Vernal Pools and Amphibians in Ontario

This year I waited anxiously for the perfect weather, warm rainy nights that would spark an annual migration. Then I went to a few places I know of with vernal pools looking for breeding amphibians. Some years I have seen so many salamanders that your photos were bombed by multiple salamanders all heading down into the pools. This year the weather was a bit spotty but the salamanders did move in fairly large numbers. The night was rainy and cold but the tiny amphibians were moving to the ponds.

Suspected Jefferson-Blue Spotted Salamander Complex

When I arrived at the first pond the usual chorus of Spring Peepers and Wood Frogs wasn't quite in full force but they were calling.  Pickerel Frogs aren't rare in Ontario but they are uncommon finds in the areas I was looking in.

Pickerel Frog (Lithobates palustris)

 Pickerel Frogs look very similar to Northern Leopard Frogs but are identified by two rows of square spots along the back, bright yellow inner thighs and a lack of bright outlines to the spots,

Pickerel Frog (Lithobates palustris)

 Four-toed Salamanders are small, but this particular individual was so insanely tiny that it was the smallest salamander I have ever seen.

Four-toed Salamander (Hemidactylium scutatum)

Four-toed Salamander (Hemidactylium scutatum)

Skunk Cabbage is one of the first flowers to come up in the spring and is specific to seeps and vernal pools. The large flowers come out before the leaves and attract flies with their smell and shape.

Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus)

Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus)

 At a different vernal pool, Spring Peepers were moving in mass. They were calling from the low shrubs around the pool and while floating on the surface of the ponds. The one particular individual below had a leech on its butt.

Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer)

Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer)

Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer)

  Wood Frogs are another early breeder that moves in mass and were calling from the edges of the pond or the surface. These frogs overwinter in the forests around vernal pools. They enter dormancy close to the surface of the soil or under leaf litter. Urea and glucose are accumulated in the skin to prevent tissue freezing.

Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus)

Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus)

 Spotted Salamanders and Blue Spotted Salamanders are the most abundant Ambystomid salamanders in Ontario. Both species live in deciduous woodlands with vernal pools necessary to support breeding. They come to breeding pools early in the spring and lay about 200 eggs in a mass the size of a tennis ball.

Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum)

 Jefferson's Salamanders can't really be confirmed in the field 100% but based on certain characteristics you can suspect that they are pure or partially Jefferson's. Jefferson's are usually grey in colourand have long tail, snout and toes.

Jefferson's Salamander (Ambystoma jeffersonianum)

Jefferson's Salamander (Ambystoma jeffersonianum)

 Northern Leopard Frogs are variable in colour, ranging from bright green to brown. They have rounded spots with outlines and a white spot on the tympanum. I am always amazed by the way all the these small amphibians migrate to ponds covered in ice while there is still snow on the ground.

Northern Leopard Frog (Lithobates pipiens)