A Year-old Frog in the Trug Pond

Although this is not technically a good photo I was very excited to have captured it. It was taken in the dark, deep under an ivy and the frog is only about 2cm long.

We have a large pond with a small population of common frogs (Rana temporaria) but unfortunately the large goldfish and man-eating water snails that also inhabit the depths meant that producing frog spawn was always a vain exercise. So we built a smaller pond (basically a trug sunk into the ground) where the tadpoles could develop in peace and safety. We also have a problem with a visiting cat and a family of magpies, so a metal grill was added to give a little more protection.

This little character is one of last year's spawn. I'd seen him fleetingly hunting under the ivy a couple of times this summer, but this is the first time I've managed to photograph him this year. I had been sitting out on the patio reading to the light of a couple of candles and enjoying the chorus of croaks from the main pond. On my way back in doors to grab a coffee I pointed the torch under the ivy and saw the little frog patiently waiting for something edible to fly by.