Pond Life

Flatworm (Freshwater free-living)

admin — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 15:44:39 +0000

Freshwater free-living Flatworms are small animals with soft jelly-like bodies that are flattened and have no back bones or spinal columns. They are often referred to as ‘Planarians’. They can be found under rocks, logs and under piles of leaves in ditches, ponds, streams and lakes throughout England.

The length of these flatworms can vary from three to twenty-five millimetres and they can be transparent, white, grey, green, brown or black. They have two eye spots which can detect light and their mouths are on the underside of their bodies. Freshwater free-living Flatworms move by contracting their bodies and by beating tiny hairs that are located on their undersides.

A Freshwater free-living Flatworm can split its body into two halves if a part of its body gets injured and then it can grow each part again. This flatworm is also a ‘hermaphrodite’ which means it is both male and female. It grows eggs inside its body and then releases them in capsule forms onto plants and stones. After a couple of weeks the larvae hatch out of the eggs directly into the water where they develop into adult flatworms.

Frog (Common)

admin — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 15:45:09 +0000

The Common Frog is also known as the European Common Frog or the European Common Brown Frog. It is a popular amphibian found throughout England in ponds and lakes which are surrounded by dense vegetation. This frog is also found in garden ponds.

The Common Frog is yellow-brown with lots of dark spots and patches all over its body. Its eyes stick out high up on its face and they are an orange-yellow colour with large black pupils. It has two short front legs and two longer strong-looking hind legs. The front legs support the frog when it is in a sitting position and the hind legs help the frog to leap forward. The Common Frog also has five webbed toes on its back feet which the frog uses when it wants to swim quickly in the water.

Common Frogs first start their lives as little black tadpoles which look like tiny fish with long tails and gills. The tadpoles breathe through their gills. As the tadpoles develop, they grow legs and eventually lose their tails. When this happens, they are no longer tadpoles, but tiny frogs. These tiny frogs are called ‘froglets’ and they are able to leave the water to go onto land where they hide in long grass or dense vegetation.

Frog (Pool)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:11:19 +0000

The Pool Frog is a small amphibian that is very rarely seen in the wild and it was not alltogether clear whether this frog was native to England at all. However, research has shown that it was most likely native to East Anglia where it was formally recorded in the middle of the nineteenth century. Pool Frogs can be fond in garden ponds nowadays, but they have usually been introduced to England from other countries.

The Pool Frog usually has a greenish brown back with darker round patches of different sizes and it has a distinct yellow line running down the length of its back. The legs are also a greenish brown colour with vertical darker markings. The sides are a yellowy green colour with darker spots. Its eyes stick out high up on its face and they are an orange-yellow colour with large black pupils.

Pool Frogs like to live in ponds that are open to the sun so that the water is warmer. They first start their lives as little black tadpoles which look like tiny fish with long tails and gills. As the tadpoles develop, they grow legs and eventually lose their tails. When this happens, they are no longer tadpoles, but tiny frogs. These tiny frogs are called ‘froglets’ and they are able to leave the water to go onto land where they hide in long grass or dense vegetation.

Leech (Medicinal)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:11:58 +0000

The Medicinal Leech is a blood-sucking worm with a flattened segmented body. It can be found scattered around England in muddy ponds and pools which have lots of waterweeds. It has its name the ‘Medicinal Leech' because for centuries it has been used for medicinal purposes, like for removing ‘bad blood’ or to ‘treat headaches’. Nowadays, it is mainly used to restore blood circulation after a patient has had a tissue graft or reconstructive surgery.

The Medicinal Leech is usually about eight centimetres long and has a dark brown or black body with orange-red lines running down it. Its body is divided into approximately thirty-four segments and it has five pairs of eyes situated on the first five segments. The Medicinal Leech has a ‘sucker’ at the end of its tail and one on its head. It uses the suckers to attach itself to an animal so it can suck some blood out of it. The sucker on the head surrounds the Medicinal Leech’s mouth which has three sets of jaws. The leech uses these jaws to bite into an animal and then releases saliva which can deaden the pain of the bite. When the Medicinal Leech has taken enough blood, it drops off into the water and it may not need to suck blood again for another six months.

Newt (Common)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:12:34 +0000

The Common Newt is also known as the Smooth Newt and it can be found throughout England. It prefers to live in garden ponds where there are no fish, but it also lives in water ditches and on the edges of lakes where there are lots of water weeds. It spends more time on land than in water so it needs to live in an environment that is surrounded by dense vegetation.

The Common Newt has a base colour of orange-brown and it is covered with darker brown spots of different sizes. The female is also an orange-brown colour, but the spots on her body are almost black and a lot smaller. Both the male and the female have orange undersides. The male Common Newt has a long wavy crest running along the length of its body around April to May.

Common Newts lay around two hundred eggs and they wrap each egg individually in a water plant leaf. After about three weeks ‘larvae’ or ‘newt tadpoles’ hatch out of the eggs. They have long tails and feathery gills and they look like little fish even though they have tiny legs and digits. Within three to four months the young develop into miniature adults called ‘efts’ and this is when they leave the water to spend more time on land where they feed on insects, worms and slugs.

Newt (Great Crested)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:13:06 +0000

The Great Crested Newt is also known as the Warty Newt because its body is covered with lots of wart-like bumps. It can be found in most places in England apart from Cornwall and Devon. It likes to live in ponds or small lakes which have lots of water weeds and no fish, but sometimes it can be found in large garden ponds.

The Great Crested Newt has a base colour of brown-black and is covered with black markings which give it the appearance of being black all over. It has an orange-yellow coloured belly with large black spots. The Great Crested Newt has four toes on its front feet and five toes on its hind feet. Around April to May the male has a large jagged-looking crest running along the length of its body and this is why it has its name the ‘Great Crested Newt’.

The female Great Crested Newt lays around two hundred eggs and wraps each egg individually in a water plant leaf. After about two to three weeks ‘larvae’ or ‘newt tadpoles’ hatch out of the eggs. They have long tails and feathery gills. Newt tadpoles almost look like little fish even though they have tiny legs and digits. Within three to four months the young develop into miniature adults called ‘efts’ and this is when they leave the water to spend more time on land where they feed on insects and worms.

Newt (Palmate)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:13:46 +0000

The Palmate Newt is the smallest amphibian in England and can mainly be found in the south and west of the country on heathlands. It can also be seen on moorlands in the north. It lives on heathlands and moorlands because these areas usually have shallow soft-water pools on acid soil which this newt prefers. Around February to May it can also be found in weedy ponds and pools that hold no fish.

The Palmate Newt has a base colour of olive-brown and is covered with lots of small compact darker markings. It has an orange stripe running down each side of its body which runs right down to its tail. It also has a yellow belly with small black spots and a pinkish coloured throat. During the months of April to May the male Palmate Newt has a very low smooth-looking crest running along the length of its body.

Palmate Newts lay around two hundred eggs individually on the leaves of water plants. After about two to three weeks ‘larvae’ or ‘newt tadpoles’ hatch out of the eggs. They have long tails and feathery gills. The newt tadpoles look like little fish even though they have tiny legs and digits. Within three to four months the young develop into miniature adults called ‘efts’ and this is when they leave the water to spend more time on land where they feed on insects and worms.

Shrimp (Fairy)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:39:27 +0000

The Fairy Shrimp is a freshwater crustacean that swims on its back and it can often be found in vernal pools. Vernal pools are temporary pools that are formed by rainwater and don't usually hold fish. These pools are often seen in autumn, winter and spring, but not in summer because they dry up.

The Fairy Shrimp is about two centimetres long and can be white, grey, orange-red, blue or green. It is translucent which means that light can pass through its body. It has a head that curves downwards and a tail that curves upwards. It also has a long body. It has eleven pairs of legs which are used for swimming. The Fairy Shrimp also has two black eyes on stalks and two pairs of antennae. It doesn’t have a shell that covers its body like other shrimps have.

The female Fairy Shrimp produces ‘summer eggs’ and ‘winter eggs’. The summer eggs are carried for a short while in a brood sac on the underside of her abdomen and the young develop inside the brood sac. The winter eggs are also carried in the brood sac, but they are released after a short while to sink to the bottom of the vernal pool. The winter eggs dry out with the vernal pool in the summer and the young hatch out about thirty days after the pool has filled with rainwater again.

Snail (Great Pond)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:14:34 +0000

The Great Pond Snail is the largest water snail in England and can be found throughout the country in ponds, lakes and canals with slow-flowing waters. This snail deliberately eats grains of sand which stay in its ‘gizzard’. The gizzard is the part of a stomach that grinds up food. The sand in the gizzard helps the Great Pond Snail to eat and digest tougher plant material.

The Great Pond Snail has a large cone-shaped shell on its back which can be brown, yellow-brown or grey in colour with lighter and darker line markings. The shell can be as long as seven centimetres. The soft body under the shell is a yellow-grey or a brown-orange colour. Its head is large with two tentacle-looking organs. It also has a large slimy muscular foot that helps the snail to move along surfaces. It often leaves a trail of slime wherever it goes.

The Great Pond Snail can often be seen floating upside down on the surface of the water taking in air because the opening for its lungs is on the underside. It usually eats algae and plant matter by using a tongue-like organ that has horny teeth on the surface. It also eats decaying organic matter and even small Great Pond Snails.

Toad (Common)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:15:11 +0000

The Common Toad is the most widespread and the most popular amphibian in England. It can be found in woodlands, rough grasslands, moors, scrubs and gardens. Even though it spends most of its life on land, it usually lives in places which are not more than two kilometres away from ponds. Masses of Common Toads head towards ponds around February to March when they look for partners.

The Common Toad is normally an olive-brown or a green-brown colour, but it can be other colours because this toad can change its body colour depending where it lives. Its body is covered in tiny wart-like bumps which contain a poisonous substance to help keep many predators away. The underside of its body is normally white or grey. Its eyes stick out high up on its face and they are an orange-red colour with large black pupils.

Common Toads first start their lives as little black tadpoles which look like tiny fish with long tails and gills. They usually swarm together in large numbers near to the surface of the water. As the tadpoles develop, they grow legs and eventually lose their tails. When this happens, they are no longer tadpoles, but tiny toads. These tiny toads are called ‘toadlets’ and they are able to leave the water to go onto land where they hide under logs or in burrows during the day.

Toad (Natterjack)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:15:51 +0000

The Natterjack Toad is also known as the ‘runner toad’ because it tends to run more than it hops. It is a very rare and protected species that can be found on lowland heathlands in East Anglia, Dorset, Hampshire, Surrey and Staffordshire, as well as on coastal dunes in the north-east. These areas have loose sandy soil which the Natterjack Toad prefers as it often burrows under the sand to hide during the day.

The Natterjack Toad is normally a yellow-brown or a green-brown colour, but it can be other colours because this toad can change its body colour depending where it lives. Its body is covered in lots of tiny wart-like bumps. The bumps contain a poisonous substance which helps to keep many predators away. The Natterjack Toad also has a yellow stripe down its back. The underside is normally creamy white and its eyes are a yellowy green colour.

Natterjack Toads first start their lives as little black tadpoles which look like tiny fish with long tails and gills. As the tadpoles develop they grow legs and eventually lose their tails. When this happens, they are no longer tadpoles, but tiny toads. These tiny toads are called ‘toadlets’ and they are able to leave the water to go onto land where they hide under the sand.

Water Boatman (Common)

admin — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:16:26 +0000

The Common Water Boatman is a small water bug that has piercing and sucking mouth parts, like all bugs. It can be found throughout the country in ponds, canals, rivers and lakes which have lots of water plants. It has its name ‘Boatman’ because its long hind legs are shaped like oars and when it swims on its back near to the surface of the water, it just looks like a very small rowing boat.

The Common Water Boatman is about two centimetres long and can be light brown or green. When it swims up-side down, it carries lots of air bubbles on its underside which gives it the impression that it is a silvery white colour. It has two short front legs and two long, paddle-shaped hind legs that are fringed with tiny hairs. The front legs are used for grabbing prey and the hind legs are used for swimming. The Common Water Boatman has a triangular-shaped head and mouth. It also has two large red eyes.

The Common Water Boatman often flies to different water places by using its four transparent wings which are often hidden in a wing case, especially when it is swimming in the water. The Common Water Boatman eats small tadpoles, small fish, water fleas and mites. It sucks the body fluids out of its prey wuth its piercing and sucking mouth parts.

Water Scorpion

admin — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 15:46:22 +0000

Water Scorpions are insects known as bugs because they have piercing and sucking mouth parts. They can be found throughout the country in ponds, lakes, shallow slow-flowing water and even in stagnant water. They are also known as ‘toe biters’ because they sometimes bite your toes. The bite is not really harmful, but it can be painful.

The Water Scorpion is often mistaken for a small dead leaf because it is flat and a blackish brown colour. It also keeps very still in water, just like a leaf. It has a long tail which the Water Scorpion sticks out of the water when it wants to breathe. It breathes through its tail. It has two large black eyes and three pairs of legs. Even though Water Scorpions live in water, they don’t really like swimming. They just like clinging onto water plants for most of the time.

Water Scorpions have tiny antennae on their heads which they use to feel their way around dark muddy waters. They also have two pairs of wings, but they very rarely fly because their wing muscles are often under developed. They eat tadpoles, water worms, water fleas, lice and also insect larvae. They suck the body fluids out of their prey with their piercing and sucking mouth parts.