Backyard Nature: A hotspot for the amphibian set is missing some voices

by Marlene Berlin

If you ever wish to commune with bullfrogs (and who doesn’t?), one of the best local spots is Lily Pad Pond at Tregaron Conservancy between Cleveland Park and Woodley Park. Or so I thought.

Tregaron Conservancy’s lovely Lily Pad Pond in 2018.

The pond was hopping when I first sought it out in July 2018. And one day in early August, I decided to hike there, again in search of these vociferous frogs. Normally, I can hear them even before I arrive, but this time, no bullfrogs greeted me.

No bullfrogs, but a lot of hornwort in the water…

….and by the side of the pond.

What I did see were piles of green plants which had been pulled from the water and laid by the side of the pond. And the water was shimmering at times, but it difficult to see the cause. I was disappointed.

Later, I called Lynn Parseghian, Tregaron’s executive director. She was happy to chat with me about the happenings at the pond. She assured me there are frogs, and while bullfrogs were there in the spring, they had yet to put in a summer appearance. And who knows? They might come back to entertain us later on.

The current resident frogs are green frogs.

Tregaron’s Lynn Parseghian sent this nighttime photo of a green frog at the pond.

At night, they sing in a great chorus by the side of the pond, and if anyone approaches, they hop in. Occasionally, Parseghian hears them during the day, tooo. And, she said, the shimmering I saw was probably due to goldfish and native killifish swimming about.

Parseghian also explained the pile of plants. Lily Pad Pond is man-made, with no spring to feed it. So it needs lots of intervention to maintain its beauty. When I visited, Tregaron was at the first stage of “demucking” the pond, a process that’s repeated every five to six years. Demucking begins with pulling out the hornwort, a native and aggressive water plant.

The next stage happens in the winter, when they clear out the mud as well as anything else they find. It is not unusual to find dog toys. They spread the mud near the pond, and come spring, the frogs that have been hibernating jump back in.

More water plants will also be planted: Hermine water lilies to accompany the green arrow arum, royal blue pickerel rush, hardy water canna and button bush that are all thriving in the pond.