WITH her pond full of frogs, anybody might be forgiven for thinking Maggie Gilbert is in search of her Prince Charming.

But the aerobics teacher (pictured above), who is happily married to her husband, Dave, is simply hopping mad about the creatures.

Mrs Gilbert, of Ilkley, said: "I just think they are smashing. They're good for the environment. They eat a lot of things that are bad for your garden. I just think they're lovely."

Mrs Gilbert, 54, started collecting the frogs several years ago when she built a pond in the garden of her Ash Grove home.

She said: "When we were in the RAF and in married quarters we never did anything with the garden because we never knew how long we were going to be there.

"When we got this house I wanted the nicest garden possible. I started off with one little pond and I went to get some frog spawn. My love for the pond grew and we eventually made it bigger."

Since then, neighbours, friends - and strangers - have brought stray frogs to the pond.

Mrs Gilbert said: "People started to fetch me the frogs. They think 'I'll just put it in Maggie's pond'. I got two from a school in Saltaire that had no home.

"I have a really big yellow one that just arrived. I called her Wilomena."

There are now more than 30 frogs living happily among the water lilies and Mrs Gilbert has earned the title, 'The Frog Lady of Ash Grove'.

Mrs Gilbert, who has three children - Sean, 31, Jason, 28, and Vicky, 24 - also has a collection of toys and ornaments based on frogs.

Even the letter-headed paper she uses for her business, running seven aerobics classes, bears a frog design.

She said: "I must have 100 frogs in one form or another. I get things from all the girls in my classes. At one class two ladies had T-shirts printed with frogs on for me.

"Some people collect stamps. I just like frogs." (014-37AH)