Pond Life!

This is a common frog.

Found all over the UK, common frogs live on between 5 and 10 years. They range in colour from greens and browns to reds and yellows. A single female can lay up to 4,000 eggs in one spring!

This is a Water Boatman.

These insects live in still bodies of water and slow flowing streams and rivers. They spend most of their time at the bottom of their habitat and eat algae and plant debris.

This is a common or smooth newt.

These amphibians hibernate over winter and come out in February/March to find mates. The young take 10 weeks to develop from larvae into young newts. They have a varied diet from insects to tadpoles and shrimp.

This is a common blue damselfly.

Damselfly rest their wings against their bodies whereas dragonflies rest their wings at right angles from their bodies.

These are mosquito larvae.

As humans, mosquito can be a real annoyance but their larvae make a lovely snack for creatures living in ponds. They supply a good source of nutrients to tadpoles and insects.

This is a Great Crested Newt.

Great Crested Newts are protected in the UK. Each newt has a different pattern upon its tummy, as unique as a finger print! They can live up to 15 years.

This is a medicinal leech.

The medicinal leech is the largest leech found in the UK and can grow up to 20cm. They have three jaws with around 100 teeth to help them latch onto their host.

This is a common toad.

Common toads are mostly active at night. They lay strings of eggs rather than bundles of eggs like frogs do. It takes three months for a tadpole to grow into an adult toad.