If you have a pond or even just a large water feature in your yard, consider doing something different from the normal koi-or-comet ornamental pond. Why not create a frog pond? Meeting the needs of our amphibian friends just requires a bit of forethought.
Tips for Attracting Frogs
- Keep the pond free of large, predatory fish. Koi and and other large fish are likely to eat any frog eggs or tadpoles before they can become frogs. On the other hand, very slow, small ornamental fish like fancy goldfish may become frog food. Instead, opt for small, quick fish such as gambusia or, if you want the bright colors, comets.
- Plant your pond well. Provide overhanging plants with floating roots for shade and shelter. Lily pads and leaves on the water create places for frogs to escape predatory fish and get some sun. Provide a variety of submerged, emergent and floating species, which are native to your area or at least tolerant of your climate. Plants also provide natural filtration to help keep your pond clean. Some popular pond plants include arrowhead, taro, lilies, cattails, duckweed, water hyacinths and water lettuce. A great rule of thumb for pond planting is divide the pond into half planted, half open water.
- Allow a layer of leaves and muck to accumulate on the pond's bottom. Allow some algae growth on top and on the sides. A sparkling pond free of muck and algae may look attractive to humans, but frogs and tadpoles need muck for hiding and burrowing and algae for hiding and eating.
- Provide exit routes. Frogs need to be able to get out of the water with ease. Lilypads, floating logs, or half-submerged rocks or terra cotta pots allow an escape route for frogs.
- Install a low light source around the pond. This will attract insects at night, when many species of frogs feed. Light will encourage mosquitoes to breed in your pond, and the mosquito larvae will in turn feed tadpoles and frogs.
- Never use pesticides on your lawn. Bugs are necessary as food for frogs. Also, frogs are sensitive to pesticides they accidentally ingest or which is washed into the pond during rain.
- Once you have tadpoles, if you wish, you may supplement their natural diet with commercial fish flakes or small pieces of boiled and cooled romaine lettuce. Feed your tadpoles no more than every two to three days. They should be able to find plenty of algae and insect larvae to eat in your pond.
Many garden supply catalogs offer tadpoles for sale at about two dollars a piece. These are usually of the species Rana catesbiana, commonly called the North American bullfrog. Never introduce a non-native species into the environment. Non-native frogs may compete with native wildlife, or even prey on native wildlife.
Sarah Goodwin-Nguyen - Goodwin-Nguyen is the author of Key West: A Comprehensive Guide to Florida's Southernmost City (Parkscape Press, 2008) as well as an ebook ...
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