Shared by Tom Kneipp, as Guest Blogger.

The word “vernal” means “spring," as in the season.

Quarry Pool

Vernal pools are small bodies of water that become available to wildlife beginning in the early winter and reach their most productive stage within a couple months. By summer, most pools dry up. The salamanders that utilize them remain terrestrial until the rains of late winter and spring restore the pools.

The Marbled Salamander will be waiting on a dry pool bed for the waters to wash over their eggs and provide exactly what the eggs need to develop. Spotted Salamanders wait until the pool’s water is deep enough for their needs, and then gather for the “Big Night," when eggs are laid and fertilized. Once the eggs of either species are set, the adults return to their terrestrial ways. Wood Frogs also use the pools as a repository for their eggs.

Ranger Kneipp explains about life in a vernal pool

There are several vernal pools in the Cumberland State Forest that surrounds Bear Creek Lake State Park. Seeing vernal pools without recognizing their significance causes many people to think that they are just wet spots holding water runoff from surrounding areas but beyond acting in that role they are not very important. Some pooled water is simply a collection point, but a true vernal pool is a natural wonder. A vernal pool is the epicenter of a unique world containing species or stages of life of flora and fauna found only there and not in the surrounding area.

What is equally important is what doesn’t live there: fish. Since these pools are fairly shallow and dry up annually, fish species cannot survive there. This allows a certain group of animals a better chance of survival. Marbled and Spotted Salamanders depend on these pools to exist. Without these pools their lifecycle would be broken. At the immature stage, these animals are aquatic and resemble tadpoles. At maturity they leave the pools to live a terrestrial life. Producing the next generation is not always an easy task.

Precipitation, temperature, and timing are all unpredictable factors that determine the salamanders’ reproductive success. Will there be enough precipitation to maintain the pool? Will there be enough tree canopy early in spring to offset evaporation on increasingly warmer days? Will the pool location have been drained or filled in for human use?

Spotted Salamander

The circle of life can be cruel or kind to these charismatic forest dwellers and demands that they be Salamander Strong. By identifying and understanding these unique habitats, perhaps we can keep these complex and colorful creatures off the list of extinct animals who only need a place to call home.

For more information on these resilient animals, visit this site.

For more information on Bear Creek Lake State Park, please click here. For more information on all your Virginia State Parks, please click here.