# Raising tadpoles



## EA James (8 Jun 2021)

Evening all, 

A few weeks ago on a walk I spotted a beautiful little pond in Windsor Great Park that was brimmed with tadpoles, a lovely setting and it seemed I was in the middle of the countryside! 

The next week (last weekend) I went back with the mrs and the younger kids and we bought some home in some glass jars along with some very excited kids which was great to see as most of time they just want to play on computers etc
I've set up a large plastic stacking box outside for them to live and while we were at the pond we took some of the plants that were floating around in the water along with some other pieces of old twigs and bits and bobs to make it more natural and better suited for the tadpoles. 

I've 'scaped' the container with some sand and a few big pebbles we had in some plant pots, along with the bits from the pond I think it looks great and has made me really want a pond at home but with 20 month old twins that plan will be put on hold!!

I love this little set up though and can't stop going outside to check on them and watch what they get up to, I'm definitely more excited than the kids 😂 

Has anyone else done this? I've watched a few YouTube videos and read a bit online about caring for them but thought I'd like to ask you guys and also share our little adventure with you too! 
Cheers, James


----------



## EA James (8 Jun 2021)




----------



## MirandaB (8 Jun 2021)

Yes I saved a pile of frogspawn a couple of years ago that the daft creatures had laid in a puddle with about half an inch of water in it.
I ended up with about 200 of them in one of my large pond tubs and they were great fun to watch 
Don't assume they will all grow up and depart this year lol I ended up with around 30 who decided to be Peter Pan until the next Spring 😂


----------



## dcurzon (8 Jun 2021)

Had some raised in a small 12l tank,from spawn to wild release.


----------



## zozo (9 Jun 2021)

It was one of my favorite things when I was a kid from the age of 6, dragging all I could net out home in a bucket and study it. That is how I got my very first steel frame aquarium as a gift from the neighbor to put in the garden. Because of my enthusiasm, my mom told my dad to put an aquarium in the living room and I'm hooked ever since. 

Last year I had a few pollywogs and raised them in the garden. They were Toads and left soon after they got legs. In about 3 weeks' time.

One tadpole trivia I learned over the years that kids actually should know, is that Tadpoles have a defense mechanism against the competition from other tadpoles that are no family if the water volume they are in is too small. They seem to excrete some kind of poisonous hormon that inhibits growth and or will finally kill the competing tadpoles from other frogs. This defense kicks in for example if 2 frogs lay eggs in the same small puddle of water. The firstborn will be stronger and claim the puddle to their own. The others will not hatch or be killed if they hatch later. Thus catching them in a large pool you might catch a mix from different families if the pool is large enough to sustain different families. And if they are moved to a small volume of water in a ratio of 5 siblings to 1 stranger the stranger is competition and most likely will not survive.
SO if you experience a few dying you know why that is... To avoid this it is best practice to only catch tadpoles from small puddles of water, then you know they must be from the same family.  And if you catch them from different puddles or pools then never put them together in the same bucket and mix them up. Keep them separate and house them separately.


----------



## PARAGUAY (9 Jun 2021)

Think I read the read the reason they tend to lay at the edges of ponds and streams is to avoid predation the frog and the tadpoles. In the deeper water all kinds of predators lurk One of the worst from a tadpoles point of view sticklebacks  and insect larvae. The survivall rate is poor thats why they lay spawn in quantity


----------



## zozo (9 Jun 2021)

PARAGUAY said:


> the worst from a tadpoles point of view sticklebacks


They are indeed awfully fearsome and also totally fearless predators if they were as large as pikes we really would have a problem. Who knows what evolution has in store, they might grow large one day...


----------



## EA James (10 Jun 2021)

Thanks for the replies, some interesting points and advice there. 
I'll post up some more photos when they progress to the next stage in development

As for feeding, I've read that boiled and cooled lettuce leaves are good and also a small amount of fish flakes once a week should be enough. I believe the stage their at now they graze and algae and plants that are in from the pond. Also I'm going to be doing 50% WC once a week and vaccing out the vast amount of poop they produce, Is that ok?

Cheers all


----------



## MirandaB (10 Jun 2021)

I fed mine mostly spirulina flake daily and once a week a more "meaty" based flake food then as they grew I swapped the diet around but they were in a large tub outside so there was plenty of "natural" food in there.....well to start with lol.
I've seen Natures Grub Tadpole food in my lfs but with 200 hungry mouths to feed that was going to work out quite pricey 😆


----------



## EA James (10 Jun 2021)

Ok cheers for that @MirandaB, I only have spirulina tabs but I'm going to my LFS at the weekend so I'll grab some when I'm there.
With regards to water quality, How much do I need to worry about it? I don't want the water to go stagnant, having an aquarium its strange to look at such still unfiltered water! It makes me feel a bit edgy if I'm honest 😂


----------



## MirandaB (10 Jun 2021)

I had mine in a 400lt tub outside full of Hornwort etc so water quality wasn't really an issue as it was just them in there at the time but in a small tub I'd do at least 50% weekly....more if you need to.


----------



## EA James (11 Jun 2021)

MirandaB said:


> I'd do at least 50% weekly....more if you need to.


I'll do twice weekly, It takes no time at all so not an issue. Id rather be safe than sorry. I was thinking about getting a small air pump for some movement and oxygenation, would I need to? 
Cheers Miranda 👍


----------



## Ian61 (11 Jun 2021)

Afraid I’m another who’s never grown out of childhood pond dipping. Would like to be able to say this was for the benefit of children or grandchildren but I’d be lying. First cohort released into local countryside tonight.
Incidently the newt was found when I was clearing a drain on the patio so joined the frog fraternity for a brief spell before relocation.


----------



## MirandaB (11 Jun 2021)

EA James said:


> I'll do twice weekly, It takes no time at all so not an issue. Id rather be safe than sorry. I was thinking about getting a small air pump for some movement and oxygenation, would I need to?
> Cheers Miranda 👍


Might be worth sticking an air pump on as it's a smallish volume of water and the weather is pretty warm which won't help oxygen levels.


----------



## MirandaB (11 Jun 2021)

Ian61 said:


> Afraid I’m another who’s never grown out of childhood pond dipping


Welcome to the club @Ian61 I never tire of pond dipping or peering into my tubs and this time of year I spend a lot of time in the river at the bottom of the garden


----------



## EA James (12 Jun 2021)

MirandaB said:


> this time of year I spend a lot of time in the river at the bottom of the garden


Lucky you! One of my main ambitions in life is to own a house on the river. I find there's something magical about being around water, ponds lakes rivers streams or the sea, I love it! I always have a look into whatever it may be to see what life there is 
I live in Wraysbury in Berkshire which is known for having a lot of water, lots of lakes and reservoirs and pretty much right on the Thames too but nothing at the bottom of my garden unfortunately, I'm being teased!! 
I'd love to see some photos, I know @Zeus. was moving into a property with a beautiful back garden with a river at the end. The perfect setting IMO 



Ian61 said:


> benefit of children or grandchildren but I’d be lying.


We all turn into kids again around ponds it seems, good stuff 

Cheers


----------



## not called Bob (13 Jun 2021)

PARAGUAY said:


> Think I read the read the reason they tend to lay at the edges of ponds and streams is to avoid predation the frog and the tadpoles. In the deeper water all kinds of predators lurk One of the worst from a tadpoles point of view sticklebacks  and insect larvae. The survivall rate is poor thats why they lay spawn in quantity


the water is warmer in the shallows, so they get the required number of degree days needed to go through the aquatic life stages faster, you see them in open water, but they will take longer to morph 


EA James said:


> Thanks for the replies, some interesting points and advice there.
> I'll post up some more photos when they progress to the next stage in development
> 
> As for feeding, I've read that boiled and cooled lettuce leaves are good and also a small amount of fish flakes once a week should be enough. I believe the stage their at now they graze and algae and plants that are in from the pond. Also I'm going to be doing 50% WC once a week and vaccing out the vast amount of poop they produce, Is that ok?
> ...



they soon switch from being happy eating algae to wanting to eat meat and with that they are happy to take on their siblings, its a large part of why so many eggs are laid, broadcast spawning soon sees the numbers start to drop away and from a 1000 eggs, you might in good set of years get one, through to maturity and breeding and passing on its DNA.  


They are also best left alone, so many diseased populations, you would not want to accidentally assist in spreading such problems around.  build a pond and they will soon arrive.


----------



## zozo (14 Jun 2021)

It indeed goes pretty fast, the first 3 weeks they only grow bigger, week 4 they start to develop bigger eyes, longs, and legs.
Week 5 the front legs grow and the tail fin disappears week 6 they will be tiny frogs or toads with a tail.

This is week 4 to 5, a 10mm toad




This is week 5 to 6



In the case of toads, they go on land to feed and leave the water. If they have the chance they will be gone in week 5 and you likely will not see them around any longer. The above picture was in my garden last year.

This is Brown Frog 2 weeks old




and 4 weeks  The frog pictures were sent to me by a friend this year, from tadpole to frog, catch and release all in the month of April.




Frogs like to stay in and around the water and can be fed with bloodworm etc. for a week longer. And slowly start to require larger food. The slowly is evidently a fast pass in days time...  Actually rather astonishing to see how fast they grow from egg to larva to complete amphibian.


----------



## mort (14 Jun 2021)

Just a random question if I may. I don't own a cat but has anyone noticed cats eating the little froglet's? Luckily I have a dog so wildlife is pretty safe in my garden but in my brothers there is an, admittedly lovely, cat that visits and likes nothing better than crunching up a frog, grass hopper, moth etc.


----------



## zozo (14 Jun 2021)

mort said:


> Just a random question if I may. I don't own a cat but has anyone noticed cats eating the little froglet's? Luckily I have a dog so wildlife is pretty safe in my garden but in my brothers there is an, admittedly lovely, cat that visits and likes nothing better than crunching up a frog, grass hopper, moth etc.



I have a cat but never seen it do that... But also won't be surprised if they do it also depends on the cat and how well it's fed. Some cats are more feral than others... Mine is more like a player and rarely kills, he rather brings it home and sets it free in the house. He never looks at the goldfish in the garden, but the neighbor's cat is always watching my fish when he's in my garden and also charges on them, luckily he can't catch them.

But one day my cat dragged a slow worm home, I found it dead and dried out on the kitchen floor. I guess if a frog is stupid enough to be caught the same might happen. Haven't had the privilege yet to find one outside its normal habitat caught by the cat but do have frogs in the garden.


----------



## mort (14 Jun 2021)

The cat isn't near feral, it is better fed than most people. I hear "tilly din dins" a few times a day and know from looking after them once that they get fed three meals a day, everyday. I think it just loves hunting.
I was surprised how crunchy the frog was.


----------

