I mentioned the pond in my backyard a couple of posts ago & there have been a few revelations since as to the various creatures residing there.

I heard a faint splash one night a while back & thought I might have finally discovered the leak which is plaguing my water bills. After spending a considerable amount of time with a torch, scanning the edges of the pond, I finally discovered a frog laying eggs.

A couple of nights later, I managed to find both the mother & father of the litter sitting on the edge.





The male of this pair makes a sound similar to tapping quickly on wood, but really loud! Loud enough for me to be talking on the phone inside & having the person on the other end questioning what the background noise is!

I'm glad I had found the frogs before they started making noises because the first time I heard it in the early hours of the morning, I thought it was the ringing of some old fashioned telephone. Then it dawned on me the frogs were the culprits.

They've laid their eggs in a pile of bubbles which floats on the surface. This first batch was attacked by the goldfish, who had a great time chasing the newborns around the pond. The frogs (I thought) had learned their lesson & laid more eggs in the second pond without the threat of fish. It seems though that ants love the taste of taddies & made quite elaborate paths across the plant life to get to the eggs. Most seem to have survived though & are thriving.



The frogs went back to the first pond to lay a third batch which were once again devoured by the goldfish. So it seems I'd given too much credit in thinking they'd worked out where to safely lay their eggs!

Both frogs disappeared for a week or so, but now the male is back making a racquet & hoping for another female to hop on by.

If the noise of one frog is anything to go by, if all these tadpoles grow up, I could be in a bit of trouble. Might have to find a French restaurant in the area & make a bit of money!! (No, I wouldn't really!!)