On Earth Day, a group of volunteers met at a parking lot next to Lake Dunmore in Salisbury for a field trip to a vernal pool. Also known as ephemeral pools, they are temporary, shallow wetlands that appear in the spring and are fish-free breeding grounds for amphibians. The pools have no permanent inlet or outlet, and they generally dry up by late summer.
The expedition was organized by Vermont Center for Ecostudies biologist Kevin Tolan, who has been observing and mapping these vibrant ecosystems online in the Vermont Vernal Pool Atlas and Vermont Vernal Pool Monitoring Project. Herpetologist Jim Andrews, who manages the Vermont Reptile & Amphibian Atlas, led the group along the quarter-mile scenic walk through the woods to the vernal pool. Along the way, folks checked under logs and found an eastern red-backed salamander, which doesn’t need water to reproduce.
The pool was about 20 by 35 feet and perhaps a foot and a half deep. Tolan wore thigh-high waders to fetch spotted salamander egg masses from the center of the water. He showed them to the volunteers and used photos to help distinguish them from wood frog and Jefferson salamander eggs.
These gatherings encourage people to become volunteer community scientists who will help monitor vernal pools in their area and gather data for the atlases, leading to better conservation of these rich wildlife habitats.
In the latest episode of “Stuck in Vermont,” Seven Days senior multimedia producer Eva Sollberger was there to meet all the creepy-crawlies. On the walk back to their cars, the volunteers passed a stream and uncovered a few northern two-lined salamanders, which will soon lay their eggs in the river.
She spoke about filming the episode.
What drew you to this event?
I grew up in Johnson, and there was a small pond behind our apartment complex. As a child, I spent every warm day in that swampy muck, catching eggs and tadpoles and exploring. In 2017, I covered the spring amphibian migration on a damp night in Huntington. That evening, we met many “herps” — amphibians and reptiles — and it filled me with childlike glee. Spending the afternoon at a vernal pond sounded like a perfect Earth Day activity.
Whom did you encounter?
It was an eclectic group of people. Some had science backgrounds and were from the Salisbury Conservation Commission, but there was also a young girl with her family and even a dog. One person was doing research for a children’s book and took a lot of notes.
I’d heard Jim Andrews on the radio — he was recently a guest on “Vermont Edition” — but never met him in person. He has spent more than 40 years working tirelessly to document herps, and his enthusiasm is palpable. As Tolan is busy mapping vernal pools, Andrews is adding herps to the Vermont Reptile & Amphibian Atlas. Both of them ask for help from the community to improve their databases.
Seeing the vernal pools and seeing the egg masses, I feel like it’s hopeful.
Kim Callahan
Kim Callahan, a volunteer from New Haven, has vernal pools in her area and was excited to learn about what life they contain. “Seeing the vernal pools and seeing the egg masses, I feel like it’s hopeful,” she said.
When will the eggs hatch?
The eggs we saw will probably hatch into larvae in early and late May and will be born with external gills. Once they become juvenile salamanders, they will leave the pond in late July or early August. If the water dries up before then, they won’t make it. Good luck to them all. ➆
The original print version of this article was headlined “Pool Party | Citizen-scientists explore a vernal pool in Salisbury”
This article appears in May 6 • 2026.
Got something to say?
Send a letter to the editor and we'll publish your feedback in print!
