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RAUK - Archived Forum - tadpole

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tadpole:

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cade
Member
Joined: 26 Mar 2003
No. of posts: 1


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Posted: 26 Mar 2003
what do tadpoles eat.
cade
Gemma Fairchild
Krag Committee
Joined: 14 Feb 2003
No. of posts: 193


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Posted: 26 Mar 2003

Hi Cade,

Common Frog Tadpoles

Start by feeding on the leftovers of the spawn they hatch from.

They then move onto green filamentous algae often found growing on aquatic plants.

After a week or so they become omnivorous, eating algae and meat in the form of dead invertebrates such as worms and insects.

Common Toad Tadpoles,

Start the same, but mostly only eat algae until they metamorphose


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Hunty73
Member
Joined: 13 Jan 2004
No. of posts: 2


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Posted: 13 Jan 2004
Ive studied the amphibians in my small garden pond over 15 years.The original stock came from a pond being filled in for a road when i was 14.The frogs bred each year but the population fell steadily.it seemed the pond couldnt "feed" the tadpoles and they hence left the pond very late and were probably suffering high winter mortality.i started to feed the tadpoles myself once they were 3 weeks old on small amounts of tinned dogfood of all things.over several years the population increased and now the pond surface is totally covered in spawn late march.So much so it has enabled me to remove some of the spawn each year and introduce it in ponds i can find elsewhere.Being in a built up area with difficult terrain on land for the population ive found this really helps the population.The toads however died out as stated it seems they would only eat plant matter and the pond couldnt sustain a viable population.The smooth newts have held on over the 15 years but again at very low densities with only a few breeding females each year.it seems only around 20 baby newts survive to leave the pond.ive built a larfe area against the back  garden wall off branches stones and rotting vegetation to try to ensure a higher amount reach adulthood.
GemmaJF
Admin Group
Joined: 25 Jan 2003
No. of posts: 2090


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Posted: 14 Jan 2004

Hi Hunty,

I've seen common toad tadpoles in trouble in garden ponds a few times in the last year or so. I think they suffer from competition from frog tadpoles in garden ponds, appearing very stunted late in the summer. (or maybe the common frogs are inhibiting the growth in other ways??) The best toad ponds I know are relatively large with fish that prey on frog tadpoles but find the toad tadpoles distasteful, giving an advantage to them. Increasing the amount of cover in the garden may benefit adult toads that will use gardens during their terrestrial life.

Dave Bird suggested that frog tadpoles do better if fed a vegetarian diet in another thread, until the back legs develop, I found this gives larger froglets at metamorphosis and would therefore add spinach to the pond until the tadpoles are well developed. Some might suggest that it's better not to feed the tadpoles at all and let the population find its natural peek, though in my opinion, increasing the capacity of a small pond in this way in an urban area is a valid conservation step, your increasing adult population seems to prove this.

Newt tadpoles will only feed on live food such as daphnia and tubifex, ponds with muddy bottoms usually have the highest density, it may be worth trying to introduce live daphnia and tubifex to the pond, these are available for a few pence a bag from aquarium suppliers.


Gemma Fairchild, Independent Ecological Consultant
Hunty73
Member
Joined: 13 Jan 2004
No. of posts: 2


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Posted: 14 Jan 2004

Hi gemma,

i agree with your point on toad tadpoles.They seem to suffer in small ponds and take forever to develop.Locally toads have done better but mainly in fishing ponds and large lakes and again this would stand up to your point on fish predatation.I will try this year on your spinach point as ive never tried adding veg matter.Do you add it raw?as for the newts,my pond though small is very established and is teaming with daphnia all summer,and even as the newts leave there is still a good supply.i think the problem is the terrestrial habitat.it is very built up and although gardens next door is concrete and young newts and frogs stick to it in summer.Also there are no ponds within a mile or so of me so my pond has to self sustain.The newts/frogscame from over 15 ponds in my area as a boy,none now remain,most had breeding Great crested and all teamed with newts being mainly old mineworkings.i have actually set two ponds away who now breed well (frogs) and am lookig to set another away this year.I usually get around 15 to 20 limps of spawn and tend to remove 3 or 4.ive alwso bought my own house now (the pond is at parents) and am in the process of building a pond here based on what ive learned and much bigger than the other.Il be seeding this pond in the spring and so hope to establish another viable population.

John


David Bird
Forum Specialist
Joined: 17 Feb 2003
No. of posts: 515


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Posted: 14 Jan 2004
I cannot remember if I have said this before on this site but I had a colony of toads breeding in a pond at a school I once worked at where the pond was partly in the foyer and partly in a small garden in the centre of the building. There was a small gate to a gap in one wall where the adults entered and exited although many were carried through in buckets by the pupils as they crawled around the building. The pond getting very little direct sunlight in the centre of the laboratories was always cool and many toad tadpoles remained small and were present well into the winter when the numbers dwindled presumably by death. There were no frogs breeding here. I did have a look at the guts of some of the small tadpoles and found them to be completely full of a protozoan which from memory was like a rather like a Colpidium so may have been Nyctotherus which does occur in Toad tadpoles. I do not know if this large number caused the small size and non development or it was the length of time of development that caused the number of protozoans. It may be useful if you have access to a microscope to have a look at the gut of any of these small tadpoles to see if you have the same problem.
British Herpetological Society Librarian and member of B.H.S Conservation Committee. Self employed Herpetological Consultant and Field Worker.
Jazzie5
Member
Joined: 04 Mar 2004
No. of posts: 1


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Posted: 04 Mar 2004

Hi,

I am new to this forum. I am so excited! I have only had a pond in my garden a little under a year and it isnt a very big one. I just always wanted one, particulalry hoping to be able to watch the activity of frogs (always fascinated).

Anyway, as it got so very cold, and the pond froze over, my son and I took out some of the frog spawn I was chuffed to see, and placed them, in a small tank indoors. We of course followed all recommendations and have every intention of aclimatising them, and reintroducing them back to the pond soon (currently they have pond water, topped up / changed frequently, some weed etc and just introduced them to a bag of Daphnia! However, I am just curious, if I put these matured ones, back into the pond, now or when they are more developed, will they eat the remaining spawn / baby tads?


calumma
Senior Member
Joined: 27 Jun 2003
No. of posts: 351


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Posted: 04 Mar 2004
Jazzie,

I'm not sure how old you son is, but Jim Foster has written a booklet called 'Keeping Tadpoles Alive!' that you may find of interest. Published in 1997 your local library should be able to get hold of a copy. If he reads this he may even try to flog you one on the forum!

The Field Studies Council also have a publication 'Guide to Keeping Common Frog Tadpoles' that can be obtained here.
Lee Brady
Kent Herpetofauna Recorder | Independent Ecological Consultant

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calumma
Senior Member
Joined: 27 Jun 2003
No. of posts: 351


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Posted: 04 Mar 2004
For interest my first toad spawn of the year was seen yesterday in a small lake near Maidstone, Kent (3rd March).

One of the reasons that common toads don't do so well in small ponds is that they can overheat if the pond becomes too warm. In contrast natterjack tadpoles will actively bask in the sun, thus increasing their developmental rate and allowing them to escape from desiccating ponds.
Lee Brady
Kent Herpetofauna Recorder | Independent Ecological Consultant

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Clairey
Member
Joined: 10 Mar 2004
No. of posts: 1


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Posted: 10 Mar 2004
Hi everyone! My names Claire, and am new to this forum. Just wondering if anyone could be of any help!?. I am a student currently studying an Advanced National in Animal Care. I am doing an assignment in which i must complete soon, however a little baffled on the frog species. I was just wondering if anybody knew a little on common frogs breeding in captivity? If anybody does could you please give me a little info on it. Would be very grateful! Thanks. Claire.
C.Thompson

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