Tadpoles

We decided to be brave this spring and try raising tadpoles.  Since we have now had them for over a month with zero casualties, and they are every day getting bigger and fatter, I guess we must be doing something right.  We seem to always be learning something as we watch them grow.  For instance, today I learned that it is quite difficult to get a picture of a child interacting with a tadpole!  

When we started this adventure, I called around to a few pond stores to see if tadpoles could be purchased.  I was concerned about the legality of gathering them from the wild.  No one sold them. But I did get to speak to a knowledgeable guy who explained that in Oregon it is illegal to sell tadpoles, but legal to catch and keep them from private land.  I was pleased with our law because this means that it's highly likely our tadpoles are native species that can be safely released back where we found them once they have grown.   We have about two dozen in a large acrylic tub.  They don't need filtered, aerated water, like fish, but do need their water changed frequently.  We change the water completely every two days (for now, but as they grow they may need daily changes). As soon as the water is changed, I fill up my water containers with cold water again, and add chlorine neutralizer (as we use for our fish), and let the water sit until the next water change.  Tadpoles are said to be so sensitive to chlorine that it is recommended to use a chlorine neutralizer and also let the water sit for a couple of days, preferably in the sun.  That way, any remaining chlorine will likely dissipate, and the  new water is the same temperature as the old water.  I found tadpole food at a local pet store; however, I don't think my tadpoles like it.  What they eat is previously frozen salad greens.  Freezing makes them mushy enough for the tadpoles to eat without destroying nutrients.  I keep some lettuce, spinach, and kale in my freezer, and chop up a little for them each day.  It's remarkably little maintenance for such interesting critters.  As they grow legs, they will need to be able to climb out of the water, so we will be looking for some tree bark and rocks to construct a platform for them.  Here are three websites with basic information on tadpole care:  http://allaboutfrogs.org/info/tadpoles/index.html   http://www.howtocareforit.com/how-to-care-for-tadpoles.aspx  http://exoticpets.about.com/od/frogsandtoads/a/tadpoles.htm

One of the very best things about this experiment was getting Jasper to dip a clear plastic pitcher into a pond, and gazing with him in amazement at all the life in just a quart or so of water.  He found a galaxy of little plants, water bugs, tadpoles and newt larvae.  From the surface looking down, we never would have guessed there was so much going on under the surface.