Vernal Pool Book

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Wood Frog

Rana sylvatica

small rog, ~2 inches sounds similar to people

laughing

M.Currie / TNC M.Currie / TNC M.Currie / TNC

Spotted Salamander

Ambystoma maculatum

6-8 inches long spends most o its time

underground breeds in early to mid-March

Marbled Salamander

Ambystoma opacum

smallest mole salamander inPennsylvania, 4-5 inches

emales lay eggs in dry poolbeds and guard the eggsuntil they hatch

breeds in September

indicator species o woodland vernal pools

pennsylvania Vernal Pool

Identifcation Guide



Now you see it, now you don’t

Woodland vernal pools are temporary bodies o water that are typically wet in the winter andspring but dry up by mid-summer. Vernal pools are primarily ound in orested areas and arecharacterized by absence o sh, lack o fowing water, small size, shallow depth, and presence o plants and animals that can withstand a period o drought (Brown and Jung 2005).

Many species o amphibians (rogs, toads, and salamanders), insects, and crustaceans areadapted to breed in vernal pools. This is because vernal pools provide an ideal nursery where

their young can mature. The dry period reduces or eliminates populations o dominant com-petitors and predators such as sh, which cannot survive drought, and bullrogs, which usuallytake more than a year to develop rom tadpole to adult. The presence o these voracious eatingmachines in permanent wetlands is the main reason vernal pool species have adapted to breed intemporary wetlands. Protecting vernal pools and the surrounding 1000 eet o upland habitat iscritical or protection o water quality, amphibian breeding, and terrestrial habitat or adult and

juvenile amphibians (Brown and Jung 2005).

What is a woodland vernal pool?

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Cover phoTo of a Wood frog (Lithobates syLvaticus ) TakeN by M. Currie/ TNC



Wood Frog

Rana sylvatica


laughing


Spotted Salamander

Ambystoma maculatum



Marbled Salamander

Ambystoma opacum



breeds in September


M.Currie/ TNC

A vegetated woodland vernal pool with Golden Club (Orontium aquaticum), an uncommon wetland plant



Wetland Oasis

Vernal pool wetlands usually lose all o their surace water over the course o the summer. Mostpools in Pennsylvania slowly rell during the all and winter. They reach their maximum size withthe requent rains and melting snows o early spring, in time or the arrival o masses o breedingrogs and salamanders. To identiy a pool during the wet period, look or the indicator specieslisted on pages 5-6. Indicator species are animals that “rely on seasonal pools as essential habitat

or a portion o their lie-cycle” (Brown and Jung 2005). The best time to look or vernal pool amphib-ians as adults, egg masses, and larvae is between March and May.

A Disappearing Act

A key characteristic o a vernal pool is that it dries in the summer or all. While the dry periodlessens predation pressure, the cycle o lling and drying creates a uniquely harsh and unpredict-able living environment. Vernal pool species use a variety o strategies to survive the summerdrought. Many species have an aquatic immature phase and leave as terrestrial adults beore thepool dries. Mobile species can reely move between temporary and permanent waters. A variety o

insects and crustaceans have drought-resistant eggs that lie dormant in the pool bottom until thewaters return.

To identiy a pool during its dry phase, look or a depression o water-stained, decomposingleaves and debris; trees with buttressed trunks; tree trunks with stains marking high water levels;hydric soils; and wetland plants growing in dry soil (Brown and Jung 2005). Examples o commonvernal pool plants are shown on pages 9-10.

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Wood Frog

Rana sylvatica


laughing


Spotted Salamander

Ambystoma maculatum



Marbled Salamander

Ambystoma opacum



breeds in September


Two vernal pools in their dry (let) and wet (right) phasesJ. derr/ TNC



Spotted Salamander

Ambystoma maculatum Large and dark with yellow

spots, 6-8 inches long Most common o Pennsylva-

nia’s ve mole salamanders Like all mole salamanders,

spends most o the yearunderground

Breeds in March, oten ormslarge breeding congregations

M.Currie/ TNC M.Currie/ TNC C. eiChelberger/ pNhp

Marbled Salamander

Ambystoma opacum Short, chunky, black and

white, 4-5 inches long Only all-breeding mole sala-

mander (August–September) Females lay their eggs in dry

pool beds and guard themuntil the pools food.

Jeerson Salamander

Ambystoma jeersonianum Slender and dark with blue

fecking on sides, 4-7 incheslong

Conspicuously long toes First mole salamander to

arrive in the spring (February–March), oten crossing snowand ice

Note: The Blue-spotted Sala-mander (Ambystoma laterale) isa similar species that is rarelyencountered in Pennsylvania.It is currently known romonly three counties.

VERNAL POOL INDICATOR ANIMALS

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Wood Frog

Lithobates sylvaticus Small earth-toned rog with

a black mask, ~2 inches long Raucous call sounds similar

to people laughing or ducksquacking.

Breeds February–March;lays sot egg clusters in largecommunal rats

M.Currie/ TNC M. redMer l. keNNey

Eastern Spadeoot

Scaphiopus holbrookii Small primitive species o

rog, 2-3 inches in size Endangered in Pennsylvania Like mole salamanders, a

‘ossorial’ species that spendsmost o the year under-ground

Their hind eet are equippedwith a hard projection theyuse as a digging “spade” toburrow into sandy soils.

Springtime Fairy Shrimp

Eubranchipus vernalis A large vernal pool crusta-

cean, 0.5 to ~2 inches in size Lays tough eggs that can

pass unharmed through thegut o a bird or lie dormantor decades in a dry poolbed

Eggs hatch when the poolsll with water in winter orearly spring.



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Green Frog

(Lithobates clamitans)

M.Currie/ TNC C. eiChelberger/ pNhp J. derr/ TNC

Spring Peeper

(Pseudacris crucifer)

Red-spotted Newt

(Notophthalmus viridescens)

Swamp Darner(Epiaeschna heros)

b. leppo/ pNhp b. Moul r. koval

Meadowhawk(Sympetrum sp.)

Four-toed Salamander(Hemidactylium scutatum)

OTHER COMMON VERNAL POOL ANIMALS

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Where and why vernal pools hold water depends on where the water comes rom, the soils under the pool, and where the poolis ound on the landscape. Water can enter pools rom the surace via run-o rom rain and melting snows or rom fooding o nearby streams, ponds, or lakes. Water can enter the pool rom below when the water table is near the surace and intersects thepool basin.

The soils under perched vernal pools are usually very “tight” and can slow or stop the downward movement o water. Soil tight-ness is usually due to a high clay content or a hardpan layer. Hardpans typically orm in soils where the water table fuctuates nearthe surace, causing dissolved minerals to concentrate in a narrow band that hardens and becomes airly impervious to water. Incontrast, vernal pools on foodplains may have very porous soils with water moving reely below the ground surace. The waterlevel in a foodplain pool may be directly related to the water level in a nearby stream or river.

Where a pool lies on the landscape (e.g. topography and geology) also aects hydrology. In Pennsylvania, vernal pools can oc-cur on high ridgetops. Here, the only source o water is rainall and melting winter snow. In contrast, vernal pools that occur atthe oot o a mountain may be lled with groundwater. A pool located on a slope may actually receive groundwater on the upslopeside and discharge it to the water table on the downslope side.

The hydrology o vernal pools can vary rom year to year depending on the weather patterns, precipitation, stream fow, watertable levels, etc. I you observe the same pond over a number o years, you will see variations in how long it holds water, when itgoes dry, and when it rells.

Finding vernal pools in Pennsylvania

Important actors in vernal pool ormation are precipitation, topography, soil permeability, and bedrock. Vernal pools orm un-der a variety o hydrologic and geologic conditions that vary by region. In Pennsylvania, vernal pools most commonly orm:

in rolling, glaciated terrain with poorly developed drainage networks (northeast and northwest); on ridgetops and plateaus, in ridgetop saddles at the headwaters o small streams, and on the toeslopes o mountains (ridge and

valley, unglaciated plateau);

in poorly drained valley bottoms and lowlands (Piedmont, statewide);

in fooded depressions, back channels, and abandoned oxbows o streams and rivers (statewide).

VERNAL POOL SOILS AND HYDROLOGY



9

In addition to wetland hydrology and soils, the presence o wetland vegetation is another impor-tant indicator o a vernal pool. Vernal pools hold water long enough to develop wetland (hydric)soils, and oten support water-loving (hydrophytic) plants, though some pool basins are completelyunvegetated. The ollowing plants are commonly ound in or at the edge o vernal pools.

Common Name Scientifc Name Plant Type

Cinnamon ern Osmunda cinnamomea herbaceous

Manna and meadow grasses Glyceria acutiora, herbaceous G. canadensis, G. melicaria,G. septentrionalis, Torreyochloa pallida

Marsh ern Thelypteris palustris herbaceous

Northeastern bulrush Scirpus ancistrochaetus* herbaceous

Rice cut-grass Leersia oryzoides herbaceous

Royal ern Osmunda regalis herbaceousSedges Carex gynandra, C. crinita, C. canescens, herbaceous

C. vesicaria, C. lupulina

Three-way sedge Dulichium arundinaceum herbaceous

Wool-grass Scirpus cyperinus herbaceous

Buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis shrub

Highbush blueberry Vaccinium corymbosum shrub

Winterberry Ilex verticillata shrub

Pin oak Quercus palustris treeRed maple Acer rubrum tree

Sourgum Nyssa sylvatica tree

Swamp white oak Quercus bicolor tree

* A rare plant ound in vernal pools; A Federally endangered species

VERNAL POOL PLANTS

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Blister sedge Carex vesicaria

b. leppo/ pNhp g. gress/TNC b. leppo/ pNhp

ButtonbushCephalanthus occidentalis

Cinnamon ernOsmunda cinnamomea

WinterberryIlex verticillata

b. leppo/ pNhp C. eiChelberger/ pNhp M.Currie/ TNC

Northeastern bulrushScirpus ancistrochaetus

Highbush blueberryVaccinium corymbosum



Ephemeral: Typically dries up every summer and rells in late winter or early spring.

No sh: Seasonal drying maintains a shless environment that is necessary or successulreproduction by indicator species.

No fow: No permanent inlets or outlets o fowing surace water.

Indicator species: Presence o mole salamanders (Jeerson, Marbled, or Spotted), WoodFrogs, Eastern Spadeoot, or Fairy Shrimp.

Wetland plants: Presence o water-loving plants; see page 9 or a list o common species.Note that some vernal pools will not have any wetland vegetation.

Dry phase: Evidence o water-stained leaves in a depression, buttressed and/or water-stainedtree trunks, presence o sphagnum moss and/or other wetland plants growing in dry soil,

and wetland soils.

VERNAL POOL EVIDENCE - SUMMARY CHECKLIST

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C. eiChelberger/ pNhpb. leppo/ pNhp

Buttressed tree Sphagnum moss

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Brown, L. J. and R.E. Jung. 2005. “An introduction to Mid-Atlantic Seasonal Pools,” EPA-903-B-05-001. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Mid-Atlantic Integrated Assessment, Ft. Meade,Maryland. epa.gov/bioiweb1/pd/EPA-903-B-05-001AnIntroductiontoMid-AtlanticSeasonalPools.pd

Environmental Laboratory. 1987. “Corps o Engineers Wetlands Delineation Manual,” TechnicalReport Y-87-1, U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, Miss.

Hulse, A.C., C. J. McCoy and E. J. Censky. 2001. Amphibians and Reptiles o Pennsylvania and theNortheast. Cornell University Press, New York. 419 pp.

U.S.D.A. Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). 2009. Hydric Soils. Available atsoils.usda.gov/use/hydric

Web sites

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Comission Landowner Incentive Program (LIP): fsh.state.pa.us/promo/grants/lip/00lip.htm

Pennsylvania Game Commission Private Landowner Assistance Program (PLAP): pgc.state.pa.us/pgc/cwp/view.asp?a=513&q=168220

Pennsylvania Seasonal Pool Registry: WaterLandLie.org/54

Pennsylvania Herp Identication: Online Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians o Pennsylvania:

paherps.com/herps

Pennsylvania Herpetological Atlas: paherpatlas.org

The Nature Conservancy’s Vernal Pools Web site: nature.org/pavernalpools

RESOURCES



The Nature Conservancy: nature.org/pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program: naturalheritage.state.pa.us

Messiah College: messiah.edu

Western Pennsylvania Conservancy: WaterLandLie.org

About us

This project was unded in part by grants received by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy: The Community Conservation Partnerships Program, Environmental Stewardship Fund, ad-

ministered by the Pennsylvania Department o Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau o Recreation & Conservation

The U.S. Fish and Wildlie Service Landowner Incentive Program (LIP), administered by the

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission

messiah.edu

Vernal Pool Book

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