I have tadpoles! What should I do?

[lvvq]

I made a web page with pictures & a full explanation:

[url]https://lizzquinn.net/garden[/url]

but if you don't wanna click that, here's a brief version:

basically I put in a simple little pond (garbage bag, rocks, dirt) in my garden about a month ago, and I've been seeing a lot of frogs & toads hanging out. this week I noticed tadpoles! its really neat, but I kind of feel bad for them because I don't think they'll reach maturity before it starts to get real cold here.

what should I do to care for them? should I just leave them to freeze over winter, should I try to scoop them out with a fish net & bring them to the swamp nearby, or something else?

thanks for any info!

[Bobberman]

Tad poles hange over pretty fast and burry under the mud. They are great for the garden. I would think a nice size compost would help them suvive the winter! Table scraps and leaves!

[PunkRotten]

You can get a container like a 10 gallon fish tank or a plastic tub. Put all the tadpoles in there and feed them fish flakes or lettuce, algae (if you can get it). Some may turn to frogs/toads before Spring but they won't get too large and you can release them in Spring. You may want a separate container for ones that turn to frogs/toads. Feed them crickets or flightless fruit flies.

[PunkRotten]

After checking out your site they look like mosquito larvae. You could keep mosquito fish (Gambusia) or tiny minnows to eat insect larvae and also to make your little pond happier. But since it is so shallow they would freeze. Something you can do in the Spring. And then when it is about to freeze just bring them in. Is is possible to get a pic of the Swamp near your house? I'd be interested in seeing it.

[applestar]

Hmmm... I'm afraid they look like mosquito larvae to me as well. Easiest way to avoid this is to get the inexpensive feeder goldfish or "minnows" from pet shops like PetSmart and put them in. You would probably only need maybe two. (1" fish length per square foot of water surface).

Sometimes, there are ones with distinctive coloring like black tip on tailfin, etc. and the staff will be patient enough to catch them for you. But on the whole, it's better not to get attached. "Minnows" are harder to see in green murky water, but stay smaller and is better for shallow water and sometimes they are hardier. They'll eat the mosquito larvae and algae so you won't have to feed them. You won't need air pump or filter.

They'll freeze and die in winter but you can always get more (sounds cold, I know but I've been doing this for several years now so....) But if you want you can catch them and try to keep them inside. Last winter when it was so unseasonably warm, my goldfish survived outside in above ground tub of water and they were huge by spring.

Don't be discouraged, though. If you have a frog/toad population in your garden, they may lay eggs in your pond in spring and you may see their tadpoles then. In the mean time, the local birds and other wildlife may start using the pond. I couldn't quite tell, can you see/watch the pond from a window?

[rainbowgardener]

Any body of still water from a hubcap full to a large pond will fill up with mosquito larvae. The solution to that is to have it not still. You need to add a little pump/fountain to aerate and move the water.

Alternatively since your "pond" is tiny and shallow, you could just get a water wiggler:

[url=https://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=11845&cmpid=10csegpl&ref=6111&subref=AA&CAWELAID=525360337&cagpspn=pla]water wiggler[/url]

They are inexpensive, battery operated (or for slightly more you can get solar powered ones) and move the water enough to keep the mosquitoes out of it.

Incidentally, VERY creative and lovely use of the under the stair space!