have Houston toads (an endangered species) so we couldn't do any 'control' even if we
wanted to, without knowing for 100% sure the eggs were something other than Houston toads
(I am pretty sure since they were laid the night before last they ARE because they were
calling really loud all night).

We had eggs last year, though LOTS more than this, and only had a few reach adulthood. I
don't know what gets them, but I think the 'infant mortality' must be rather high, because
I didn't have one tenth the amount of baby toads as I did of toadpoles. Hoping for a
better success rate this year.....

DeAnna
--
http://lamb.iswiz.com/pond.php
If you remember that I prefer my spam without cheese-
then you may be able to email me.


"John A. Kostelac" wrote in message
...
The last few nights have seen an increase in vocal activity around our pond.
Last night, it started to lose its beauty about 3 AM. I went out and in a
matter of 2 minutes counted a dozen and a half gulf coast toads (Houston,
TX). This morning the hornwort is covered with strings of eggs. On the one
hand this would indicate a healthy environment. On the other it likely
indicates that we will be inundated with toads. Any natural suggestions for
toad and tadpole control?

Thanks, John