Farm Life - pond world

by Roger Hill

February offers a few glimpses of spring. Yes, there are snowdrops and other brave flowers, but one thing always fascinates me - the arrival of frogspawn is a joy to behold. We usually hear the gurgling sound of frogs before actually seeing them.

Ponds are such a rich and vibrant ‘party of life’. Dragonflies, pond skaters, damselflies, water beetles, mayflies, newts and much, much more. It is though, the return of our frogs every February that excites me. How do they know how, when and where to return?

Not to be confused with toadspawn which appear as egg strings, frogspawn is such a nature lesson as we watch it develop into tadpoles and ultimately adult frogs.

We dug our first, albeit small pond, many years ago and within weeks we had a multiplicity of action which accelerated throughout the year. We have increased our ponds over the years and I would encourage everyone to create one to suit their own garden if they can.

Still my optimism for warmer weather is short lived. Winter always has a sting in its tail. As I gaze out of the window there is hail, snow and gale force winds... ‘ribbit ribbit’! ‘Til next time, Roger #TuppertheTractor (website: quoit-at-cross.co.uk)

Frogs are a vibrant part of our ‘pond world’