Tadpoles for tranquility

There's something so calming about watching pond inhabitants for me. After building the pond last fall I couldn't wait for spring so I could add some goldfish. I haven't done that yet, as I've currently got plenty of underwater activity to watch due to the tadpoles.

I'm not certain if I've got any frog tadpoles in here (which fish will apparently eat) so I'm holding off on the fish for a while -- but I can still stand here for hours watching the tadpoles. So I thought I'd put together a little movie to share this with you.

***

A few photos first, to get an idea of the population density. In the morning they really like the shallow water around the rocks, but in the evening move to deep water.

This is after they've scattered a bit from me hanging over them with a camera.

They mainly eat algae, but it looks like they'll eat plant matter too:

I've seen them eating drowned maple seeds and they apparently love the red-stemmed parrot feather I've got growing -- much to my chagrin, so I toss a few lettuce and spinach leaves in once in a while. (To be fair, I don't know for certain if they're cleaning the algae from these plants or eating them, but it sure seems like they're eating them.)

So here's the movie. The sound may be a little low, but enjoy! (Great with headphones)

Ahhhh, so peaceful. (Ignoring the train horn and airplane.)

More on the tadpoles once they start growing legs I think.

.