It is late winter and as the weather starts to warm up, frogs, toads and newts congregate in local ponds, canals and even large puddles to produce spawn for the next generation. But more than half of Britain’s ponds were lost during the last century.
The Million Ponds Project aims to reverse the decline of ponds in the UK - and eventually create another 500,000 ponds by 2058. This project, launched by the Ponds Conservation Trust in Spring 2009 with help from Alan Titchmarsh, will start by creating 5,000 new ponds by 2013 - creating habitats for some of the country's most endangered freshwater species.
For people who would like to help by creating their own pond, we have some tips on helping wildlife ponds see more action this spring.
1. Make a wildlife pond. The ideal pond for amphibians should have a deep section (around 1m) for them to hibernate in, and lots of shallow (less than 20cm deep) water for them to spawn in. For more details on how to build a wildlife pond check out the Million Ponds Project website www.pondconservation.org.uk/millionponds.
2. Don’t put fish in your pond. Goldfish in particular will quickly finish off tadpoles and frogspawn, whilst even tiny sticklebacks are likely to prevent newts from breeding – if you want a healthy population of amphibians, forget about the fish.
3. Only use native wetland plant species. There are lots of suitable plants that you can buy at garden centres to help stock your pond. Particular favourites for breeding amphibians include Water Crowfoot, Water Starwort, Water Forget-me-not and Water Mint. Avoid non-native species as they are unlikely to be valuable for our wildlife, and in some cases take over ponds completely, leaving them choked up and lifeless. Particular species to avoid include New Zealand pygmy weed (Crassula helmsii), floating pennywort (Hydrocotyle ranunculoides) and water fern (Azolla filiculoides).
4. Never move spawn, tadpoles or wetland plants between ponds. You may be transferring invasive aquatic plant species, or spreading amphibian diseases such as red leg virus, which can wipe out entire frog populations locally. Make a pond and, generally speaking, the watery inhabitants will make their own way to it.
As natural habitat diminishes, a carefully designed wildlife pond, however small, can prove to be an oasis for some of our water creatures as well as attracting insects and mammals. It is one of the best ways to encourage wildlife into the garden and make the environment a better place.
