The eggs will hatch into salamander tadpoles and in one or two months turn into yellow spotted salamanders. They will spend their first year near the pool, and then, like their parents, disappear into the woods until nature calls them as adults. Learn About Vernal Pools Vernal pools are a type of wetland. They may appear at first to be nasty places, full of During the summer, when the pool is dry, there is little apparent life. But when the pool fills with winter rain or melting snow, it teems with life.
Some insects lie dormant under the soil all summer, waking when the water comes.
Eggs begin to hatch as soon as the water covers them. Fairy shrimp eggs may wait 20 years or more for the water to reach them. Copepods and fairy shrimp hatch into the freezing water of January, truly an amazing sight. Vernal pools by definition are temporary with no inlet or outlet, so there are no hungry fish or bullfrog tadpoles. This makes them safe places for frogs and salamanders to lay their eggs.