Since 1992
Print and digital marketing
BRIDGTON — Vernal pools are temporary bodies of water found in our forested lands in the springtime. By late spring, these pools begin to dry up for the remainder of the year but not before they provide an important breeding habitat to a variety of animals such as wood frogs, spotted salamanders and possibly the rare fairy shrimp.
Join Loon Echo Biologist Paul Miller Saturday, April 29, at 10 a.m. to learn more about these unique bodies of water as he leads participants to a vernal pool five-minutes up Pleasant Mountain’s Ledges Trail.
Access to the pool is a short walk in from the Ledges Trail-head; however, sturdy hiking boots or shoes are still recommended for this two-hour program. Participants will have an opportunity to learn more about vernal pool ecology and experience first-hand some of the animals inhabiting the pool.
If conditions are right, egg sacks, soon turning into the next generation of frogs and salamanders, will be visible. The Ledges Trail parking area is located three miles down Mountain Road from its junction with Route 302.
For more information, contact Miller at biologist@lelt.org.
Loon Echo Land Trust protects nearly 6,700 acres of land and manages 31 miles of multi-use trails in the northern Sebago Lake region.
CAPTION: Egg masses found in a vernal pool by Paul Miller, Loon Echo Land Trust biologist. (Submitted photo.)
