PART I: THE POND

One of the many marvels of spring is the variety of frog calls coming from ponds and pools. They announce the end of winter and the beginning of spring. Many of us are lucky to remember carefree childhood days with summer visits to a pond where we tried to catch those wily frogs. Such memories are valuable, but who can put a price on them?

Most people agree that ponds on farms or country property add real, as well as esthetic value to the land. There are currently over 320,000 ponds of various sizes scattered about Missouri. These impoundments are vital to many amphibians and reptiles, as well as to a wide variety of other animals--from tiny aquatic insects to fish, shorebirds, doves, turkeys and deer.

These management tips are designed primarily for those small, shallow impoundments that are not suitable for fish production. Even though shallow ponds do not support fish, they do serve as valuable water holes for many forms of wildlife and as homes for a wide variety of toads, frogs, salamanders, turtles and beneficial snakes. Ponds that dry up in late summer are used by many amphibians during spring and early summer. A pond with a wide variety of plants and animals living in and around it usually is interesting to many people and is especially well-suited for nature study. It is important to retain the complex nature of such a pond because this habitat supports a greater number of animals.

Pond Management for Amphibians and Reptiles

image of pondA pond is basically easy to manage. Usually all that is necessary once the plants and animals have been established is to leave it alone and let nature take its course. There are, though, some things you can do to help improve and protect your pond to make it more attractive to many forms of wildlife.

Fencing around the pond and a portion of its watershed to eliminate livestock is a basic form of pond management. (A stock tank below the dam and outside the fence will satisfy the water needs of domestic livestock.) The quality of water entering the impoundment will improve. Protecting the watershed also helps to prevent soil in the immediate area from washing into the pond during a spring thaw or heavy rain. Soil conservation is important for preventing water turbidity caused by suspended clay or other soil particles. Furthermore, most aquatic plants and animals have a difficult time surviving in turbid water. If the area around the pond is protected from grazing and plowing, not only will the quality of water entering the pond improve, but also wildlife habitat will increase.

image of pickerel frogA new pond or one that has been open to livestock may not have many aquatic and marsh-type plants growing in and around it. Some landowners may want to introduce plants to the pond site, although this may not be necessary since many come up on their own. Adding certain plants not only will enhance the complex nature of a pond but will also provide food and/or shelter for tadpoles, salamanders and aquatic turtles.

Some beneficial plants you may wish to transplant are: arrowhead, pickerel weed, spikerush, wild celery, frogbit, pond lily, water starwort and lizard tail. Keep in mind that several varieties of aquatic plants may quickly "take over" a pond--especially a shallow one. This can be of little concern in a pond being managed for amphibians and reptiles.

If you want turtles in your pond, you could furnish several logs for basking. Most of our smaller species of turtles have a biological need for sunning out of the water. Logs--especially red cedar--can be anchored in open water away from the bank to serve as secure basking sites. Providing a number of logs and rocks around a portion of the pond bank will furnish basking and/or hiding places for salamanders, frogs and snakes. If you place several small brush piles at the water's edge and on the bank, bullfrogs and other frogs, as well as harmless water snakes, will use them.

A note about the value of water snakes and turtles in a fish pond: Many people are under the impression that turtles and snakes eat large numbers of fish, destroying the fishing in a pond or river. Biologists have proven that these animals enhance fishing because they eat dead or diseased fish; this provides better conditions, which allows the remaining fish to prosper. Turtles eat a wide variety of aquatic plants, as well as dead animals and some fish. Although people may dislike seeing turtles in a pond, we should remember that even snapping turtles are a valuable resource--as human food--and should not be considered a pest.

It is surprising how many Missouri amphibians and reptiles will benefit from one or more ponds constructed on your property.

Pond Species

image of pondToads and Frogs

image of western painted turtleTurtles

Salamanders

image of Central NewtSnakes