Tadpoles everywhere!

[poconojoe]

I wasn't sure where to post this...I guess it's spawning, but not fish!
We have thousands of tiny tadpoles everywhere in our pond. I've never seen so many. Maybe it's actually a million! I imagine a lot of them will get eaten by the fish eventually. It will be interesting to see how many survive.

 

[Tula]

Do you know if they are toads or frogs? I usually get a lot of toad tadpoles and my koi don't eat their eggs. The tadpoles don't seem to stay very long.....they must develop quickly.

 

[poconojoe]

If I were to guess, I'd say they are frogs. They are black and only about a 1/4" long including their big head and wiggly tail. They're all hanging around the edges of the pond. I have seen at least 4 frogs in and around the pond for a couple months and I can hear them singing right now as I'm typing. There's a toad that's been living by the house. He's been there for a couple weeks.

 

[BKHpondcritters]

If I were to guess, I'd say they are frogs. They are black and only about a 1/4" long including their big head and wiggly tail. They're all hanging around the edges of the pond. I have seen at least 4 frogs in and around the pond for a couple months and I can hear them singing right now as I'm typing. There's a toad that's been living by the house. He's been there for a couple weeks.

That sounds like toads to me. If what you're hearing is 'singing' (long, whistling call) that's a male toad. Frogs make a variety of their own noises, but generally more low-pitched & 'croak' like.

 

[addy1]

We get tons of eggs and tad poles, the toads jump out pretty fast. The tree frogs also jump out fast. The green frogs wait until next year to leave the pond.

 

[poconojoe]

That sounds like toads to me. If what you're hearing is 'singing' (long, whistling call) that's a male toad. Frogs make a variety of their own noises, but generally more low-pitched & 'croak' like.

Oh, OK, they must be toads then because their singing sounds like whistling from afar. Up close it's a little more croak like. They are small and stay around and in the pond. I thought toads would just stay on the land. These guys jump in if you startle them.

 

[AlyssaFish]

Do you think you can get pictures? I love tadpoles!

 

[poconojoe]

Do you think you can get pictures? I love tadpoles!

Whenever I try to take pictures, they come out horrible. I even tried holding filters from my old (film) SLR in front of my phone.

 

[AlyssaFish]

Whenever I try to take pictures, they come out horrible. I even tried holding filters from my old (film) SLR in front of my phone.

Aww, that's too bad! But I understand!

 

[Tula]

Toads lay their eggs in water.

 

[BKHpondcritters]

Oh, OK, they must be toads then because their singing sounds like whistling from afar. Up close it's a little more croak like. They are small and stay around and in the pond. I thought toads would just stay on the land. These guys jump in if you startle them.

The toads will come & hang around the pond when it's spawning time. Their eggs look like long curly strings or chains laid in the water. Frog eggs look different, depending on which type of frog it is. Some make balls of eggs that attach underwater to plants (wood & pickerel), others lay rafts of eggs that stay more on the surface. After spawning the toads and other terrestrial types of frogs (tree & wood) leave the pond & return to the land. Truly aquatic frogs like green & bullfrogs stay in & around the pond all summer.

Sorry for the long winded explanation, but I'm fairly obsessed with my aquatic & semi aquatic 'friends'. Our first round of baby toads is making their way out of the pond & I just got finished playing with them & taking a bunch of pictures.

 

[poconojoe]

The toads will come & hang around the pond when it's spawning time. Their eggs look like long curly strings or chains laid in the water. Frog eggs look different, depending on which type of frog it is. Some make balls of eggs that attach underwater to plants (wood & pickerel), others lay rafts of eggs that stay more on the surface. After spawning the toads and other terrestrial types of frogs (tree & wood) leave the pond & return to the land. Truly aquatic frogs like green & bullfrogs stay in & around the pond all summer.

Sorry for the long winded explanation, but I'm fairly obsessed with my aquatic & semi aquatic 'friends'. Our first round of baby toads is making their way out of the pond & I just got finished playing with them & taking a bunch of pictures.

Thanks! Not long winded. The more info the better we all get educated on the subject. Heck, we're a diverse group. Not just ponds and fish.

 

[poconojoe]

This is the best picture I could get. Sorry, no way to get a perspective on their size, but they are tiny. Maybe 1/4" head to tail.

 

[BKHpondcritters]

Yup! I love my fish, but for me the pond is just as much about the plants & wildlife - the whole package deal! Here are a couple shots of my baby toads (one still has serious 'tadpole butt'! lol)

 

[BKHpondcritters]

View attachment 129791
This is the best picture I could get. Sorry, no way to get a perspective on their size, but they are tiny. Maybe 1/4" head to tail.

I call toad! If you put your feet in & sit still, you might be lucky enough to get a tadpole pedicure!

 

[poconojoe]

It looks like the consensus has determined they are toads!

 

[poconojoe]

I call toad! If you put your feet in & sit still, you might be lucky enough to get a tadpole pedicure!
View attachment 129794

That's exactly what they look like. Without the foot of course!

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Oh, OK, they must be toads then because their singing sounds like whistling from afar. Up close it's a little more croak like. They are small and stay around and in the pond. I thought toads would just stay on the land. These guys jump in if you startle them.

You likely have both frogs and toads near your pond. Toads generally stay on land, but move to water in order to breed. Being that the tadpoles are small and black, it sounds like the tadpoles are toad, as everyone else has said. Years ago, I would raise a handful of toad tadpoles and eventually release them in the yard.

 

[poconojoe]

You likely have both frogs and toads near your pond. Toads generally stay on land, but move to water in order to breed. Being that the tadpoles are small and black, it sounds like the tadpoles are toad, as everyone else has said. Years ago, I would raise a handful of toad tadpoles and eventually release them in the yard.

Maybe I should capture some so they all don't get eaten. I already see less today. I don't know if they are just hiding somewhere else or they got eaten.

 

[LuapYllier]

Toad tadpoles put off toxins that are stressfull to your fish if you have any. I recently had a spawn of them and watched as the fish sucked them up and then spit them out. A small number of them in the water shouldn't be an issue but large numbers (i.e. thousands) in a small pond can cause problems. I scooped the bulk of mine out with a fish net and put them in a bucket of the pond water and dumped them in a local pond. I also now relocate the adult toads to minimize the possibility of more coming. Added benefit was not to hear the looong mating calls right next to our living room window at night lol.