Are frogs ok with my fish?

[Texas T]

Hey Folks,
So... I have had a frog or 2 in my pond from time to time, but now it's getting a bit crazy here! Is it ok to have more frogs than fish? All of a sudden there are about 8 to 10 frogs hanging out in and around my pond. So I was just wondering if there are any concerns having that many in with my goldfish?

 

[BKHpondcritters]

I'm not sure how you'd stop them. I know some people will say that bullfrogs are a problem when they get too big & relocate/remove them, but I've never found them to cause any issues. I have both bull & green frogs as permanent residents (as well as pickerel frogs) and everyone seems to get along with the fish & each other. I do not have small goldfish, though, so that might be a different consideration.

 

[Texas T]

BKH,
Thanks for your input, I know that it was probably a silly question, and frogs and fish can co-exist, but my concern was if so many frogs would put any kind of stress on the fish? Thanks again!

 

[BobDE]

I can tell you that I had frogs in my bog. A Koi laid eggs there and then there were many little fish. The fish started disappearing. Before I figured out what was going on, the fish were all gone.
If I see frogs, I relocate them.

 

[addy1]

i have tons of frogs in my ponds, bogs, they cause no real issue. I have more depending on the season, ie mating time, they are everywhere then they seem to go back to where ever they came from.

They are welcome, great bug eaters and if they eat some of the fry, they are welcome to them. OW fish overload in the pond.

 

[BKHpondcritters]

I can tell you that I had frogs in my bog. A Koi laid eggs there and then there were many little fish. The fish started disappearing. Before I figured out what was going on, the fish were all gone.
If I see frogs, I relocate them.

If I relocated every frog in my pond it would be a 24/7 job from February until November. I have wood frogs, pickerel frogs, Cope's tree frogs, green frogs, bullfrogs and toads that all spawn in the pond (pickerel, green & bull all live in/around it permanently. the others come & go during spawning) But, my pond was constructed as much for the wildlife in the area, as it was for my fish (not to mention the plants it allows me to grow) so I try as best as I can to coexist with the 'locals'. The only critter I have relocated to date is one medium-sized snapping turtle. I currently have a small northern water snake in residence, and (if s/he decides to stay on) I will probably have to relocate that as well, but.. we'll see. For now, I'm enjoying seeing it hunting for little tadpoles & other small creatures.

 

[addy1]

The only critter I have relocated to date is one medium-sized snapping turtle.

I relocated one of those also. Refused to let it live in my pond that I walk in........................

 

[Andrew]

Last summer I always had 6-7 frogs hanging around. This year we only have one. Feel free to send them my way if you don't like them!

 

[BKHpondcritters]

I relocated one of those also. Refused to let it live in my pond that I walk in........................

Ah, so you like your toes, too....

 

[Mmathis]

You’ll probably be fine. Mother Nature has a way of evening things out. I’ll bet some will eventually leave and/or become prey for birds, snakes, etc. No matter how many tadpoles I would have during a season (frog and toad), the total number of adult critters never seemed to get out of hand. I probably ended up with 4 or 5 adults, but they were mostly different species, which was interesting.

 

[seandelevan]

Depends on the species of frog. Bullfrogs will make quick snacks of small fish. They are unlike most frogs in that they can actually plunge into the water to catch food. This is the first summer I’ve had with no frog occupants...had two then I saw a black rat snake hanging around the pond...and now no frogs

 

[Jhn]

Like addy, I have tons of frogs in my pond, they put zero stress on the fish as evidence by the amount of juvenile fish in my pond. Most are green frogs, but there are a few pickerel and bullfrogs. The bullfrogs need to do a better job of eating the little fish, because right now they have been slacking.

 

[CliffandJoann]

We had a bullfrog that ate a bird. After that she was so full that I could roll him around with
a stick...We really liked this frog, she was tame, but sadly, we had to relocate her.

 

[Douglas]

If you have small fish. And value them. Frogs prob would be best relocated.

Had some White cloud Minnows and I started noticing the residential Leapard frog entering the water. Days later 3/4 of my school of fish were gone.

 

[Parrot lady]

Depends on the species of frog. Bullfrogs will make quick snacks of small fish. They are unlike most frogs in that they can actually plunge into the water to catch food. This is the first summer I’ve had with no frog occupants...had two then I saw a black rat snake hanging around the pond...and now no frogs

I had a large bullfrog eating one of my big fat 6 in. goldfish.

 

[CometKeith]

I have had goldfish over 10 years. They never seemed to mind the frogs in my pond even when the little ones sat on the lily pads. One time a frog looked really weird and I couldn’t figure out what was going on. He had a whole bird in his mouth! I haven’t had any frogs since I built my new pond 4 years ago, but some people in our family liked the frogs better than the fish!

 

[paco]

Hey Folks,
So... I have had a frog or 2 in my pond from time to time, but now it's getting a bit crazy here! Is it ok to have more frogs than fish? All of a sudden there are about 8 to 10 frogs hanging out in and around my pond. So I was just wondering if there are any concerns having that many in with my goldfish?

I have always found that generally speaking, frogs in a pond are a sign of a healthy pond...

 

[Sisha]

Hey Folks,
So... I have had a frog or 2 in my pond from time to time, but now it's getting a bit crazy here! Is it ok to have more frogs than fish? All of a sudden there are about 8 to 10 frogs hanging out in and around my pond. So I was just wondering if there are any concerns having that many in with my goldfish?

I had bull frogs in my goldfish pond and fish were disappearing but was lucky, while they were mating I caught them and put them in the dam, still connected, it didn't interrupt them at all. I don't worry about all the little ones but it does get really noisy in summer

 

[GBBUDD]

Bull frogs will eat ANYTHING they can get down there throat. Birds, mice, bugs, Small snakes. ANYTHING. But like others have said they can eat all the baby fry they can get.

 

[Mmathis]

@paco Amphibians are bio-indicators!