Catching and rearing tadpoles is a fun and educational way to get kids interested in our wildlife. The collection of tadpoles or frogspawn from the wild is not illegal in the UK. But, as with any animal, children should be supervised to ensure the tadpoles are well looked after and returned to the wild once they have grown into frogs. Rearing tadpoles can be a great schoolroom project or a fun activity for kids at home.
When taking frogspawn from ponds, only take a small amount from any one pond to ensure its natural population will continue. Frogspawn can be found in just about any clean pond from February to March. Tadpoles will hatch in around 3 weeks. Ensure a large enough container is provided so that the emerging tadpoles have plenty of room to swim - old goldfish tanks are ideal. Be sure to use fresh clean water in the tadpole container. This water should come from a unpolluted pond or stream. Make sure that you do not use water straight from a mains tap as it contains chemicals that will kill the tadpoles - if you have to use mains water, allow it to stand in sunlight for a few days first to allow the chemicals to disperse. Also, keep fresh clean water ready to top up the tadpole container as needed. Make a point not to let the tadpoles' water become polluted by unwanted food and stale water. Keep their container topped up with the fresh clean water and remove any food that has not been eaten.
Provide pond weed to oxygenate the water and provide food for young tadpoles. You should also feed them small amounts of goldfish flakes. As the tadpoles begin to reabsorb their gills and grow legs they switch to a more carnivorous diet - small amounts of tinned cat food can supplement their diet. They will also need to be provided with logs or stones on which to climb out of the water on. Froglets are great escape-artists - be sure to have a well fitted ventilated lid on your container! As soon as the have completely absorbed their tails and have fully developed legs the frogs should be returned to the pond where the frogspawn came from. Keeping grown frogs as part of a school project is not recommended - adult frogs need to hunt moving insects, worms etc, making it difficult to captive-rear them and provide suitable food.
The Field Studies Council have produced an excellent fold-out chart guide to rearing tadpoles. It provides colourful illustrations and descriptions of all life stages and provides information on natural predators of tadpoles. Alana Ecology also stocks a variety of magnifying containers that let kids get a really good look at tadpoles as they develop - allowing them to see the delicate gills, developing limbs etc. Fascinating for big kids too!
