Green Frog Tadpoles

[Shoestring Ponder]

  This past Spring '10, we were surprised by the appearance of a female Green Frog...very common but quite a surprise since she appeared in a floating planter in our above ground, 24' round pond/pool. A few weeks later, she brought a little fella  . She proceeded to lay eggs in the pond and although they developed into tadpoles, not a one survived the insatiable appetite of our goldfish!  . A few weeks later...end of July, we found eggs in the kiddy pool where we had duckweed and some pond plants growing. Well, we now have hundreds of tadpoles and we need to take down the kiddy pool for the winter. What to do with the tadpoles?  They were laid too late in the season for them to develop into frogs according to what I googled. I have tried to feed the fish on one side of the pond and used a dip net to release some on the other side of the pond....but the goldfish still find them and make a meal of them right quick. Being laid-off for 18 mos. DH and I cannot afford to set up a tank (don't have one) to overwinter them. Should we just let nature take its course and put them in the pond while we still have the floating plants so they can try to hide, or should we rehome them to a friends lagoon inhabited by Bullfrogs?  Just not sure what to do. Any suggestions?

CyndiMO

[TeeBee]

I am new to all of this and don't have tadpole a'tall, but is it possible to perhaps make a screened area with some netting and wood to frame it, and put them there in the pond? To keep them safe?

TeeBee

[Vickie]

I have over wintered tadpoles in a kiddy pool that I have left set up all winter. I am zone 6 Missouri. Bullfrog tadpoles take from one spring to the next to develope. I only had a cow tank heater in there 3 days when we had minus 13*f. And only for a hole in the ice not constantly plugged in. I do not kill my tadpoles or bullfrogs. I have had them in ponds all winter but I keep a pump going all winter in some ponds. If the friend does not mind then maybe that can be an option.

[Julles]

I say, split them up and try different approaches with different batches of tadpoles. 

Tadpoles survive outdoors on their own quite well; it's how Nature intended.  Here in downtown Houston, eggs are laid in puddles at the curb, which dry up, get wet again, dry up, and eventually the eggs hatch and the tadpoles turn into frogs and toads. 

If you could recreate conditions as close to nature as possible, they should have a chance.  An above ground pond sounds OK, if you can heat it somewhat.  The thing is, since it's above ground, it does not have the insulating capacity of a natural in-ground pond.  That's why you'd need the heater.

Can you section off part of your pond, so the fish can't get to one corner?

You could add LOTS of underwater plants, and hope it provides enough cover for the tadpoles.

Summary of options:

1.  above ground pond, w/heater if possible
2.  sectioned-off portion of your existing pond
3.  in your existing pond w/underwater plants
4.  in your friends' pond 

[perplexed ponder]

Maybe you can get a free tank from Craig's List?

[Shoestring Ponder]

Thanks for all the suggestions!  The issue with rehoming them to my friends lagoon, it is inhabited by Bull Frogs and I would assume those Bull Frogs would love to make a meal of the Green Frog Tadpoles as well...same issue as putting them in our pond/pool. A section of the pond is dug into the side of a hill, so that area is where we put the deicer bought last winter. We are going to sink some clay drain pipes that have been in the elements for a few years that I have recently soaked and scrubbed and are now soaking in pond water. We will sink them today to give the GoldFish a chance to check them out as well as the Green Frog. We also have a couple of Bull Frog Tadpoles that are just now becoming frogs that maybe will take up residence in the pipes for the winter. Last winter, DH kept a hole in the ice, first by using the bottom of a hot tea kettle to melt a hole and when the weather got really cold, we found some $$$ and bought the deicer. This year, I would like for him to try to make a lightbulb heater for the pond...will be less costly than the de-icer for cattle troughs. It should not be too expensive to put together and run during icing days and nights. I also do not want the kiddy pool to be full of water for the winter as we do not want it to crack as the ice forms. In the big pond, we do have Elodea sunk and floating free. As an aside, the elodea actually blossomed for a bit this past summer! Which was pretty cool.

Well, again, Thanks for the suggestions. I am leaning towards putting them in the pond and give them a chance to find shelter amongst the floating plants...at least long enough for them to grow bigger and possibly too big for the GF to snack on. If they are eaten, at least my Goldfish will have gotten the meal rather than my friends Bullfrogs.  I am not sure how long our few BullFrog Tadpoles will take before they begin to thin the schools of Goldfish and possibly tadpoles also. 

CyndiMO

[Kittyzee]

I would probably take my chances and let them overwinter in your own pond.  Sinking the clay pipes will help your fish be able to hide from predators or if they are feeling 'shy'.     Remember to not have your water churning in the winter as this disturbs the thermal layer your fish will need to survive the cold northern winters.  A little water movement is okay and helps keep an area open for gas exchange, but moving large amounts of water could cause you to lose your fish. 

I believe that most frogs' systems slow way down in the winter and I think they burrow in to the layer of mulm at the bottom of the pond until their systems wake up in the spring.  I have had frogs survive the winter only to lose them after they have awakened in the spring to a cold snap that lasted too long.      I hate it, but that's the way nature works...