Cool, rainy spring days are perfect for the formation of vernal pools. Vernal pools are temporary pools of water that form in early spring, hence the name, and dry out during the summer. Because of the pools’ temporary existence, fish can not take up residence which makes them appear to be lifeless.
The temporary nature of vernal pools also makes them vulnerable to interference. A wet area that suddenly appears in someone’s backyard or new lawn is undesirable and tends to get filled in before it happens again.
But nature notices these pools and there are animals whose lives depend on them. These animals are frogs and salamanders. Many types of frogs and salamanders need to lay their eggs in water. The water is necessary because frogs and salamanders don’t hatch out of their eggs looking like miniature adults like birds or lizards. They hatch out of their eggs looking more like fish. At this stage they are called tadpoles and have a fin-like tail and gills. Most tadpoles are not cared for by their parents and in fact the parents usually leave right after the eggs are laid.
A tadpole’s only defense from predators is to hide. They tend to be darkly colored like the rotten leaves at the bottom of a pond. It also helps if they can grow and develop in a pond free of predators like fish. This is where vernal pools come in.
Long wet springs allow plenty of time for the tadpoles to develop into frogs or salamanders. Short hot dry springs cause the vernal pools to dry up before the tadpole have developed. Filling in or draining vernal pools forces frogs and salamander to lay their eggs in less than ideal locations leaving us with fewer frogs or salamanders to find, leading to fewer tadpoles making it to adulthood and making our lives less interesting.
