In deeper bodies of water, a permanent layer of ice would seal off the nutrient-rich bottom from the rest of the lake. In either case, the tale of life in Maine ponds would be completely rewritten. But ice does float, and that is the starting point for the complicated interactions that eventually give the salamander its strut. Sheltered from the bitter winter cold by an insulating layer of ice and snow, life in the pond continues. For some species, falling temperatures cause breathing to slow and metabolism to drop.
Fish get sluggish but continue to feed.
Many frogs, turtles and aquatic insects bury themselves in the mud and await the spring thaw. Other species adjust to the cold. The red-spotted newt, common in Maine ponds, gradually becomes acclimated to lower temperatures and can sometimes be seen swimming under the ice. At the water's edge, cattails and other plants die back to their roots, where carbohydrates produced in warmer weather are stored to fuel new life in spring. Eventually, the hours of daylight increase and temperatures begin to rise.