HELP..Do my Toads need Help?

[JennyJ]

I have had 2 small square ponds for just less than a year sunken into my patio with a channel joining them together. I have got goldfish, waterlilies and oxygenating plants in them. However I have now found several small Toads to be swimming around. I have at any one time counted up to 9 of them but am sure there are more hiding in there. They are all about an inch or so (their body size) or smaller. They seem to spend much time swimming around the edges of the pond and I am worried that they are trying to get out but are unable as the lined walls of the pond are vertical and the water level sits about 6 inches below a paving slab overhang.
I have lifted a couple out and they have sat on the slab for a while and eventually gone back in the pond. I worried though that this may be because the patio area is quite large and they cannot seek any obvious refuge elsewhere.
There is a flower bed to the side of one of the ponds and the toad I lifted out there slowly walked towards it and I think dissapeared into the plants.
HELP...am I worrying about them for no reason? Do they need a ramp to be able to get out? Does the ramp need to be close to a flower bed rather than out onto a large expanse of paved area??
I would appreciate anyones advice as I'm really worried about the little fellas but do not want to interfere with Nature.
Thanks [/color][/font][/color]

[Cotham Marble]

Originally Posted by JennyJ

I have had 2 small square ponds for just less than a year sunken into my patio with a channel joining them together. I have got goldfish, waterlilies and oxygenating plants in them. However I have now found several small Toads to be swimming around. I have at any one time counted up to 9 of them but am sure there are more hiding in there. They are all about an inch or so (their body size) or smaller. They seem to spend much time swimming around the edges of the pond and I am worried that they are trying to get out but are unable as the lined walls of the pond are vertical and the water level sits about 6 inches below a paving slab overhang.
I have lifted a couple out and they have sat on the slab for a while and eventually gone back in the pond. I worried though that this may be because the patio area is quite large and they cannot seek any obvious refuge elsewhere.
There is a flower bed to the side of one of the ponds and the toad I lifted out there slowly walked towards it and I think dissapeared into the plants.
HELP...am I worrying about them for no reason? Do they need a ramp to be able to get out? Does the ramp need to be close to a flower bed rather than out onto a large expanse of paved area??
I would appreciate anyones advice as I'm really worried about the little fellas but do not want to interfere with Nature.
Thanks [/color][/font][/color]

Yes, some kind of ramp, or rock or other means of escape is very important, not just for the toads but other wildlife that may visit the ponds and be unable to get out. Amphibians will survive as long as they don't starve but invertebrates and mammals may well drown through exhaustion. Any garden water feature should have either a wildlife exit point, or be covered so as to prevent access.

At this stage I wouldn't be too concerned about the paved area, although it would certainly help to provide refuge points in the form of raised planters. Providing some upturned plant pots within the flower beds, with the edges angled by propping one side of the pot on a piece of brick or tile, will also be useful as refuges for both toads and any frogs that might be in your garden.

CM

[JennyJ]

Thanks for the reply. Have put a ramp in and watched one toad climb it yesterday! I cant see the other toads either so hopefully they've all used it and are happily discovering the flowerbeds. Thanks again!