Wildlife watch: Common frog

The common frog (Rana temporaria) is a common garden species, especially for those with or near a pond. It has long stripey legs, large eyes and wet, smooth skin. It breeds in ‘spring’, which can be as early as December in Cornwall but as late as April in Scotland. However most spawn is laid in February and March.

Female frogs develop spawn in summer when food is abundant, and then overwinter with it. They emerge from winter torpor and head straight to their breeding ponds – if you have a pond you may see them arrive on rainy days, either on their own or ‘carrying’ a male. Males clasp on to females in the mating position known as ‘amplexus’ – those that find a mate on the way to the pond may get a head start on proceedings.

Spawn is laid in clumps in the warm shallows of the pond, often in a spot that gets the morning sun, which warms more quickly than other parts of the pond, and where any ice will be first to melt. Tadpoles hatch within a few days and usually take around 14 weeks to become froglets. However the rate of tadpole development depends on several factors, including temperature, availability of food and ‘overcrowding’, so it’s not unusual for there to still be tadpoles in your pond in autumn. Some may even overwinter in the pond as tadpoles, if they survive the low temperatures they will be first to become frogs the following spring.

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It’s thought the common frog is declining, thanks to changing weather patterns associated with climate change. Warmer winters, colder springs and drier summers appear to be impacting frogs’ behaviour patterns, with some not turning up for spring breeding and others spawning at