Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Why No Frogs This Year?

For the past 6 years, our pond here in S Origun has produced hundreds of healthy little frogs from the thousands of tad-poles present in the water. By year's end, the Blue Heron and other shore-bird preditors take the froggy and froggette numbers way down again. It is always a great show. This year, we only have 3 large Bullfrogs, no tad-poles and no small, or even YOY frogs. The only change, or rather introduction to the pond has been the 85 small, medium and large LMB and small 6" CC we added last Fall. Could this be the answer to the disappearing frog act? I added the LMB to keep the BG numbers "manageable", and that has been a 100% success. But it seems to be a totally different eco-system in there this year. My only plan is to wait it all out and see where it takes us, as we are gone too often out on the road to do much about it, this year anyway...

Without a doubt in my mind, yes, the LMB are responsible for the drop in frog numbers. I saw far more frogs during the year my pond had no bass than since LMB were stocked. And many, many more topwater aquatic insects then also (although I blame the BG for the largest part of this decline).

But one of the neat things about ponds is watching the different populations change and trying to figure out how they are all related.

I have both LMB and lots of Bullfrogs.

This is fairly easy to accomplish if you fill your pond with weeds,er,I mean vegetation. In my particular case I chose Elodea. It is easy to grow, grows very rapidly, and in short time will appear in almost every corner of your pond. It quickly becomes so dense that bullfrog tadpoles can hide in it and escape predation. Although the vegetation makes fishing difficult, swimming unpleasant, tangles in propellers and seems to grasp at kayak paddles, it does provide a safe habitat for the frogs.

Out of the graciousness of my heart I would be willing to ship to you all of the Elodea that you can use if you merely pay the transport costs. Your frogs will thank you for it.

I'm serious, please take some Elodea. Help a fellow pond meister out. Elodea free for anybody and everybody. No need to thank me. I will anxiously await Elodea orders.

:D

I hear ya JHAP, we have lot's of coontail and milfoil.

Jeff, I'm sorry, but your pb post lost it's signal and broke up mid-sentence (like a cell call). I'll have to call you back on the Elodea...
Theo, I agree. Just watching and learning to be patient with each changing season is becomming very interesting to us. In retrospect, the low BG count and missing frogs ought to equal increased LMB size and health.
Like I said, I feel 100% successful with my LMB program, as I had an ALL-BG pond before and the imbalance was going to be an eventual disaster with stunted fish, etc, etc...
Oh, and BTW Jeff??? For your generous offer, I am sending you, free of charge, a sample of every weed, er, um, 'cover plant' I have in my pond since you so enjoy taking such good care of your frogs, in that I apparently don't have any frogs to protect any longer...

This is why you just have to love Pond Boss, forum member helping forum member. It just can't get any better than this.

We've had unusually high water in our pond since last October. As dry as it seems, my water is still about 2-3 inches above my standpipe, which is unusual for this time of year.

As a consequence, the water has been up in what is usually "lawn." An area behind my pond has become a small swamp. These grassy/weedy areas are filled with more frogs than I think I've ever seen around a pond.

Most of the time the frogs jump into the water and hide when I approach. Last night, I watched one of the really little guys when he decided to go for a swim. He got about 10 feet from the bank and decided to rest. Within seconds a huge bluegill enjoyed a tasty desert.

Between our bull frogs, green frogs, and tree frogs, we have quite a chorus each night.