IT’S true to say that on the whole, wildlife can be a bit unpredictable, and I speak from the experience of many years trying to film it.

But here in the wildlife garden at least, one thing has always been very predictable indeed – spawning time in the pond. And that’s why I get very excited at this time of the year because any time from now on, the whole process could start up, quite literally overnight.

Males attract the females by croaking and are easily identified by their white throats as well as their smaller size.

Frogs can lay well over 1,000 eggs, which on average take about ten days to hatch. The high number of eggs laid ensures that at least some of the young will make it to adulthood as the survival rate is extremely low. For instance, out of 2,000 eggs laid, only an average of five of those that hatch will make it through to adulthood.

Tadpoles start life on a vegetarian diet, but as they grow and develop they turn carnivorous, even to the point of cannibalism. Larger tadpoles also release enzymes into the water which stunt the growth of their younger siblings – it’s a hard life being a tadpole.

Eventually, though, some do make it through to adulthood and climb out of the water as small frogs. Then, two to three years later, they themselves are ready to breed and start the whole spawning cycle again.