Although our Conservation Program features many types of wetlands, including bogs, fens, and salt marshes, there is one wetland type that is little known to most of the general public. Vernal pools are critically important to the healthy populations of a certain species of frogs and salamanders.

A vernal pool is a temporary body of water that is typically filled with springtime rainwater and snowmelt that normally evaporates by late summer. That short period is normally enough time for species such as wood turtles and yellow and blue spotted salamanders to crawl out of the leaf litter during spring rains and make their way to these pools to lay their eggs. These eggs resemble green to clear lumpy Jello, with the frog eggs typically near the surface and the salamander eggs attached to twigs on the bottom of the pool. Our staff come across these pools occasionally and make sure we provide them with lots of shade and a natural travel corridor for the new frogs and salamanders to disperse in the woodlands. This site near Springhill is a rather large pool at 75 square metres and hosts several wood frog egg masses in the spring. Visit the site in late April and bring along a pair of polarized sunglasses to see for yourself!