A Wirral Discovery Pack Exploring Pond Life and Adaptations
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Ponds A Wirral Discovery Pack exploring pond life and adaptations. Wirral Ranger Service contacts. Wirral Country Park - Tel: 0151 648 4371/3884 Email - [email protected] Ranger Service website: www.wirral.gov.uk/er Parks and Open WIRRAL Spaces Section Contents 1. Front Page 2. Contents 3. How to pond dip 4. Do’s and don’ts 5. Freshwater identification sheet 6. Amphibians - identification and habitats, frogs and toads 7. Amphibians - identification and habitats, newts 8. Amphibians - life cycles 9. Amphibians - amazing facts 10. Invertebrates - life cycles 11. Adaptations - breathing, invertebrates 12. Adaptations - movement 13. Adaptations - feeding, fish and amphibians 14. Adaptations - feeding, invertebrates 15. Threats 16. Physical conditions 17. Foodchains 18. Foodweb 19. Plants 20. Sustainability How to use this pack: This pack is designed to be used as a resource by students, teachers and all those interested in ponds. Please feel free to print and photocopy any part you need. Wirral Parks and Open Spaces Section Ponds - How to pond dip Equipment you will need Pond net with a fine White plastic tray mesh filled with pond water Microspector - a clear plastic Pond identification key container with a magnifyer on top Pond dipping method 1.Holding the net vertically sweep it through the water in a figure of eight shape. Try not to disturb the mud at the bottom of the pond 2. Sweep the net through the vegetation to dislodge any animals which might be hiding there. 3. Bring the net out of the water and put the contents into the plastic tray filled with pond water. Turn the net inside out in the water and poke out the corners to ensure all creatures caught fall into the tray. Sort through any pond weed which might have collected to carefully remove any creatures into the tray but put most of the weed back in the net and return it to the pond straight away. 5. Using the identification key find out what has been caught. Try to find out more information about the pond life in the pond from pond information packs, books and leaflets. 4. Do not leave pond weed on the ground. A small amount of pond weed may be left in the tray to provide some cover for the creatures to hide among. Adults and older careful children may use a spoon to gently catch a creature and put it into a microspector for clear inspection. Small children should not be allowed to do this as damage can be caused to the creatures through lack of care. Wirral Parks and Open Spaces Section Ponds - Do’s and don’ts Do wear waterproof plasters to cover any Do dip from the safety of a cuts. Wash your hands bank or dipping platform. carefully after pond dipping. Don’t hurt any living creatures. Don’t wade into a pond it may be very deep, or have sharp objects in it. Don’t lean out over the pond when dipping or you could fall in. Don’t leave the tray of pond creatures in the sun for too long they will overheat. Don’t run along the Do make sure all the edge of the pond. You creatures are returned could fall in. safely to the pond after you have finished. Do be careful not to prod others with your nets. Wirral Parks and Open Spaces Section Ponds - freshwater ID sheet Worms -simple soft bodied Molluscs - animals with soft muscular Crustaceans - animals with more than animals with no limbs. bodies and a hard shell. eight legs, segmented bodies and a hard Great pond exoskeleton. snail Flatworm Cyclops (microscopic) Leech Water flea Pea cockle (microscopic) Ramshorn snail Water shrimp Wandering snail Insects - animals with six legs and three body sections. Fish louse Waterlouse Bloodworm Dragonfly nymph Phantom midge larva (darter) Mosquito larva Great diving beetle larva Gnat pupae Alderfly nymph Damselfly Dragonfly nymph Mayfly nymph nymph (hawker) Caddisfly larva Great diving beetle Water scorpion Greater water boatman Lesser water boatman or backswimmer. Pond skater Arachnids - have eight legs Amphibians -animals which live mostly on land but return to water to Water mite breed. (red) Tadpole (Frog tadpoles are brown and speckled, toad Pisces - fish tadpoles are black and shiny.) Smooth newt Three spined stickleback Froglet Newt tadpole (eft) Wirral Parks and Open Spaces Section Ponds - Amphibians Identification and habitats - frogs and toads Common frogs Identification - they have a smooth moist skin which is variable in colour. They are often brown or grey with darker blobs, but are sometimes more colourful in shades of yellow or orange. All frogs have a distinct brown patch behind each eye which actually surrounds the ear drum and is not present in toads. Frog noses are more pointed than that of toads and the hump on the back is more pronounced. When disturbed frogs will leap away to safety and sometimes if they are alarmed they utter a weird shriek. Habitats In summer they are often found in long grass. Habitats include, open pasture, woodland edge and gardens. Frogs like pools with shallow edges to lay their spawn in preferably without fish since these will eat most of their tadpoles. Frogs choose their breeding ponds on the basis of which type of algae is growing in them as this is their tadpoles main food source. Status Common frogs are found throughout Britain and Northern Europe. The only protection given to common frogs is that it is illegal to sell them. Common toads Identification - they are plump warty creatures with uniform brown grey background colours. They tend to waddle or crawl along although they can make a few feeble hops. They have short back legs when compared with a frog. Habitats Toads are usually found under things such as logs and stones. They are more fussy than the frog in their choice of breeding pools. Toads prefer deeper pools Status and do not mind the presence of fish as their tadpoles are equipped early in life Widespread distribution in with a range of unpleasant tasting poisons that quickly persuade fish to leave Britain, Europe and across them alone. Asia. The only protection Natterjack toads afforded common toads is that Identification - they are small warty toads it is illegal to sell them. with pale skin and a distinctive yellow stripe which runs the length of the body from snout to vent. The function of this stripe is not precisely known but it could be for Habitats camouflage. They have short back legs and They live in sandy places under rubbish or in little burrows. get around by running. Males have loud Natterjacks only come to water to breed and they like very voices which can be heard up to a mile away. shallow sandy bottomed pools with hardly any vegetation. Status These pools heat up quickly which speeds up metamorphosis, Natterjack toads are rare and specially but it also means that they dry up easily which can lead to protected. They only occur in sand dunes in mass tadpole death. North West England and south west Scotland, with smaller colonies in East Anglia and southern England. Wirral Parks and Open Spaces Section Ponds - Amphibians Identification and habitats - newts Habitats Newts tend to prefer deep ponds with more vegetation in them as they lay their eggs on the underside of leaves. They do not like ponds which have fish as their tadpoles are easy prey. Newts only require the pond for breeding purposes, preferring to spend most of their time hiding in long grass or hiding beneath stones and logs. On damp nights they come out to hunt worms, slugs and other minibeasts. During the winter, newts can be found under stones and logs and in other damp sheltered places. They are not fully hibernating for if a period of warmer weather occurs they can venture out and find food. Newts are sometimes mistaken for lizards because they are found primarily on dry land. Status Smooth newts have no special protection afforded to them, although it is illegal to sell live or dead specimens. Great crested newts have full protection from the Wildlife and Countryside Act whereby their habitat may not be disturbed or damaged. They may not be intentionally killed, injured or taken from their habitats. It is also illegal to sell or to be in possession of any live or dead specimens Identification Smooth Newts are about 75mm long. They have yellow/orange bellies with a number of dark spots. In the breeding season, males have a continuous high wavy crest on their back and tail. Their fingers and toes are not webbed. Female smooth newts are very different in appearance to the males and they never have a crest and are usually duller in colour. These newts are entirely carnivorous and eat anything from water shrimps to frog tadpoles. Identification Great Crested Newts are much bigger than the other species of newts at 150mm in length and are more heavily built. They have warty skins which produce poisons just like in toads. The adult is dark in colour and from above looks almost black when in the water. Underneath both sexes are beautifully marked with yellow- orange and black blotches. Males have high jagged crests on their back. This crest is not continuous as it dips towards the end of the body by the start of the tail. There is a silver stripe along their tail and tiny white spots can be seen on their backs. Wirral Parks and Open Spaces Section Ponds -Amphibians Life cycles Frogs and toads 1. Spawning takes place between 2. Tadpoles are formed inside March and April.