Delightful footage has been taken of frogs singing a “croaking chorus” as the first frogspawn of the year was spotted in Ceredigion.

Wildlife photographer Simon Batty shared videos of a group of frogs he found in Coed Y Bont, Pontrhydfendigaid, last week.

The footage shows a whole family of frogs climbing over each other, cuddling and mating amongst fresh globs of newly laid frogspawn.

Simon said: “With this mild weather the frog numbers are increasing rapidly in my local ponds. Over the coming days numbers will often exceed 500 or 600 mating frogs at the ponds and it’s very therapeutic listening to the orchestra as croaking.

“They started spawning on the first of February and by the fifth, there were over 1,000 breeding frogs with a mass of spawn.”

The video provides ASMR for relaxing ambient watching.

Frogspawn has been spotted popping up in puddles and ponds across Ceredigion and Powys, with residents rescuing frogspawn from puddles in roads and birdbaths.

However experts say to not move frogspawn if you can help it, as this can spread non-native plant species and amphibian diseases.

There may be rival amphibians already eyeing up a pond to lay their spawn in, or the body of water may be naturally unsuitable as a nursery for the tiny frogs or toads. The spawn may also naturally fail, thriving best in ponds with plenty of natural sunlight and warmth.

Frogspawn takes approximately three to four weeks to hatch and become wriggling tadpoles. From then it takes roughly 14 weeks for tadpoles to become fully grown frogs, whilst toad spawn takes even longer.

Toad spawn is distinguishable as a string or chain rather than a clump. This is a risky time for toads who often cross roads to migrate to habitats for spawning, especially at night. To care for your neighbour amphibians, out for road signs in your local area warning of toad crossings.