Thank you to everyone who took part in this year’s Big Spawn Count. With such enthusiasm from our brigade of budding ecologists, we managed to break the four figure mark, with over 1000 people taking part, which is spawn-tastic! 
Here is a summary of what you we (and you!) found.
Most people - about three quarters - had medium-sized ponds, up to 5m x 5m. Most of the rest of the ponds were small: 1m x 1m or less. A very few people – just three in every hundred – had ponds larger than this i.e. more than 5m x 5m.
Overall, the average number of spawn clumps in garden ponds was a fraction over twelve. Reflecting this, most people recorded somewhere between 1 and 10 clumps of spawn – the result of 10 female frogs visiting to breed. It was quite common for people to report over 20 clumps, and nearly a fifth of people had this much spawn.
Breaking that figures down by the size of the pond, we weren’t surprised to find that bigger ponds had more spawn, with an average of 28 clumps. The smallest garden ponds had an average of just over 6 clumps, with medium-sized ponds averaging 13 clumps.
Ray Cranfield reported the largest amount, with an incredible 400 clumps from an urban greenspace in Colchester, Essex. This was one of only two ponds reported to have 200+ clumps, with Jean Johnston’s large garden pond coming in second with an equally impressive 200 (or so) clumps.
But the research doesn’t stop here. It’s also been interesting to read about the types of wildlife living in your ponds, and we’d now like to find out more.
On 14 May we will launch the Big Pond Dip 2012 to find out exactly what is lurking in those watery depths. The information you gather will help us learn more about how good garden ponds are for wildlife, and what types of pond support the most animal life. So, the more people dipping, the better the information; helping us to make garden ponds even better for wildlife, and improving the advice and support given in the future.
We hope you’re able to support us again by getting involved. Get clicking to start dipping.
This is a joint survey supported by:
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Pond Conservation is the national charity dedicated to protecting the wildlife of our freshwaters: ponds, rivers, streams and lakes.
We give advice, carry out research, promote practical action and lobby policy makers to ensure that freshwater wildlife and habitats have a secure future.
If you would like to support our work and help to protect our vulnerable fresh water wildlife then join us now!
