Submitted for your analysis:

07/02/2005
500 U.S. gallon fiberglass pond populated by seven (7) water hyacinths, two (2) hardy shubunkin fish, & approximately too many (2 many) <i>bufo americanus</i> tadpoles.

07/12/2005
Fish lethargic, tadpoles inscrutable. Test detects excessive biotoxins in water. 50% water change indicated.

07/13/2005
Early morning water change performed. Recommended amount of anti-ammonia chemistry added in conjunction with vigorous 12-hour pump filtration/aeration. Meanwhile, mating pair of <i>bufo americanus</i> relocated to nearby tidal marsh.

07/17/2005
Shubunkin fish gasping for precious oxygen at pond surface. Tadpoles totally absent. Exploratory probe with fine-mesh net confirms approximately too many (2 many) <i>bufo americanus</i> tadpoles are now deceased and decaying on bottom of pond. Shocked shubunkin temporarily transferred to piscatorial elysian fields while tadpole corpses are collected and committed to crudely prepared trench (appropriate farewells invoked). Shubunkin fish restored to pond after water is reconditioned and are now doing well.

Conclusion: Benefits of <i>bufo americanus</i> tadpoles in artificial pond environments may be somewhat overrated. Potential for catastrophic impact upon previously serene environment far outweighs modest benefits.

Mister Bullfrog, I have a few questions.

You had just the number two of toad tadpoles? If so, they would hardly result in problems with high ammonia or low oxygen in a 500 gallon pond. Or, were there a lot of toad eggs and tadpoles? One egg laying is normally hundreds of toads. If the pond is not properly aerated and filtered or too small, then the ammonia may spike and/or the oxygen go down.

How did you test for said "biotoxins?" What exactly are we talking about? Just ammonia? That's inorganic (not a biotoxin).

Good aeration and filtration as well as doing water changes and adding carbon to the pond may have all helped. Removal of some of the toad eggs and tadpoles to another pond would also reduce the impact.

Your two goldfish are both still alive, right? So, they weathered the Bufo storm.

My toad page has more information - http://www.fishpondinfo.com/toad.htm

at stores you can by plants that bust oxygen. You might consider building a water fall.

"Too many" bufonidae tadpoles means just that . . . perhaps fifteen hundred of them. All had perished and begun weaving a disgusting carpet of malodorous sludge at the bottom of my pond.

Testing was performed using reliable procedures for extracting selected volatile, semivolatile, and nonvolatile organic compounds from fluid matrices. My methods employed analysis of ultraviolet spectral molecular chemistry and careful examination of conventional reactive substances.

Detected biotoxins included highly noxious components of tadpole fecal discharge and corporal decomposition, such as vaporous methane (CH4), excessive carbon dioxide (CO²) & ammonia (NH3) levels, and sundry unpleasant effluviae too numerous and esoteric for lay discussion. FYI, ammonia IS considered a biotoxin when said compound is generated during the process of organic decomposition. That my shubunkins survived this absolutely poisonous assault at all is laudable testament to approximately 155 million years of uninterrupted modern terran icthyological perseverance.

Aeration and filtration of my pond is both aggressive and vigorous.

BTW, please enable HTML tags in your messageboard options.

make sure your frogs dont breed again!:)

""Too many" bufonidae tadpoles means just that . . . perhaps fifteen hundred of them. All had perished and begun weaving a disgusting carpet of malodorous sludge at the bottom of my pond."

Ok, I got confused by your using too and 2 many. If there were 1500 toad tadpoles in 500 gallons, there still shouldn't have been such a die off of the tadpoles. If more eggs are laid, I suggest moving them to another watering hole.

"Testing was performed using reliable procedures for extracting selected volatile, semivolatile, and nonvolatile organic compounds from fluid matrices. My methods employed analysis of ultraviolet spectral molecular chemistry and careful examination of conventional reactive substances."

Ok, I'm a chemist. You can be more specific. I'm afraid I can't make sense of what you're saying. You did UV spectra on the water? That wouldn't tell you much unless you did HPLC which is what I do for a living.

"Detected biotoxins included highly noxious components of tadpole fecal discharge and corporal decomposition, such as vaporous methane (CH4), excessive carbon dioxide (CO²) & ammonia (NH3) levels, and sundry unpleasant effluviae too numerous and esoteric for lay discussion. FYI, ammonia IS considered a biotoxin when said compound is generated during the process of organic decomposition. That my shubunkins survived this absolutely poisonous assault at all is laudable testament to approximately 155 million years of uninterrupted modern terran icthyological perseverance."

I doubt you captured gas around your pond and ran it through a GC for the methane test. You can buy hobbyist test kits for CO2 and NH3 of course. One can use all the fancy and difficult words in the world (which individually I understand) but the whole resultant effluant lacks my complete comprehension.

"BTW, please enable HTML tags in your messageboard options."

As far as I know, they are enabled. I will look.