Fate of Frogs Spawn in Temporary Pools?

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    Mervyn and I went spawn spotting today. We were a little surprised to find Common frogs Spawn in a small pond on Blackheath, hemmed on each side by very busy roads. 

In Dartford we found a temporary pool, containing vast amounts of spawn. I would be interested in hearing from anyone local to the site as to the usual fate of the tadpoles here, or anyone�s experiences of Common Frogs spawning in temporary pools.

I assume the only likely source of nutrients to the developing tadpoles will be each other and that most years the site is not viable?

Common Frog Spawn at Dartford

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test Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Member Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Status: Offline Points: 1	Post Options Post Reply Quote test Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: Fate of Frogs Spawn in Temporary Pools? Posted: 13 Mar 2003 at 12:03am
	Mervyn and I went spawn spotting today. We were a little surprised to find Common frogs Spawn in a small pond on Blackheath, hemmed on each side by very busy roads. In Dartford we found a temporary pool, containing vast amounts of spawn. I would be interested in hearing from anyone local to the site as to the usual fate of the tadpoles here, or anyone�s experiences of Common Frogs spawning in temporary pools. I assume the only likely source of nutrients to the developing tadpoles will be each other and that most years the site is not viable? Common Frog Spawn at Dartford Site Picture

Martin Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 23 Feb 2003 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 87	Post Options Post Reply Quote Martin Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 13 Mar 2003 at 12:11am
	Good on ya Mervyn!

test Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Member Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Status: Offline Points: 1	Post Options Post Reply Quote test Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 13 Mar 2003 at 12:17am
	He is improving Martin, he even lent me his wellies so I could wade in and get the picture

test Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Member Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Status: Offline Points: 1	Post Options Post Reply Quote test Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 14 Mar 2003 at 10:54am
	David, Thanks for the advice, I suspected that they stood very little chance in this location. We have contacted Dartford Council and hopefully will hear back next week about permissions to move them to a nearby deeper pond. There is a problem though, we collected a small sample on Wednesday and this hatched on Thursday, so I am thinking that moving the spawn now is not practical, as many of the young will be motionless in the bottom mud. Could you advise on time scale for the tadpoles to be free swimming and net-able? The pool is at most 3 centimetres deep and in full sun. (edited)

fred Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Member Joined: 17 Mar 2003 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 1	Post Options Post Reply Quote fred Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 18 Mar 2003 at 7:42pm
	I have a similar problem in my ponds where some frogs ignore the ponds and spawn in the shallow artificial tributary connecting the two ponds on two levels. The end of results is tons of viable span dumped in an inch and a half of dirty water. I scoop it out and relocate it to the pond. Incidentally frog numbers have been very good this year.

test Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Member Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Status: Offline Points: 1	Post Options Post Reply Quote test Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 18 Mar 2003 at 7:54pm
	We returned today and found the spawn masses in much the state David described, some areas being black with newly hatched tadpoles. The water level had dropped substantially in the last 6 days as shown below. The area is an old clay lined pond that has fallen out of use. We spoke to the Parks Warden for the site and it is hoped that the pond will be repaired within the next few years, it currently leaks into the underlying sand. Site Picture showing drop in water level Masses of spawn with hatched young clinging We collected 200 Litres of spawn from the site, and moved it to the nearest large body of water (approximately 1 mile due east), which we had observed last week to have also been selected by Common Frogs for spawning. Recipient Site We observed Smooth Newts and Common Toads spawn at the temporary site today. We will return over the next few weeks to rescue any other tadpoles as the pond dries out. A local volunteer who helped us today mentioned that the three species observed have used the area since the 1940's, but now the pond dries out completely. Please note: There are many reasons why moving Frogs spawn may be inadvisable, please contact Froglife on Tel: 01986 873733 for advice if you think there is a genuine conservation reason to lift Frogs spawn to another site.

test Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Member Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Status: Offline Points: 1	Post Options Post Reply Quote test Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 20 Mar 2003 at 11:57pm
	We moved another 60 Litres of spawn today, many of the tadpoles were stranded in the surrounding mud and we rescued those we could. 20th March showing further drop in water level We also took a walk around the area to find the woodland pond managed by the same Park Ranger, this area has had attention in recent years, we were very pleased to find masses of frogs spawn here too, so Dartford certainly has a thriving Common Frog population Woodland Pond

Mervyn Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Joined: 14 Feb 2003 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 41	Post Options Post Reply Quote Mervyn Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 30 Mar 2003 at 10:13pm
	On March 29th Gemma and I returned to the pond, she took the following photograph. This shows the final stages of the demise of the pond, only 16 days after the original picture at the top of this page was taken.

administrator Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Joined: 01 Jan 2007 Status: Offline Points: 10	Post Options Post Reply Quote administrator Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 29 May 2003 at 12:15pm
	Some of the results of the small sample collected, there are about 10 more at the moment, and a few more should metamorphose later this week

administrator Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Joined: 01 Jan 2007 Status: Offline Points: 10	Post Options Post Reply Quote administrator Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 29 May 2003 at 12:48pm
	A few more of them, I think planning an escape??