These serve as habitat for animals too, and they are used by some as food. On a warm day in summer you can see large dragonflies sitting on the leaves of these plants with their wings outspread, waiting for an insect, such as a mosquito or gnat, to fly by and make a meal for them. You may also see a dragonfly flying near the surface of the pond, touching the surface again and again with its long tail. Each time it touches, the female dragonfly leaves an egg that will hatch into a baby called a larva that will be a carnivore and grow until it is large enough to transform into the adult dragonfly. Sometimes a bass or bluegill sees the ripple in the water made by the dragonfly's tail.
Bullfrogs are another animal that lives in and out of the pond.
Adult bullfrogs are often seen at the water's surface, waiting for an unsuspecting insect or other small animal to come by and provide a snack. At night, when it is cool and damp, bullfrogs may leave the pond and feed on earthworms and nocturnal insects, but they return to the water during the day. In summer the adult bullfrogs make a loud, bellowing courtship call in the pond and then mate. The eggs they lay hatch into tadpoles. Other animals may be seen around a pond.