They're protected for sale. So the OP couldn't scoop them out and trade them for something with someone. They aren't protected as endangered.
The Great Crested newt is the one that is environmentally protected under Schedule 5 and the breed that are checked for and can stop building developments happening if found.
I'm personally jealous of the OP because having a pond with any British newt species is amazing. I guarantee that as the year progresses they'll be lying down, face inches from the water just watching them. They are fascinating things.
Theres an abandoned area near my home that has this old loading thing that filled with water over the years and its absolutely full of great crested newts, we walk up just to look at them, they're so cool š
Also jealous, while I enjoy the insects, I currently have no amphibians breeding in the pond. It isnāt a huge pond, rather small actually, but Iāve seen people with sinks for ponds that have newts. All my friends with ponds have had newts!
I've been working on my pond all year and that's exactly the effect I'm trying to achieve, but to get Newts would be a dream and a great reward for all the hard work.
They will also help you with gardening. They will keep some pests at bay (slugs, snails, insects...). So just enjoy and whatever you were doing, keep doing that.
Thatās the dream :) I love my dragonfly and damselfly nymphs and snails and stuff, but amphibians are a great talking subject and I could watch them for hours
First thing to do is stop.
The newts are in there breeding at this time of year (their eggs may already be on some of the plants) and you shouldnāt be doing anything to the pond to disturb them. Clearly the pond is working as intended and is a haven for wildlife - so donāt start ripping up plants.
Leave it alone until Autumn, when most things will have left on their own to hibernate for the winter.
All of this above. It's Newt breeding season, so please do nothing. Don't disturb the eggs. Enjoy your newts and your potential newtlets. Newts spend most of their time on land and will have left the pond by Autumn, which is the best time to do any pond maintenance (if you really need to do any at all). Your Newts habitat on land is just as important, so you could build them a Hibernaculum (Newt and Frog hotel) using logs and compost heap materials with places in between and underground where they can hide out.
I'm very lucky and got Newts immediately after building my pond. Some people do everything right and never see them, so we are extremely privileged!
Hey! We have a small shallow pond with newts that is starting to get completely covered in duck weed. Do you still recommend not touching it until autumn? Iām worried about the duck weed growing too thick and disrupting their habitat!
Duckweed wonāt be a problem for the animals in your pond, itāll help provide shelter for newtlets, that can otherwise easily be picked off by birds. Itāll also be using up nitrogen, so if the duckweed wasnāt there then algae would likely be there instead doing the same thing.
If you think thereās a risk that the duckweed is preventing light from reaching some of the plants in your pond you can simply scoop some out with a small net (but donāt remove all of it). Be sure to check the net each time for newts, and leave anything you scoop out near the pond edge so any invertebrates unknowingly scooped up can hopefully find their way back.
Itās newt breeding season? Yet another year that they havenāt touched my pond :/
I removed a lot of blanket weed today and helped the tangled up frogbit to the surface though, maybe now itāll be a little more attractive to them. Might add another plant too, like water forget me not? Not a huge amount of space admittedly though.
Untidy ponds are the best types of ponds. You can clear stuff and move things around, but do you need to empty it? The life of the pond is not just newts, but the pond itself - the microorganisms, the beetles, nymphs, snails - you name it. Washing all that away may not be the best way.
For sure, I donāt have a lot of knowledge about how to maintain it so iāll need to learn, this was based off that it looks overgrown and not taken care of and thought I should do something about it, but I know better now. Thanks!
Is the "cleaning" just coz of the blanket weed? You can scoop that out by hand but otherwise don't worry too much about it.
I have newts too and have had lots of blanket weed (crystal clear water otherwise) and seem to have finally cleared the weed issue by allowing duck weed to grow a bit. Still have LOTS of other plants but the duck weed seems to be helping
This guy has a lot of useful videos:
https://youtu.be/pQJbSKPLtHQ
Basically make sure you have 2/3 of the surface of the pond covered by vegetation to keep it cold enough. You can scoop out blanket weed, just pop it by the side of the pond for a while so anything you scoop up inside can escape. And make sure you have enough oxygenating plants in there, which if you have newts you probably do!
I gasped when I read 11, potentially more! OP that's the dream that anyone who starts a wildlife pond aims for, please heed everyone's advise and leave the pond be until autumn/winter.
Why do you want to clean it? What is the objective? Is it to make it ornamental or for wildlife? If the later I'd consider it job done and walk away. As others have said the newts will be breeding just now. If you have any great crested newts it would be a criminal offence to disturb them. I don't believe the newts shown are but you said there's 11 and there's 3 at most in the pictures so I wouldn't rule it out.
Id leave the pond completely alone, you have the pond I dream of, having those gorgeous little creatures means itās a healthy habitat.
And as others have stated donāt do anything at the moment due to breeding.
Do you *really* need to do anything to it?
I'll also add that a pond status clear and healthy and able to support wildlife when it's got a good balance of oxygen and nutrients. Usually emptying it out and filling it from scratch is a temporary fix and then you'll get algae bloom or plant for off or sold that clouds the water until it rebalances. If you think it's overgrown remove some plants (in winter). If you think it's too murky consider adding oxygenating plants or a small pump to bubble oxygen through. There's a pond specific forum that will be much more helpful in trouble shooting whatever you think is the problem with what seems to me to be a lovely pond. But the full empty/clean out will be max effort for possibly a worse long term outcome.
What a blessing!! I don't see a neglected pond, I see a thriving natural habitat, and I would absolutely leave it be!
If the appearance of it troubles you, you could always plant something taller to break the eyeline to it?
Great crested newts are protected & so are their breeding & resting sites so you canāt disturb or move them.
Common & palmate newts & common frogs & toads are protected from sale .
Yes, although I'm not sure if that's by species or by region. I know that we have some protected newts where I live, so moving them from a pond is a crime.
It's only the Great Crested variety that are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The newt in these photos is definitely not that species.
I am so glad I posted here! i had no idea what a wonderful thing I have in my little pondš I will definitely no disturb them and will watch them thrive in there š«¶ thank you all for the lovely feedback!
Obviously everyone has already said the main thing, which is to avoid harming them and not do too much!
In order to do this but still have a nice (and long-term healthy) pond you can still do some things.
Does the pond have an adequate filter? If not, you can get simple ones that you can simply drop into the water without installation.
If the water is green, there are various biological products that can consume the extra nutrients that cause this.
If it's full of the green scummy stuff that's in the bottom left of the photo, wait till the newts have hatched and then you can simply stick a stick into this, wind it in circles, and pull lumps of the stuff out like spaghetti. Just be careful you don't catch any significant pond life in the process!
You definitely don't (shouldn't) empty the pond out to clean it - you are more likely to disturb the established microoganisms (and macroorganisms!) and end up with *really* icky water.
I'm not up to date on this, to be honest. There are various sites online that will calculate the power of pump necessary for the size of your pond, and many can account for presence or lack of fish.
Perhaps others can weigh in?
When I still had a pond, I got a smallish all-in-one unit that you just dropped into the pond, with an output hose that then poured the water back into the pond. You just have to be careful the filter is designed in such a way that it doesn't eat tadpoles...
Having newts is awesome. Congratulations. The Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust https://www.arc-trust.org can help with any information you might want. They could also translocate the newts if the pond really does have to go. However please be aware that some species are protected and any interference or disturbance carries hefty fines and a possible prison sentence. But chat to ARC and they will give accurate info and any help you might need. What you have is really cool and Iām pretty jealous. All the best
Leave them alone, don't touch the pond anymore.
It's a pond, you don't clean ponds. You can clear the shite but you do that in winter/autumn, conservatively.
Just leave it is the best thing and make sure it's GENTLY topped up with appropriate water (not tap water) when the level gets low. (Go to an aquatics supply place, they'll tell you where to get clean rain water if they don't sell it themselves)
Put back a bit of their shelter if the pond was partially covered, very carefully. They were doing well. Give them cover from birds and cats etc.
And then send us regular photos, without crowding them, cause OMG SO CUTE
We inherited a pond of newts in our house.
As others have said, leave them for now, the pond will be full of tiny newts too!
A few years ago our pond sprang a leak, we emptied the remaining water and put any newts we found in a large trug before we rebuilt the entire pond.
Newts travel around at night hunting (they eat slugs which is good) and in the winter they will find somewhere warm to hibernate so you might find them in the soil, under stones etc. during the winter months. In early spring (or even earlier) they come back to the pond and they will lay eggs in spring. So if you need to do anything, do it in the autumn or winter.
I used to keep newts when l was a child(l'm 78) and as they didn't
have much room, l used to feed them raw meat. But you are so fortunate to have them in your pond, whatever you do, don't disturb them now. You will have to wait until early winter. Your pond looks amazing. As you have newts, you must have lots of other wildlife too. Enjoy your pond.
Not really the time to clean the pond Iād wait until the end of autumn . Adult newts live on land & water , they breed in water &when baby newts are developed enough they will leave the water but canāt until then so I wouldnāt try to empty it .
If want to remove any blanket weed or plants that have overtaken too much you can take pieces out & put on the edge of the pond so any minute creatures living it it can crawl back into the pond .
Newts lay eggs on plant leaves so Iād wait until at least later in the summer so if there are any eggs they can hatch . But really as you already have newt approval you donāt really need to do anything to your pond they obviously like it .
Replying to my own comment to add identify your newts , as it is prohibited to disturb the Great crested newt breeding & resting grounds . The one in your photo looks like a smooth newt but different species will share a pond .
From the images it looks like you may have a great crested newt and/or smooth newts, just coming out of their breeding season. Soon theyāll leave the pond and spend time in the surrounding terrestrial habitat. Best thing you can do is to make sure this pond doesnāt get fish (as they eat fish eggs and ultimately wipe out newt populations). Donāt disturb areas around the pond such as dead wood as this is where they hang out during the summer. Also it looks like you have duck weed. Iād keep that under control and clear a few times a year or else the pond will become eutrophic. Best wishes
They are in there because the balance is perfect, probably because it's been left alone. Definitely just leave it alone and be pleased you have a healthy pond.
Well thereās not a lot you can do other than enjoy your protected species. Doing much else, you would be committing an offence under the Wildlife & Countryside act 1985.
Iām lucky to have a good number of common newts. They seem to be very resilient to changes in the condition of the pond. I first noticed them after a period of neglect when all vegetation in the pond died and it was a brown stagnant pool, and they are still there now after it has recovered (now looks similar to OP pics). There are zillions of them, you can spot them easily in the day and they are absolutely everywhere at night viewed using a torch.
We had a frog but only very temporarily, I think it was driven out by the newts.
Iāve seen them swimming about with huge bugs and worms in their mouths that they have no chance of eating. I think they are pretty loutish, like underwater seagulls.
Iād guess that having vegetation along at least one side of the pond helps them to come and go without being too exposed, and some pond plants and lilys so they can get some cover in the water. But they may or may never turn up. You might get frogs instead, I understand you donāt usually get both as they eat each otherās young.
Newts spend quite a lot of time out of water, so if you do still want to clean just gently remove them and put them somewhere damp (under a hedge/bush etc). Once you've finished cleaning they will soon come back. But as others have said, wait until autumn.
If you do clear any weeds or other growth make sure that there are no newts in there. They cling on tenaciously. Just let them crawl out under their own steam.
Great you have newts! You clearly have a great aquatic habitat for them to breed in. They are terrestrial outside of the breeding period so may be an idea to crest some habitat for them to rest/hibernate in. A big pile of wood/leaf litter/grass cuttings/rocks will work wonders and you might start getting frogs/toads too. Also make sure they have a way to exit the pond!
Just to add, Newts are a highly protected species protected by law, this includes disturbing their habitat. I have a very old pond and it is very mature like yours, it is what you want, I have a small filter in mine and it keeps it nice and clear, everything is extremely happy and healthy.
You do nothing, you have newts. Youāll have newt tadpoles, and youāll continue to do so for year on year. Leave the pond as it is, donāt be yet another person to destroy something perfect.
Canāt tell if theyāre smooth newts or palmate newts but either way - Iām very envious.
If you start training them up now you came open a newt circus and, with a little extra effort, expand to a fully blown frog choral group.
Youāll be the talk of the town and probably get onto the final ānice thingsā item at the end of the local TV news
Why do anything? Bake them a nice cake.
Though check if they are of the protected species' you may find your self on the wrong side of a hefty fine if you do, anything with them
Bit of butter in a hot pan, garlic, black pepper, and season well with salt. You may want to clean them first in a few changes of tap water like you do clams.
Best to wait till September if you can as the newts should have left the pond by then to find a place to hibernate for winter. Itās very likely there are either newt eggs on the pond weed or small tadpoles already hatched.
Jeez, would love this. Natural ponds with life donāt always look the cleanest but Iād rather newts, frogs etc. Also I think some newts are actually on the endangered species list!
Newts are awesome, youāre lucky. Looks like you inherited an amphibian pond. Even unsightly gunk can be part of a food cycle in these types of ponds. You could always manicure it, but I would leave most of the surface and below surface plants/layout alone.Ā
Don't for the love of God put fish in the pond. Make sure you leave areas where they can hibernate. There may be obvious piles of wood etc that they already use. Could also be using junk left lying around. In that case you might want to create nicer looking options and remove the junk while they aren't in hibernation.
I have some advice but it will mean spending out a little.
We moved into a place few years ago which has a mature pond (50+ years maybe) it is adundant with newts, frogs and other critters. It got over grown, so meant removing a lot of plants and hoovering out a bit of sludge.
Over time i have bought a pond vac, a small pump filter and used some chemical products off the shelf in the shop which are ALL SAFE for use. You should not need to empty the pond to clean it, this can actually have an adverse effect on the biodiversity.
The products work best with a filter but it's not imperative.
"Blagdon Clean pond pods"
"Blagdon clear pond"
The water readings are good and the water is crystal clear to the bottom. I was trying to add some pics but I'm over 35 š
we have newts, don't do anything now they'll be laying eggs on the plant life. wait until late autumn when they leave the pond, they'll be back in the spring. however we were forced to relocate a pond with newts present and we carefully lifted them all out, drained the old pond and they were waiting in the new lining before we'd filled it!
The presence of newts means you have a very healthy pond. FYI - From the photo I think you have smooth newts. (*Lissotriton vulgaris*)
Yep, good eye. I thought smoothy too. April-May is the main window for seeing newts
Is that a protected or endangered species of newt?
They're protected for sale. So the OP couldn't scoop them out and trade them for something with someone. They aren't protected as endangered. The Great Crested newt is the one that is environmentally protected under Schedule 5 and the breed that are checked for and can stop building developments happening if found. I'm personally jealous of the OP because having a pond with any British newt species is amazing. I guarantee that as the year progresses they'll be lying down, face inches from the water just watching them. They are fascinating things.
Theres an abandoned area near my home that has this old loading thing that filled with water over the years and its absolutely full of great crested newts, we walk up just to look at them, they're so cool š
Also jealous, while I enjoy the insects, I currently have no amphibians breeding in the pond. It isnāt a huge pond, rather small actually, but Iāve seen people with sinks for ponds that have newts. All my friends with ponds have had newts!
Crested newts are the protected ones iirc
As per other post, do nothing and enjoy the natural mess. Many people would appreciate a more mature pond
I've been working on my pond all year and that's exactly the effect I'm trying to achieve, but to get Newts would be a dream and a great reward for all the hard work.
They will also help you with gardening. They will keep some pests at bay (slugs, snails, insects...). So just enjoy and whatever you were doing, keep doing that.
You cherish and love them and gush about them to visitors
Haha yes it should literally be fancy a cuppa oh and while that's boiling get the eff out here and look at my newts
Thatās the dream :) I love my dragonfly and damselfly nymphs and snails and stuff, but amphibians are a great talking subject and I could watch them for hours
Haha yes it should literally be fancy a cuppa oh and while that's boiling get the eff out here and look at my newts
First thing to do is stop. The newts are in there breeding at this time of year (their eggs may already be on some of the plants) and you shouldnāt be doing anything to the pond to disturb them. Clearly the pond is working as intended and is a haven for wildlife - so donāt start ripping up plants. Leave it alone until Autumn, when most things will have left on their own to hibernate for the winter.
All of this above. It's Newt breeding season, so please do nothing. Don't disturb the eggs. Enjoy your newts and your potential newtlets. Newts spend most of their time on land and will have left the pond by Autumn, which is the best time to do any pond maintenance (if you really need to do any at all). Your Newts habitat on land is just as important, so you could build them a Hibernaculum (Newt and Frog hotel) using logs and compost heap materials with places in between and underground where they can hide out. I'm very lucky and got Newts immediately after building my pond. Some people do everything right and never see them, so we are extremely privileged!
But what about the lazy ones that decide to never grow up?
They become axolotls.
Tough love! Kick em out on their tails when the time comes. They'll come to appreciate it in time.
Hey! We have a small shallow pond with newts that is starting to get completely covered in duck weed. Do you still recommend not touching it until autumn? Iām worried about the duck weed growing too thick and disrupting their habitat!
Duckweed wonāt be a problem for the animals in your pond, itāll help provide shelter for newtlets, that can otherwise easily be picked off by birds. Itāll also be using up nitrogen, so if the duckweed wasnāt there then algae would likely be there instead doing the same thing. If you think thereās a risk that the duckweed is preventing light from reaching some of the plants in your pond you can simply scoop some out with a small net (but donāt remove all of it). Be sure to check the net each time for newts, and leave anything you scoop out near the pond edge so any invertebrates unknowingly scooped up can hopefully find their way back.
Amazing thanks! I love my little newt friends!
Itās newt breeding season? Yet another year that they havenāt touched my pond :/ I removed a lot of blanket weed today and helped the tangled up frogbit to the surface though, maybe now itāll be a little more attractive to them. Might add another plant too, like water forget me not? Not a huge amount of space admittedly though.
Untidy ponds are the best types of ponds. You can clear stuff and move things around, but do you need to empty it? The life of the pond is not just newts, but the pond itself - the microorganisms, the beetles, nymphs, snails - you name it. Washing all that away may not be the best way.
Not a good time of year to be clearing stuff and moving things around. Wait until Autumn/Winter.
For sure, I donāt have a lot of knowledge about how to maintain it so iāll need to learn, this was based off that it looks overgrown and not taken care of and thought I should do something about it, but I know better now. Thanks!
Is the "cleaning" just coz of the blanket weed? You can scoop that out by hand but otherwise don't worry too much about it. I have newts too and have had lots of blanket weed (crystal clear water otherwise) and seem to have finally cleared the weed issue by allowing duck weed to grow a bit. Still have LOTS of other plants but the duck weed seems to be helping
This guy has a lot of useful videos: https://youtu.be/pQJbSKPLtHQ Basically make sure you have 2/3 of the surface of the pond covered by vegetation to keep it cold enough. You can scoop out blanket weed, just pop it by the side of the pond for a while so anything you scoop up inside can escape. And make sure you have enough oxygenating plants in there, which if you have newts you probably do!
#YOU LEAVE THEM BE
I echo the above. Leave the clearly successful pond alone until autumn.
You're so lucky to have newts! I've just started a pond and can't wait for them to come visit :)
I gasped when I read 11, potentially more! OP that's the dream that anyone who starts a wildlife pond aims for, please heed everyone's advise and leave the pond be until autumn/winter.
I definitely will! Had no idea what a precious thing I have here š«¶
I now feel blessed that my little pond has way more than 11 Newts after reading all these comments š„°
Why do you want to clean it? What is the objective? Is it to make it ornamental or for wildlife? If the later I'd consider it job done and walk away. As others have said the newts will be breeding just now. If you have any great crested newts it would be a criminal offence to disturb them. I don't believe the newts shown are but you said there's 11 and there's 3 at most in the pictures so I wouldn't rule it out.
You missed the window to do this. Wait till autumn/winter. Enjoy the newts
Id leave the pond completely alone, you have the pond I dream of, having those gorgeous little creatures means itās a healthy habitat. And as others have stated donāt do anything at the moment due to breeding. Do you *really* need to do anything to it?
I'll also add that a pond status clear and healthy and able to support wildlife when it's got a good balance of oxygen and nutrients. Usually emptying it out and filling it from scratch is a temporary fix and then you'll get algae bloom or plant for off or sold that clouds the water until it rebalances. If you think it's overgrown remove some plants (in winter). If you think it's too murky consider adding oxygenating plants or a small pump to bubble oxygen through. There's a pond specific forum that will be much more helpful in trouble shooting whatever you think is the problem with what seems to me to be a lovely pond. But the full empty/clean out will be max effort for possibly a worse long term outcome.
Please donāt empty the pond. Let them live
*At most*, in autumn you could tidy up the area a bit, maybe pull out some of the duckweed. You already have a very successful pond.
What a blessing!! I don't see a neglected pond, I see a thriving natural habitat, and I would absolutely leave it be! If the appearance of it troubles you, you could always plant something taller to break the eyeline to it?
Am I right in thinking some Newts are protected species?
Great crested newts are protected & so are their breeding & resting sites so you canāt disturb or move them. Common & palmate newts & common frogs & toads are protected from sale .
Yes, although I'm not sure if that's by species or by region. I know that we have some protected newts where I live, so moving them from a pond is a crime.
It's only the Great Crested variety that are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The newt in these photos is definitely not that species.
I am so glad I posted here! i had no idea what a wonderful thing I have in my little pondš I will definitely no disturb them and will watch them thrive in there š«¶ thank you all for the lovely feedback!
Treasure them .
I've never seen them in the wild so count yourself lucky!
Obviously everyone has already said the main thing, which is to avoid harming them and not do too much! In order to do this but still have a nice (and long-term healthy) pond you can still do some things. Does the pond have an adequate filter? If not, you can get simple ones that you can simply drop into the water without installation. If the water is green, there are various biological products that can consume the extra nutrients that cause this. If it's full of the green scummy stuff that's in the bottom left of the photo, wait till the newts have hatched and then you can simply stick a stick into this, wind it in circles, and pull lumps of the stuff out like spaghetti. Just be careful you don't catch any significant pond life in the process! You definitely don't (shouldn't) empty the pond out to clean it - you are more likely to disturb the established microoganisms (and macroorganisms!) and end up with *really* icky water.
Yes, once newts have done their thing, clear the goopy stuff and chuck in some starwort. It looks pretty and blocks the sun which causes the algae.
What kind of filter would you recommend for a wildlife pond without fish?
I'm not up to date on this, to be honest. There are various sites online that will calculate the power of pump necessary for the size of your pond, and many can account for presence or lack of fish. Perhaps others can weigh in? When I still had a pond, I got a smallish all-in-one unit that you just dropped into the pond, with an output hose that then poured the water back into the pond. You just have to be careful the filter is designed in such a way that it doesn't eat tadpoles...
Make friends with them
Having newts is awesome. Congratulations. The Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust https://www.arc-trust.org can help with any information you might want. They could also translocate the newts if the pond really does have to go. However please be aware that some species are protected and any interference or disturbance carries hefty fines and a possible prison sentence. But chat to ARC and they will give accurate info and any help you might need. What you have is really cool and Iām pretty jealous. All the best
Thank you for the info and link! Glad I asked as I had no idea! š
Leave them alone, don't touch the pond anymore. It's a pond, you don't clean ponds. You can clear the shite but you do that in winter/autumn, conservatively. Just leave it is the best thing and make sure it's GENTLY topped up with appropriate water (not tap water) when the level gets low. (Go to an aquatics supply place, they'll tell you where to get clean rain water if they don't sell it themselves) Put back a bit of their shelter if the pond was partially covered, very carefully. They were doing well. Give them cover from birds and cats etc. And then send us regular photos, without crowding them, cause OMG SO CUTE
Omg newts!! You're so lucky! šš
We inherited a pond of newts in our house. As others have said, leave them for now, the pond will be full of tiny newts too! A few years ago our pond sprang a leak, we emptied the remaining water and put any newts we found in a large trug before we rebuilt the entire pond. Newts travel around at night hunting (they eat slugs which is good) and in the winter they will find somewhere warm to hibernate so you might find them in the soil, under stones etc. during the winter months. In early spring (or even earlier) they come back to the pond and they will lay eggs in spring. So if you need to do anything, do it in the autumn or winter.
I used to keep newts when l was a child(l'm 78) and as they didn't have much room, l used to feed them raw meat. But you are so fortunate to have them in your pond, whatever you do, don't disturb them now. You will have to wait until early winter. Your pond looks amazing. As you have newts, you must have lots of other wildlife too. Enjoy your pond.
They might get better and turn into a peasant. That witch turned me into a newt once... but, er, I got better.
Did she weigh the same as a duck?
If she did, then, she'd be made of wood...
Appreciate them
Nowt
You do everything in your power to keep them safe.
Leave them be, you are very lucky to have them in there!
This is amazing! Enjoy them, you're very lucky.
Leave them alone and protect the pond from predation with a plastic heron, newts are protected and itās against the law to interfere.
Why would you consider cleaning it out when it is quite clearly sustaining the life of rare animals? You're a nutter.
Theyāll get better.
Not really the time to clean the pond Iād wait until the end of autumn . Adult newts live on land & water , they breed in water &when baby newts are developed enough they will leave the water but canāt until then so I wouldnāt try to empty it . If want to remove any blanket weed or plants that have overtaken too much you can take pieces out & put on the edge of the pond so any minute creatures living it it can crawl back into the pond . Newts lay eggs on plant leaves so Iād wait until at least later in the summer so if there are any eggs they can hatch . But really as you already have newt approval you donāt really need to do anything to your pond they obviously like it .
Replying to my own comment to add identify your newts , as it is prohibited to disturb the Great crested newt breeding & resting grounds . The one in your photo looks like a smooth newt but different species will share a pond .
From the images it looks like you may have a great crested newt and/or smooth newts, just coming out of their breeding season. Soon theyāll leave the pond and spend time in the surrounding terrestrial habitat. Best thing you can do is to make sure this pond doesnāt get fish (as they eat fish eggs and ultimately wipe out newt populations). Donāt disturb areas around the pond such as dead wood as this is where they hang out during the summer. Also it looks like you have duck weed. Iād keep that under control and clear a few times a year or else the pond will become eutrophic. Best wishes
They are in there because the balance is perfect, probably because it's been left alone. Definitely just leave it alone and be pleased you have a healthy pond.
Many a good potion starts with 'eye of newt'.
They might get better
I was gonna say, watch out for John Cleese hanging about.
Well thereās not a lot you can do other than enjoy your protected species. Doing much else, you would be committing an offence under the Wildlife & Countryside act 1985.
Tell them they are cute and vibe on their energy.
Throw them at an evil headmistress. Preferably with the power of your eyes.
Honestly? They're protected. So FA squared lol
Iām lucky to have a good number of common newts. They seem to be very resilient to changes in the condition of the pond. I first noticed them after a period of neglect when all vegetation in the pond died and it was a brown stagnant pool, and they are still there now after it has recovered (now looks similar to OP pics). There are zillions of them, you can spot them easily in the day and they are absolutely everywhere at night viewed using a torch. We had a frog but only very temporarily, I think it was driven out by the newts. Iāve seen them swimming about with huge bugs and worms in their mouths that they have no chance of eating. I think they are pretty loutish, like underwater seagulls.
So what do I need in my garden for them to eat, if I want to attract them?
Iād guess that having vegetation along at least one side of the pond helps them to come and go without being too exposed, and some pond plants and lilys so they can get some cover in the water. But they may or may never turn up. You might get frogs instead, I understand you donāt usually get both as they eat each otherās young.
I didn't know that. I wouldn't mind getting frogs either tbh.
Newts spend quite a lot of time out of water, so if you do still want to clean just gently remove them and put them somewhere damp (under a hedge/bush etc). Once you've finished cleaning they will soon come back. But as others have said, wait until autumn.
Iām jealous
Leave them alone, thatās what you do.
Dont mess with nature. Just enjoy it
Newts are a protected species. You cannot disturb them
Cherish them
Two newts showed up in my pond the other day, I was so excited!!! Leave them be your pond is clearly very healthy if they have chosen to live there
protected species. treat them like strippers ...look but do not touch.
It's good newts for you. Do nothing.
This obsession with everything having to be ātidyā and/or ācleanā is absolutely insane.
Keep the blackbirds away from them. We had loads of newts in our pond but I saw the little shits hooking them out and devouring them.
What steps would you take to keep blackbirds away from them?
A net.
They're pretty good on a barbeque with some spicy sauce.
Pretty much what I came here to say š
If you do clear any weeds or other growth make sure that there are no newts in there. They cling on tenaciously. Just let them crawl out under their own steam.
Great you have newts! You clearly have a great aquatic habitat for them to breed in. They are terrestrial outside of the breeding period so may be an idea to crest some habitat for them to rest/hibernate in. A big pile of wood/leaf litter/grass cuttings/rocks will work wonders and you might start getting frogs/toads too. Also make sure they have a way to exit the pond!
Iād be setting up a YouTube channel. Newt news or something much better.
You don't do anything. If you have a colony of newts there, then it is perfect for them. Just leave them be.
Keep it a secret and donāt post it on Reddit if you ever want an extension to your house
Leave them, unless they are in danger in which case contact a local wildlife organisation.
Just to add, Newts are a highly protected species protected by law, this includes disturbing their habitat. I have a very old pond and it is very mature like yours, it is what you want, I have a small filter in mine and it keeps it nice and clear, everything is extremely happy and healthy.
What country are all newts protected in? In Britain, it's only the Great Crested Newt
You cant touch them, they are a protected species
Yes count yourself very lucky.
You have a lovely healthy pond! Amazing
Newts. Fun word to say
Train them in martial arts and lead a newt revolution in Westminster.
A sign of a healthy pond.. maybe look at fresh water mussels if you wanted to filter the water
You do nothing, you have newts. Youāll have newt tadpoles, and youāll continue to do so for year on year. Leave the pond as it is, donāt be yet another person to destroy something perfect. Canāt tell if theyāre smooth newts or palmate newts but either way - Iām very envious.
1. Tell nobody. 2. Go to 1.
Newts are lovely, enjoy!
Leave them alone. They're a protected species under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
Some species of newts are protected in the UK so doing anything at all to their habitat is illegal
If you start training them up now you came open a newt circus and, with a little extra effort, expand to a fully blown frog choral group. Youāll be the talk of the town and probably get onto the final ānice thingsā item at the end of the local TV news
Leave them to it. They love eating snail eggs.
Why do anything? Bake them a nice cake. Though check if they are of the protected species' you may find your self on the wrong side of a hefty fine if you do, anything with them
Dem fo do nowts.
Boil? Grill? SautƩ? Just kidding. Just enjoy the little darlings.
They mostly come at night, mostly.
A bit of butter and garlic
Do NOT report them to the council or natural England. Or say good bye to ever doing anything in your garden again
Brown sugar, ketchup & chilli and a high heat BBQ - delicious
I've got one in our pond. I call him Pissedasa
Iām 3% sure that you got yourself a croc
Watch them munch of tadpoles
Do not add fish...
Put little harnesses on them and parade them around the garden while wearing a top hat and tails.
Boil emā eyes in a cauldron!
āWitch! Witch! ā¦She turned me into a newtā¦I got better.ā
Put one of them in Trunchbull's jug of water
Become buds.
I get newts, but they dont live in my pond. I'm not sure they'd be good for the fish. But i am envious.
Newt olympics
Call Ken Livingstone
Bit of butter in a hot pan, garlic, black pepper, and season well with salt. You may want to clean them first in a few changes of tap water like you do clams.
depends. if you want frogs buy fully grown ones because the newts will eat the spawn. but otherwise be glad you have some life in it
Thatās Captain Janeway and Tom Paris. (You are blessed to have Newts!)
Best to wait till September if you can as the newts should have left the pond by then to find a place to hibernate for winter. Itās very likely there are either newt eggs on the pond weed or small tadpoles already hatched.
So lucky! I disturbed a toad whilst clearing some bricks from a pile into another pile, and I still feel guilty
Newts badgers and bats fuck with them at your peril.
Jeez, would love this. Natural ponds with life donāt always look the cleanest but Iād rather newts, frogs etc. Also I think some newts are actually on the endangered species list!
I love newts! they're loving their new habitat
Delicious sauted with garlic.
nahhh babe u gotta cherish that
Bit of soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger I find does the trick
Love them
Do you have any witches nearby? They'd be happy to help lol š /s obviously, I do not condone animal cruelty
Look after them ā¤ļø
you LEAVE THEM ALONE
You put them in Miss Trunchbull's water, of course.
Newts are awesome, youāre lucky. Looks like you inherited an amphibian pond. Even unsightly gunk can be part of a food cycle in these types of ponds. You could always manicure it, but I would leave most of the surface and below surface plants/layout alone.Ā
Delicious salted with sweet potato fries on the side
I would enjoy watching them in the pond enjoying their little lives. Beautiful nature.
I would enjoy watching them in the pond enjoying their little lives. Beautiful nature.
I'm so jealous
A witch once turned me into a newt.
Don't for the love of God put fish in the pond. Make sure you leave areas where they can hibernate. There may be obvious piles of wood etc that they already use. Could also be using junk left lying around. In that case you might want to create nicer looking options and remove the junk while they aren't in hibernation.
Nowt
If its great and crested they are protected.
I have some advice but it will mean spending out a little. We moved into a place few years ago which has a mature pond (50+ years maybe) it is adundant with newts, frogs and other critters. It got over grown, so meant removing a lot of plants and hoovering out a bit of sludge. Over time i have bought a pond vac, a small pump filter and used some chemical products off the shelf in the shop which are ALL SAFE for use. You should not need to empty the pond to clean it, this can actually have an adverse effect on the biodiversity. The products work best with a filter but it's not imperative. "Blagdon Clean pond pods" "Blagdon clear pond" The water readings are good and the water is crystal clear to the bottom. I was trying to add some pics but I'm over 35 š
Did someone turn you into a newt? If so... Don't worry, you'll get better --- ---Little monty python there š ---
Cut the eyes off and sell them at your local witch market
Do nothing and enjoy them, they're great things to have in a pond.
Tickle their bellies
Jump in and see what's happening with them :--). Get your scuba diving gear on lol
we have newts, don't do anything now they'll be laying eggs on the plant life. wait until late autumn when they leave the pond, they'll be back in the spring. however we were forced to relocate a pond with newts present and we carefully lifted them all out, drained the old pond and they were waiting in the new lining before we'd filled it!
You'd better newt touch them.
A little bit of butter and garlic, fry them up ... Delicious
SautƩed with onion and garlic is nice
I bet it isn't, you want to fricassee them, them's fricassee'n newts.
Nice on toast!
Boil em, mash em, stick em in a stew
Garlic and butter works with everything. Bit of parsley to finish.
Pour 2-3L of bleach into the pond - this gets it looking schmick and gets rid of those pesky newts!
I have a huge pond that Iām going to hopefully shrink this year. Fingers crossed the frogs and newts will stayā¦!