02-12-1996 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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I' r n i ( :i inches deep with gently sloping sides and bottom. The surface of the edge should be roughened to provide a good perching surface. Robins frequently are atlracled to a fine spray of water like a lawn sprinkler in hot weather. The moist soil in such sites brings earthworms to the surface of the ground. Birds need water in win ter as well as summer. A dog wa ter dish or poultry water heating element can be placed in a bird- bath and the resulting open water can attract birds all winter. Backyard Frog Pond A small frog pond in your back yard can be a delightful addition to your property. It can reveal the private lives of songbirds, ducks, froqs. toads, and salamanders. The pond can be lined with con Crete or a plastic liner. The pond need be no more than 8 or 10 feet .cross and one or two feet deep. Flat stones can stabilize the pond edge and be highlighted with vari ous native rock garden plants. Soil should be placed over the pond liner so you can seed some native aquatic plants into the pond — like cattail, water lily, arrowhead, marsh marigold, or duckweed. Or pots with aquatic plants can be placed on the pond bottom. Seeds from most of these plants can be collected locally from w ild sources. (Be sure to ob tain the landowner's permission before collecting such plants on someone else’s property.) To pro vide a variety of depths for vari ous wildlife uses, one edge could be vertical to a depth of from 1 'z to 2 feet and the opposite edge could have a shallow gradient as shown in Figure 8. Vou may need to provide more water for the pond with a garden hose during periods of low rainfall or to freshen up the water if it becomes stagnant in late summer. ldeall>. the pond should receive five hours or more of sunlight daily to stimulate the growth of aquatic plants. The pond should be within reach of your garden hose. An other alternative for creating flow ing water is to use a submerged pump to push the water up into a miniature waterfall ‘hat flows back into the pond. The flowing water in the stream will be well- used by birds for bathing and drinking. : V . .... ■■ "i.'! . ■- -'Vv; I -S' > This backyard pond has attracted a pair of mallards. A submerged pump causes water to flow from the pond and trickle over the rocks. A backyard frog pond can be I a great place to discover 5 wildlife. 3 oa Instructions for creating a back yard pond can be obtained for 50 cents by w riting to the Mational Institute for Urban Wildlife. 1092 1 Trotting Ridge W'ay. Columbia. MD 21044. .-ksk for Urban Wild life Manager's Motebook. "2. A Simple Backyard Pond " by Louise Dove. If your goal is to benefit am phibians. keep your pond fishless since fish normally eat frog. toad, and salamander eggs and young. In a fishless pond, they have a better chance for survival. If you wish to attract fish-eating birds like kingfishers and green- backed herons to your property, you may wish to stock your pond with sunfish or fathead minnows. These fish will also help control algae grow th in the pond. Small Ponds W here space and topography allow, a somewhat larger pond can accommodate dozens of wild life species. These ponds, if fish less, will be used by crayfish, blue-spotted salamanders, central newts. .American toads, cricket frogs, spring peepers, chorus frogs, green frogs, wood frogs, pickerel frogs, leopard frogs, garter snakes, birds, and painted turtles. The pond should be 30 to 40 feet across and at least four feet deep. .Another alternative for this type of pond is to stock it with mosquitofish, mud minnows, and fathead minnows to help feed on algae and to provide a prey base that will attract green-backed her- ons, great blue herons, and belted kingfishers. A branch or post should be placed in or by the pond to serve as a perch for these fish-eating birds. The minnows will need to be stocked annually. Be sure to check with your near est DNR fisheries office to learn what laws apply to trapping, trans planting and stocking minnows. A small pond should have at least one-third of the bank con structed with a very gradual incline toward the deep point. Brush piles should be placed in the shallow water (two feet or less) as sites where frogs, toads, and salamanders can lay their eggs. At least one-fourth of the pond's edge should have submerged brush. About five to ten logs, at least six inches in diameter and five to eight feet long, should be placed on the pond margin. Part of each log should be in the water with as much of the underside of the log touching the ground as possible. This is especially good habitat for salamanders. Figure 9 portrays a small pond. Rock piles or riprap can be placed along the water's edge on the north side of the pond to serve as sunning sites for harmless snakes and turtles (62).