First frogspawn in UK survey recorded in Scilly

The first early sighting of frogspawn for a national survey was recorded in a garden pond in the Isles of Scilly, a wildlife trust has said.

The Freshwater Habitats Trust said the early record on 21 December 2024, submitted by Carole Cilia for the PondNet Spawn Survey, was soon followed by sightings in Cornwall and Devon.

Frogspawn are jelly-like frog eggs that appear at the edges of ponds and streams, and normally it is a sign spring has arrived, according to the National History Museum.

An ecologist from Cornwall who participated in the survey said the findings "provide useful data on how nature is responding to climate change".

The Freshwater Habitats Trust runs the UK survey to monitor amphibian breeding patterns and it said the data was "invaluable" for conservation efforts.

Carole Cilia, who recorded the first sighting, said: "We now have over 10 batches of spawn in our pond and at the weekend I saw two batches of spawn in a nearby wildlife pond.

"It was a bit later this year no doubt because of the cold winds we had here."

The early record from the Isles of Scilly was followed by another two sightings in Cornwall, one in a pond near Jacobstow on 28 December, and another in a ditch in the Camel Valley on 5 January, as well as a sighting on 1 January in Bideford, Devon.

Nature lover Dougy Wright told the BBC he had seen frogspawn on the Lizard in Cornwall in October for the last five years.

The volunteer warden at the Windmill Farm nature reserve said his latest sighting on 25 October 2024 was followed by tadpoles in mid December and the discovery had now been reported to the trust.

Trevor Renals, who recorded the sighting in the Camel Valley, said: "I wasn't particularly looking for spawn, but I am a freshwater ecologist, so I'm always interested to see what I can find.

"The survey provides useful data on how nature is responding to climate change."

Dr Naomi Ewald, Freshwater Habitats Trust technical director, said the records "help to improve our understanding of when and where frogs and toads are breeding and are invaluable for wildlife conservation".

"Small water bodies are often undervalued and neglected, but these early sightings in different habitats, from ponds to ditches, show how important they are for amphibians and other freshwater species," she said.

Freshwater Habitats Trust encourages everyone to participate in the survey, which runs until May, by recording sightings on its website and sharing photos on social media with the hashtag #spawnsurvey.

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