Lucky you! It is fun to watch, and really, just let them get on with it. This year I noticed that the ones that sunk actually did hatch too, I think because overall the pond was warmer this year. Whatever happens, they will gradually eat the stuff. They do eat constantly! Go out at night with a torch, and you will see some of what really lives in your pond. When they get their legs, they will need to safely be able to get out of the pond and live on land for awhile (or they drown). So make sure they can get out of the pond, and not onto paving slabs (poor things are so delicate they stick to the slabs and fry). The froglets are quite amazing (tiny perfect frogs) and will need to find shelter under plants, rocks, etc. For awhile you will be spending your time in the garden looking down before each step!! Only 4 in 1000 will make their way to adulthood to spawn themselves. So you can never have too much frogspawn, and anything you can do will help! They start off as algae eaters, but later become carnvivourous and will eat one another. Mostly everyone else eats them including newts & frogs, dragonfly nymphs, but they do survive. Bigger fish though much their way through a lot of tadpoles. There are some really good information websites on frogs and other pond life--just google and you will find! The bugs are incredible too, like the caddis fly larvae and their amazing houses, and damselflies and dragonflies. The latter leave their papery perfect exoskeletons behind on leaves before they fly off. So welcome to the wonderful world of ponding. You may find yourself making a second, bigger pond.... Chip

Lucky you!!! I went home to Liverpool for a week and when I got back there were four massive dollops of frogspawn in the pond. I rescued some and put it in a plastic pedalbin liner which has oxygenators in. Hopefully some will be safe from hungry jaws in the pond. I was watching out of the kitchen window a couple of days ago and I saw the plastic football on the pond (to keep ice from forming all over) bobbing about madly. Thought my frogs had taken up footie, but when I checked, two of them were playing happy families right beside it. They were obviously quite shy and wanted some privacy, so I tiptoed away and left them to it.... Big Kid

Hello I am new to keeping stickies and just found this site after a search. I got seven tiny stickies last year for my 3yr old concrete pond that has naturalised nicely. Then I got worried after that bad winter we had as my pond is only about 10' diameter and about a foot deep. It froze pretty much solid but there are biggish rocks that must have prevented all the water from freezing as I kept the waterfall running all the time. Fantastic icicles! I have since seen two survivors one about two inches the other about one and a half. Can anyone tell me what my chances of getting a new batch are or should I source some more?

I have a relative who is LGBT. I am not yet sure what she actually identifies as. It's not important to me. When I first met her she had not yet changed her name to a "male" name but closer blood family relatives were starting to call her by her future name. So I simply asked her what her preference was. She told me and I immediately began to call her by the new name that she has since legalized. You will notice I continue to say she. Well that's because she is a she. She is a loving daughter, a sister, an aunt, a grand daughter and a niece. She may dress in male clothes,occasionally binding her breasts, but as long as she has girl parts she is a she. So far she has not stated any desire for any surgery or hormonal treatments. She is in a healthy, monogamous relationship with another woman. I am happy for her. That is all that matters. Should she decide in the future to actually change her gender physically ( a sex change) she will still be that DD,DGD, DN, DS and DSIL. But the pronoun will become he/him. I raised my own children to be gender neutral. DS had dolls and DD had trucks and building toys. I had the same outcome as another poster. A very masculine DS and a DD who grew into a strong, self assured woman. Grands are the same. Little GD is a fashion diva who loves vehicles and rough- housing. Little GS loves on dolls and soft toys but there is no doubt he is all boy when it comes to fantasy play. Bang-bang you're dead gramma. LOL