Insects, Newt, Dragonflies and Birds…

Our new(ish) wild pond was dug out and lined last November and allowed to fill slowly over the winter with rainwater, diverted from the downpipe from the gutter. It took a long time to fill as the diverter pipe fitted was rather narrow in bore, but there was a further issue which took months to figure out. As the weather warmed up, the level of the water in the pond dropped quite rapidly; we wondered if there could be a leak. The marginal plants we had put in were suddenly high and dry. After much scratching of heads and consultation with the bloke who helped us with the design and installation, we discovered he had put in underlay both below and above the pond liner. This was both to protect the liner from any pebbles underneath it and from a layer of earth and gravel which we laid on top of it, to bed in the aquatic plants. The upper layer was wider than the liner and therefore was acting as a sponge which sucked water out of the pond and allowed it to leak out into the surrounding earth. Eventually the solution was to cut back the upper layer of underlay to prevent this from happening. The process has taken almost seven months and now it is almost complete but it was a bit of a headache. However in the intervening period, the marginal plants have started to settle in and creatures have rapidly availed themselves of the opportunity to hydrate themselves, bathe and breed. First to arrive were little microorganisms, presumably daphnia or something similar, followed by little black diving beetles and water boatmen. Birds came to drink - I saw a robin skating on a thin layer of ice in February to get to a patch of meltwater in the middle of the pond. Blackbirds waded in at the edges and ducked under to shower their feathers: goldfinches and blue tits, pheasants, pigeons, magpies and crows all came to drink and sometimes to bathe. One morning I saw a roe deer which had come for a drink in warm weather. About two months ago I saw the first dragonflies, diminutive electric blue and red in colour, skitting around the pond. A plethora of flies and tiny flying insects arrived in early summer and bats were to be seen early evening, swooping low to catch them. A few weeks ago I saw a large handsome golden coloured dragonfly, a female broad bodied chaser hurtling around above the water and settling on the marginal plants; the following day, she was joined by a powder blue male. Soon after this, she started dipping her abdomen into the water as she flew past, which I discovered was her egg laying behaviour. Broad Bodied Chasers are among the first dragonflies to populate a new pond and I feel very honoured that they have moved in. I have also seen a newt ducking and diving in the water, and this morning, for the first time, a frog enjoying a swim. I am hoping the marginal plants will continue to grow rapidly in this warm weather, to provide better cover. We see herons from time to time in the vicinity and it is only a matter of time before they find the pond, if they haven’t already.