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Quick answer
No newts could be linked to the weather; a declining population
may be a result of changes to local
habitats.
Further information
Amphibians breed in the
spring when they migrate towards water; this migration is
weather dependent (they prefer mild, wet evenings) and so is
determined by location - it tends to occur later in the north
and east of the country and earlier in the south. If the newts
have not arrived at your pond at the 'expected' time it's
unlikely to be anything to worry about, a cold or dry spell is
usually to blame.
Newts may arrive in ponds after other amphibians have left, as
they tend to breed a little later than frogs and toads. Newts
also migrate, but it tends to be more drawn out than frogs and
toads, with animals arriving at the pond over a longer period of
time. In general, newts will start to migrate in early spring
(February/March) but this could be earlier or later in different
parts of the country or if the spring is particularly mild or
cold.
In some cases, lack of breeding amphibians in your pond could be
the result of a population decline locally. This might be an
indicator of pond loss: ponds form 'stepping stones' for
amphibians across a landscape - if ponds disappear, so can local
populations of amphibians. Their terrestrial habitats are just
as important - amphibians spend a lot of time on land, foraging,
sheltering / hibernating and colonising new areas; if these
areas or 'corridors' have been blocked (by a new road or even a
fence) or destroyed (through development), the route to your
garden may have been lost.
Amphibian populations can fluctuate dramatically year on year,
so having years with low numbers of amphibians can be a natural
phenomenon and nothing to worry about. If no breeding adults
appear in your pond, there may be other juvenile amphibians in
the area that will turn up next year as breeding adults (they
take two or three years to reach breeding age). An outbreak of
disease in previous years or a particularly hard winter could
also impact on numbers returning. You may be tempted to
introduce some adult newts or eggs from elsewhere to try and help your local
population but we advise against this. By doing this you can
accidentally introduce diseases and invasive pond plants.
Making your
garden amphibian-friendly.
Just
Add Water - pond creation advice.
Identifying
newts.
Nature's Calendar
- maps where and when amphibians are spawning each spring.
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