What Wildlife Will You Find Around Your Pond?
Incorporating a pond or outdoor water feature into your garden can bring a new lease of life to your outdoor space. Not only will a water feature improve the aesthetics of your garden, but it can also improve your overall health and well-being. As well as this, incorporating a pond or even a small water feature can attract an array of wildlife to your garden.
It’s estimated that there are over two million garden ponds in the UK, and with the disappearance of over 70% of ponds from the countryside means that garden ponds and water features are becoming an increasingly important aspect for the survival of wildlife. In our latest blog we look into what wildlife you can expect to find around your pond, keep your eyes peeled and see how many of these creatures you find outside your pond!
Supporting Wildlife
Not only is a pond a fantastic feature for your garden for your own benefits, but it can also hugely benefit wildlife too. Ponds support a greater diversity of wildlife than any other garden habitat, with even a small water feature making a huge difference. There is an array of wildlife that could thrive in your garden. From frogs, damselflies, newts, small mammals (hedgehogs etc.), pond skaters, water boatmen and so much more, your pond or water feature could be vital for the survival for a whole host of wildlife.
Birds
Wildlife friendly ponds and water features can hugely benefit birds visiting your garden all year long, they will drink and bathe in the water to stay hydrated in summer. This is also particularly important in winter as birds will ruffle their feathers in the water to spread their vital oils which will help protect and insulate them from the colder weather.
Plants
Whether it is aquatic plants that are to be submerged in the water, or floating ad oxygenator plants that will lie on the ponds surface and encourage wildlife including fish, frogs and other wildlife to thrive. Plants are likely to appear without you even planting them, but it is these kinds of plants which are likely to attract wildlife that you might never have seen before. Whilst it is important that your pond or water feature receives plenty of sunshine throughout the day, it’s also important to strategically place plants or have one area of the pond in a shaded spot, to shield certain types of wildlife from predators.
Dragonflies
As a species that breeds in water, dragonflies are commonly found around ponds. They require submerged plants for the development of their larvae, therefore a pond is the perfect habitat for these to thrive.
Frogs
Ponds are required by frogs to breed, their tadpoles will feed on the algae in the water, by incorporating a pond into your outdoor space you can create an area of plants where frogs can shelter, with easy access to the water. As your water feature starts to attract more and more wildlife it’s important you keep an eye on it to ensure it is kept in a good condition and is a good environment to ensure wildlife can thrive.
Article supplied by Outdoor Living UK.
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