I've had a lot of frogs in my pond over a warm weekend recently, and I ended up with tons of frogspawn. But then it all vanished, and now even the smaller second batch is gone! The water looks really sludgy and muddy, and it seems like only a couple of the new plants I added last year are surviving. I feel really bummed out, especially for my toddler who loved watching the tadpoles last year. Any ideas on what might be happening?
3 Answers
Sometimes, the spawn can sink and just die off, which might explain where it went. I’ve had the same happen, but I still got a few tadpoles when it sank.
It sounds like some local wildlife might be the culprit! Rats and hedgehogs can munch on frogspawn, and sometimes even foxes. If you're trying to keep them away, netting could help, but it might also keep the frogs out. That's a tough spot to be in!
Yeah, I thought about netting but I didn’t want to scare off the frogs. It’s such a shame because there was so much spawn! I’ve got some barley straw now to tackle the algae, so I’m hoping that helps.
You might want to check out some forums for tips. Places like r/WildlifePonds have a lot of knowledgeable folks who can offer good advice!
Great suggestion! I’ll definitely check it out.
That could be it! Maybe I’ll hold off on cleaning out the sludge for now.