We keep buying snails for our small wildlife pond but they keep disappearing! At first we thought it was the dragonfly larvae but I am now finding the odd empty shell on the side of the pond so birds must be having a go too. It is costing us a fortune as the snails don't seem to breed either - what are we doing wrong? All the other wildlife seems OK and the pond appears very healthy.
Hi Wagtail
Cuould this be the work of a cheeky blackbird i wonder? They frequently raid ponds for food feeding quite happily on tadpoles and even fish fry.
The only thing i can think of doing to give the snails a chance is to plant some marginal vegetation that gives them additional cover. If that does not work then you may just have to admit defeat and let your pond develop naturally. Amazingly pond snails seem to be able to find ponds by themselves in time, i suspect this is usually through accidental introductions when their eggs are attached to plants.
Have a look at the pond conservation website as they have lots of information about pond dwelling creatures including snails.
Warden Intern at Otmoor.
Hi wagtail we had a Blackbird that took a liking to the snails in the garden pond and as so many birds enjoy bathing while sitting on the weed and many drink from the pond we just gave up on the snails.
Ian H said: Hi Wagtail Cuould this be the work of a cheeky blackbird i wonder? They frequently raid ponds for food feeding quite happily on tadpoles and even fish fry. The only thing i can think of doing to give the snails a chance is to plant some marginal vegetation that gives them additional cover. If that does not work then you may just have to admit defeat and let your pond develop naturally. Amazingly pond snails seem to be able to find ponds by themselves in time, i suspect this is usually through accidental introductions when their eggs are attached to plants. Have a look at the pond conservation website as they have lots of information about pond dwelling creatures including snails.
Hi Ian
Thank you. We do have a lot of blackbirds and they are forever pulling at the plants around the pond so they could well be the culprits.
Hi there. I have seen blackbirds take pond snails out of our very shallow small pond so I agree they are a likely culprit. The snails seem to have multiplied rapidly & there's loads of them left. We acquired them from a local pond so maybe they are particularly hardy or don't taste that good or something so only a few get eaten. I guess the pond being close to the house probably puts a few birds off too.
Thank you Sooty, I agree with you that it is the blackbirds. We have a lot of them in the garden and they are always around the pond so like you I think we will give up on the snails.
Thank you too Mags - I think we all agree that it is the blackbirds but it is really nice that you have all taken the time to respond. I shall just let nature take its course.
Hi again Ian, just to say thanks I have had a look at the pond conservation and it is very interesting - I had been looking for a site like this for quite a while and have now added to my favourites.
No problem, glad to be of help!