I am not totally sure that I like tadpoles with bodies nearly as big as golf balls….  The pond was absolutely swarming with them, in the shallow sunny section near the dam.  I’d estimate one to the inch quite confidently, over a 20 foot by 3 foot section. They ranged in size from the expected tadpole size to the aforementioned golf ball size.  Why we have fall tadpoles, I am not sure.  It says good things about the water quality, even better things can be said about the sighting of a Yellow-spotted black salamander happily swimming in a shallow section.

skittish critters though, I think something must be hunting them; they would react to the slightest shadow or vibration.