Spawning frogs have spring in their step as survey shows value of our ponds

A SIGHTING of frog spawn in a large puddle in Cornwall is the first record to be added to an annual national survey.

Led by national wildlife conservation charity Freshwater Habitats Trust, the PondNet Spawn Survey maps sightings of common frog and common toad spawn across the country to identify “priority ponds” and highlight how amphibians use different types of water bodies to breed.

The early record from St Ives on December 21 was followed by another from a garden pond in the village of Lesnewth in the Valency Valley, North Cornwall, on Christmas Eve.

The Freshwater Habitats Trust has been collecting data on sightings of breeding frogs and toads since 2012. Each year since then, people across the country have got involved by recording spawn they have spotted in their garden or community ponds, or in the countryside. Every record is added to a national database, which is made available for research and conservation purposes.

Anyone can upload PondNet Spawn Survey data, adding a grid reference, the nearest postcode or using the What3Words app, on the Freshwater Habitats Trust website. The charity is also encouraging people to share photographs of frog and toad spawn they have spotted on social media, using the hashtag #SpawnSurvey.

Peter Forse added the record from North Cornwall on December 24. He said: “I’ve been in the Valency Valley for 50 years and, as a lover of amphibians and reptiles, it’s always a highlight to see the first frog spawn of the year – a harbinger of spring.

“I was surprised to find frog spawn before Christmas this year, another of the noticeable signs of climate change that we are seeing here in Cornwall.

“I really worry that these marvellous but vulnerable creatures, which I’ve found magical since I was a child, will not be there for future generations of young people to discover.”

Dr Naomi Ewald, technical director at the Freshwater Habitats Trust, said: “It’s always exciting to see the first entries to our PondNet Spawn Survey and we’re very grateful to Stephen and Paul for adding their records from Cornwall.

“The fact that the first sightings were in a puddle and a garden pond highlight how these amphibians use a variety of small water bodies to breed. Frogs and toads are amphibians that live on land for much of the year, but rely on having access to ponds and other water bodies.

“Around 80% of the freshwater environment is made up of smaller waters and they provide vital habitat for amphibians, including the common toad, which is now classed as an ‘at-risk’ species.”

Reader Ian Fisher also reported early frog spawn last Saturday, January 6, at Petrockstowe, in Devon.

Pond habitats are a “critically important but undervalued part of the freshwater network”, Dr Ewald concluded.

“Together, they support more biodiversity than large water bodies and, because they are easier to create and restore, representing an opportunity for us to provide habitats for wildlife as we adapt to climate change.”