Schooling Tadpoles

Yesterday evening I noticed 3 or 4 large schools of tadpoles in my pond. This is a first for me. It was dug in August and filled with TS Imelda. I haven't stocked it but there are warmouth and bass from the bayou that filled it. Is it common occurrence for tadpoles to school? Seems like they'd be easy picking for the fish.

I don't see them in my backyard pond anymore.

I've read that sometimes tiny guys like that will school together to look like a bigger fish, so predators avoid them.

X2

I can't see your picture well on my phones small screen.
Are you sure they're tadpoles?

This time of year Mud cat fry congregate in balls for protection. Usually appear like black balls from softball size up to beach ball size.
Tadpole schools are usually lighter color. Mud cat balls are black.

Might be a good idea to get a long handle fine mesh dip net and catch some to be sure they're tadpoles.

Because if they're not tadpoles you probably want to take action to prevent mud cat taking over.

Never seen that before either, pretty cool

I call them bullheads .

That is cool.

I have seen tadpoles do that before and just like a large school of fish there is safety in numbers.

Kind of like when you are shooting at a covey of quail. You have to pick an individual bird to shoot at. If you shoot at the whole group you won't hit anything.

Nailed it. I don't miss.

I'll take my pool skimmer over this evening or tomorrow and see if I can't scoop some out.

Much easier to line them up on the ground.

Kind of like shooting dove off a mesquite tree branch.

I do that too the sooner I get a limit, the sooner I can eat them.

Looks like catfish to me.

Whether tadpoles or mudcats (they both will school) they are both hard to school. They don't want to larn for nuthin.