Pond Life

There are many different animals and plants living together in a pond.

Aquatic Plants

Plants that live in a pond are adapted to get all they need to survive. Surface leaves may be large to absorb as much light as possible, while underwater leaves are finer.

Aquatic Plants

Plants get their carbon dioxide from the water and often bubbles of oxygen can be seen escaping from leaves. Roots anchor the plant and take in minerals from the soil below.

Pond Life

In a healthy pond there is a wide variety of animal life. Some spend their whole life in the pond, like Waterboatman and Whirlygig Beetles, while others spend only a portion underwater, in a larval or nymph form, e.g. Dragonflies, Caddisflies, Damselflies.

Pond Life

There may also be frogs and newts

Pond Life

The number of all organisms in a pond is finely balanced.

Pond Life

Enough plants to produce oxygen and provide food for the herbivores, just enough herbivores to keep the numbers of plants steady and feed the carnivores, and only a few carnivores to control the number of herbivores.

Pond Life

So what of climate change? – the atmosphere is getting warmer and so will the ponds.
These temperature changes may have significant effects on pond life in the decades to come.

Scientists already know that :

Water plants are growing faster (helped as well by the excess nutrients provided by fertilisers that have washed off the fields).

Scientists already know that

Less oxygen is dissolved in warmer water.

Scientists already know that

Frogs are breeding earlier each year.