Mystery with taddies

Cazzie · #1 (**permalink**) 03-05-2009, 11:15 PM

The new owner of my old house asked me to pop round last week and help her sort the pond out of which I was very happy to oblige

The pond had got hundreds of taddies and at least 6 frogs happily nestled in the weed (they seemed reluctant to move when pulling strands of blanket week out lol!). Anyway...

We were chatting about the level of the pond and she said she'd gone to the waterbutt to get a few watering cans full of water to top it up and was amazed to find tadpoles in the water butt!

I had to look myself of course, and yep... there were at least 30-50 taddies in a 5ft high water butt! How on earth did they get in there?!

The water butt is a fairy new plastic type with a lid and tap at the bottom, there is a small amount of leaf litter in the bottom of the butt (an inch or so) - so I'm completely mystified! Any ideas anyone as to how they got there?

Thankfully I left a small childs fishing net when I moved house, so have instructed her to fish them out and put them in the pond

Hedge Witch · #2 (**permalink**) 04-05-2009, 07:12 AM

Interesting. My first thought - does she let kids play in her garden?

Kayleigh · #3 (**permalink**) 04-05-2009, 06:06 PM

My waterbutts are full of worms in the bottom god knows how they get in there...
Never had tadpoles in there though...

You really should advise her not to clean the pond out this time of year though late Autumn is the best time when everything has stopped breeding..

Cazzie · #4 (**permalink**) 05-05-2009, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hedge Witch

Interesting. My first thought - does she let kids play in her garden?

Her daughter is 6 months old... so doubt that she's plonked a frog in the butt lol!

Kayleigh - We only pulled out a few strands of blanketweed

She was more interested in the damselfly larvae, bugs and insects we found and wanted me to identify the plants I'd put in there for her

Well I know that birds transfer fish eggs etc, but tbh I'm still baffled!

Hedge Witch · #5 (**permalink**) 05-05-2009, 02:44 PM

Adult frogs will sometimes drown in a vessel like a water butt. They need access to land, so it is rather bizarre, Cazzie

Can you get a picture of the butt?

Kayleigh · #6 (**permalink**) 05-05-2009, 02:47 PM

Oh!!! sort of pond dipping then..

I found a frog in a waterbutt once so yours could have got in or fell in when pregnant maybe....

Dogghound · #7 (**permalink**) 05-05-2009, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kayleigh

My waterbutts are full of worms in the bottom god knows how they get in there...
Never had tadpoles in there though...

Worms can climb up plasic when its wet, so this is possibly how they have got in.

Not sure about the tadpoles, someone must have put them there at some point, they may have been there for several years.