Your day's wildlife

[SpokeyDokey]

At a rough guess based on simple frogs counted in 1 sq.ft of pond x rough square footage of pond (not easy to calculate as it is kidney shaped and one end of the kidney is a lot bigger than the other) we have upwards of 400 noisy frogs doing there froggy thing in the front garden at the moment.

 

[Mo1959]

At a rough guess based on simple frogs counted in 1 sq.ft of pond x rough square footage of pond (not easy to calculate as it is kidney shaped and one end of the kidney is a lot bigger than the other) we have upwards of 400 noisy frogs doing there froggy thing in the front garden at the moment.

My last couple of bike rides I have seen literally hundreds squished on the roads. I presume this is them crossing to or from waterways spawning?

 

[SpokeyDokey]

My last couple of bike rides I have seen literally hundreds squished on the roads. I presume this is them crossing to or from waterways spawning?

Presumably Mo. I see a lot of squashed everything here. I am always really saddened when I see crushed Badgers for some reason.

 

[annedonnelly]

Presumably Mo. I see a lot of squashed everything here. I am always really saddened when I see crushed Badgers for some reason.

I can't bear to look at squashed things Hate to see blackbirds killed at this time of year when they're less cautious about crossing roads.

 

[summerdays]

We only had one pair of frogs that I know of but we have loads of tadpoles that are swimming around. I think there are more than enough for the size of my small pond.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

We often find frogs sitting in the road at dusk. Getting squashed could be considered an occupational hazard, but I would imagine they are doing it for the same reasons sheep do (and sheep do do this believe me) and that is that tarmac slowly releases the heat it has gained during the day over the course of the night and is actually warmer than the surrounding land as a result.

 

[neil_merseyside]

We often find frogs sitting in the road at dusk. Getting squashed could be considered an occupational hazard, but I would imagine they are doing it for the same reasons sheep do (and sheep do do this believe me) and that is that tarmac slowly releases the heat it has gained during the day over the course of the night and is actually warmer than the surrounding land as a result.

Wouldn't heat dry a frog out though?

 

[Gravity Aided]

Yes, but he's an amphibian, and cold blooded. I think their slime helps them retain moisture, much like a game show host.

 

[Gravity Aided]

At our church, where they cut an ornamental grass clump back to a spiky 6" long stub last year, a mother mallard has made her nest, right atop the clump. Provisions have been placed nearby, by parishioners.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

[QUOTE 3640083, member: 9609"]How many per sqaure foot did you base your calculations on ?

A rough and ready way to measure pond - calculate how much water per minute from hose pipe, then how long for hose to fill pond by a set height.


We have a very small pond in the front garden 7' diameter, and a few months ago I took a photo and managed to count 31 frogs on the surface (probably more under the water) - so I am guessing at least one per square foot.

[/QUOTE]

It's around 100 sq.ft I'd guess - maybe a bit more; it's hard to work out due to the shape.

I came up with an average of 4/sq.ft. I think this might be a bit low tbh as in places there are probably 10-12 per linear foot around the perimeter of the pond and then there are the swimmers as per your pic which is hard to estimate. Christ knows how many are down below..

Whatever, there are lots and lots of them. Over the years we have stocked several other ponds in the village with 'our' frogs.

There's a whole bunch of Toads in there too although these tend be semi-submerged in the 'shallows' or ambling around in the surrounding undergrowth.

 

[Flick of the Elbow]

I was joined for breakfast yesterday by a pair of goldcrests hopping about in the shrubs in front of the window.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

I was joined for breakfast yesterday by a pair of goldcrests hopping about in the shrubs in front of the window.

Funny place to eat your breakfast.

 

[Gravity Aided]

Unless you are gardening while eating breakfast, I suppose.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

[QUOTE 3640671, member: 9609"]I was thinking 1000 per pair so may be 16,000 ?? any other wild guestimates ?[/QUOTE]
that does make the assumption that the 32 are divided equalling between the sexes which I thought was uncommon. My (limited) understanding was that it was 1 female and as many males on her that didn't drown her... so closer to 1:4 or 1:6....

countryfile says this
http://www.countryfile.com/blog-post/all-you-need-know-about-frog-spawn

Don’t fret over numbers

It is important to know that as long as you haven’t introduced additional frogs into your pond, there is no such thing as too much spawn. Unfortunately it’s a tough life for a tadpole - they have a number of natural predators and are susceptible to various amphibian diseases. Because of this, female frogs lay thousands of egg each year and only a tiny fraction of them will survive to adulthood. Your pond may contain a big black mass of writhing tadpoles, but this is how it is meant to be. Just kick back and enjoy watching these amazing amphibians.

 

[Alex H]

The swallows have arrived