Newts and Toads.

[Swimingpoolpond]

A few pictures I took inside our family's retired swiming pool which is now home to a vast amount of wild life. Such as toads, frogs , newts and a pair of visiting ducks. Just wondered what kind of frogs and newts I have . I do have some more types of newts in the pool but I havent seen them this year as yet.

[marvin]

hi

you have common toads and great crested newts.

tim

[Gill Catton]

Yes agreed great crested newts (lucky you!!) and I love your toad pictures because it so clearly shows the colour variations you can get with this species.

See how grainy the skin of the newts is? That's a really good indication that they're great crested newts (also know as warty newts for that reason) they are also larger, darker and have a wider head that the other two newt species but that's perhaps a more helpful id feature when you can see both species together - or are already familiar with smooth and/ or palmate newts.

For the toads they also have this warty skin, but also a lovely black horizontal pupil in their eye and no dark 'highwayman's' mask behind the eye, frogs have this mask, rounder pupils, more wet-look skin and actually hind feet that look huge in comparison!

Hope this helps

[dampflippers]

I agree, great crested newts.
Do you have a photo of the whole pond/ swimming pool?
I assume you have adequate ramps to get in and out.

[kathateria]

Those pictures are excellent.Ive just put a pond in...no wild life as yet, but lots of insects,and my friend gave me some pond snails,which laid eggs every where.
I love frogs,toads and newts,but I havent seen a newt in the flesh before.

[Swimingpoolpond]

"I assume you have adequate ramps to get in and out."

Well there is a ladder going into the pool , its a very big pool with a deep and a shallow end . and the water level rarely comes up to the shallow end, we have had waterlife in there for the last 6 years. never seen the need to put a ramp in most of the frogs and newts live under dead leaves and an old forsale sign. If you really wanted to see some pictures of the pool I could upload a couple.

[dampflippers]

Yes please, I would be fascinated.

Regarding ramps in and out of the pond:
Once baby newts leave the pond, they live on land for 2 or 3 years until they are big enough to breed.
Adult newts return to the pond to breed, but apart from that live terrestrially, taking refuge under rocks and logs etc, coming out at night to hunt. In the winter they hibernate on land.
For this reason I would recommend trying to sort out some way of getting in and out.
If the adults can't find enough food, then they will eat the smaller ones.

You might just be able to tie a rough sawn plank to the top in the shallow end- ideally haped to hook over the edge. Then at least they have the choice to leave if they want to.

[Swimingpoolpond]

Well I took a few photos of the pool, I wedged a bit of wood down the side of the pool so things can get out. not sure if anything is going to use it. theres lots of cracks in the sides of the pool so I think a lot of the newts get in those possabley.

[shotski]

Nice pics,

Have the toads laid spawn in the pond ? if so you should see big shoales of
tadpoles.
Is it possible the newts & toads have simply fell into the pool going about
their everyday life.
Your problem now is you have great crested newts and getting rid of the
pool in the future could be a problem.

shotski

[Swimingpoolpond]

Doubt they just fell in, they have been in there for years and years. always swiming aroung coming up for air. and yes theres 100's of tadpoles they move around in one big black mass!
as regards to doing anything to the pool. I cant see anything happening to it anytime soon. its been as it is for 8+ years and were not planing on changeing it.