Wither the frogs? By Dr John Wilkinson - Regional, Training & Science Programmes Manager Here at ARC, we often answer enquiries about frogs… especially, of course, in Spring – because that’s when they turn up in our ponds to meet mates and spawn. Afterwards, they’re often pretty tired and hungry and leave the ponds to forage for slugs and insects, to build up their energy reserves ready for hibernation and next year’s breeding! But this year, there was a very rainy period, then cold and windy, followed by hot and dry weather and it has made some of them change behaviour. Here in deepest Shropshire, at least, I’ve literally never seen so many frogs of all ages and sizes in and around my small ponds at this time of year. The reason seems to be that their normal, terrestrial foraging behaviour would at the moment mean they risk drying out – so it’s much more sensible for them to stay in and around the pond where they can take a cool swim whenever they need to rehydrate… and this is probably exacerbated by the reaction of many insects to the recent weather patterns: there has been a lack of caterpillars and other insects whose lifecycles have been delayed. So, the frogs gain an extra benefit from hanging around ponds for longer – a buffet of hoverflies and other tasty bugs dropping in to feed from the flowers of the aquatic plants that are just coming into bloom!
Monitoring dragons: from St. David’s to Monmouth! By Dr John Wilkinson - Regional, Training & Science Programmes Manager Amphibian and Reptile Conservation’s new Monitoring Dragons project, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, aims to establish a network of long term monitoring sites across southern Wales. A key element of this project is the training and mentoring of new and existing citizen scientists in herpetofauna survey techniques, and facilitating the use of their newfound skills, including how to use innovative new recording technologies (mobile data collection). Volunteers will be trained in specific survey techniques for the species of interest to them, be it visual searches for reptiles, or searching for great crested newts under torchlight. Evidence suggests that herpetofauna populations are declining worldwide, with habitat loss and fragmentation being key drivers. Amphibians and reptiles in Wales face the same threats, but these can be very difficult to assess due to a lack of longterm monitoring data – which the new project aims to address. The project will include all species of herpetofauna found in southern Wales, but will focus on three priority species, the adder, common toad and great crested newt. We have identified a wide range of target survey sites in all local authority areas in south Wales, from national parks to post-industrial brownfield sites.
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"Volunteers will be matched to Welsh monitoring sites in our pilot network and supported with the tools and skills required by our field officers, beyond the initial survey, so it’s a great way for people to find out about their local area and develop their ecological skills.” Said ARC project officer George Mee:
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Photo: Frogs on John’s pond bank amongst the grass and water forget-me-not © JWW.
“Monitoring sites established during this project will be used for years to come, providing invaluable data to researchers, NGOs and Statutory Nature Conservation organisations, building a brighter future for amphibians and reptiles in Wales.”
Have you noticed a change in behaviour in and around your garden pond? We would be very interested to hear about it through our Garden Dragon Watch survey www.arc-trust.org/gardendragon-watch. Your contribution will help us to map garden reptiles and amphibians and we will report back on what people are finding.
The common toad is one of the projects’ three priority species © Fred Holmes.
