Newto the pond ...

Eventually, amphibious life returned to our pond in abundance.

It turns out there was loads of frogspawn in the end in the end - as much as we've had in the any of the last few years. It was just a bit later arriving, despite the relatively mild winter and the pond being ice-free for at least two weeks before the first spawn was produced.

I wonder if there are other factors in heir spawning cycle apart from temperature and an unfrozen pond?

However, they have left nearly half of it on a shallow shelf on the edge of the pond where, if the water level drops, much of it will dry out. Some was sticking out of the water anyway, so I pushed those clumps in a bit deeper.

But focus has transferred onto several small newts that we've seen for the first time since the pond was created six years ago. I think they are common newts and no more than bout 5cm yet, so half their eventual length.

The obvious question is: how did they get there? It's both natural and great fun to ponder such challenging questions - but not always productive or helpful.

I read a preposterous article (I think!) which suggested newts might hang on to a heron's leg and thereby travel with the bird from one water hole to another until it dropped off in your pond. Utter gibberish. They're just as likely to have hitched a lift with Nemo!

Sometimes the precise details are best left alone until real evidence is found.