Looking after frogspawn

susiebower

Newbie gardener here - I recently had a wildlife pond put in and it's empty apart from a water lily (which is obviously not flowering now). A kind neighbour just gave me some frogspawn and I've emptied into the deepest part. But will it be OK without plants in the pond? I hope to get some in in March.

Fairygirl

Gosh that's early @susienottbower
The spawn will be fine for now, but as it develops [assuming it stays mild enough] and becomes tadpoles/froglets, it will be vulnerable to birds etc. That's just how it is even when they have cover and stuff to eat etc, and very few tads make it to adulthood, hence the amount of spawn laid.
They have cannibalistic tendencies too 

If it's down there and you've got plants coming quite soon, much of it should be ok. At least if it doesn't survive this year, the neighbour will hopefully give you more next year!

susiebower

Ah, thank you @Fairygirl - that's reassuring! Hopefully it'll stay mild here in Devon.

Fairygirl

I think you can feed them lettuce once they're tadpoles, but I may be mistaken. 
@wild edges might be able to confirm or refute that. 
It's more about them being vulnerable to predators as they get bigger, but as I said - that happens anyway. 

If you have planting nearby, or even some potted plants you can move closer, that will give them some hiding places as they become little froglets and start leaving the pond permanently, especially for helping them to reach safer parts of the garden. Even some rocks and logs etc - anything that gives them a bit of a hand as they start their adult lives.
I often find them making their way from the pond into the nearby borders, and any kind of cover to enable that is good  

Balgay.Hill

Tadpoles are tougher than most folk think they are.
They don't always become frogs in the same year. Up here in the Scottish mountains, tadpoles often take two years before they become frogs if the conditions aren't favourable.

susiebower

@Fairygirl - I looked it up and someone said float some organic watercress on the surface once they hatch, so will try that. I'm just hoping I haven't killed them already, as I emptied them straight from their plastic container into the pond, and apparently they hate changes in temperature... 

susiebower

@Balgay.Hill - Thanks - hope they are tough! Scottish tadpoles are obviously very resilient - fancy two years!! 

Fairygirl

Yes - that's common even here where I am @Balgay.Hill 
I wouldn't worry @susienottbower - the temps of the pond they were in will be much the same as yours, unless there's a vast difference in the dimensions and depths. 

I often see spawn at height on hills, so don't worry too  much about their hardiness. I once brought some home [in my flask] from around 1800 feet up a small hill at Tyndrum, near Crianlarich.
Clearly not the smartest of frogs. It hadn't been laid in the small nearby lochan, it was here... 

susiebower

Wow, @Fairygirl - what an amazing sight!
Unfortunately the neighbour had left the spawn out for me for several hours in a plastic container, which is why I'm a bit worried. But hopefully they'll survive.

Fairygirl

It wasn't going to survive there, so I didn't feel bad about rescuing it, even though you aren't meant to do it because they have a homing instinct once they mature. That's mainly if it's tadpoles though. 
They'd have a helluva job getting on public transport to get back there... 

I'm sure your spawn will be fine. Watercress will certainly be good - and even here I have some which is still green and growing because it's been so warm. It provides good cover too.