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Vernal Habitat Assessment

 

" Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush"

Doug Larson

As the name implies, vernal habitats refer to wetlands that exist in spring and gradually disappear or become relics of their former selves by summer.  BRE specializes in the identification, biological survey, and management of these extraordinary and exceptionally distinctive habitats.

 

BRE has amassed hundreds of field hours documenting, studying, and identifying vernal habitats throughout the state.  When these habitats are devoid of water they can appear to be no more than vacuous depressions in the landscape. Due to their transient nature, these specialized habitats require the expertise of a well-trained wetland ecologist to identify their existence.  If you suspect that a property you are involved with exhibits characteristics that are in concert with the parameters of ephemeral wetlands, but are not sure, please consider BRE   to perform the Phase-I study necessary to confirm presence or absence of this specialized habitat.  

 

Confirmation of vernal conditions is just the first step in the certification process required under the law to protect these precious habitats.  A Phase-II study may be required to confirm the presence or absence of vernal pond obligate species (species like blue-spotted salamander or wood frogs that only breed in these temporary wetlands). 

 

The type and variety of vernal pond specialists that exhibit this unique breeding modality will dictate whether or not the Department of Environmental Protection affords the habitat additional buffers under the law.  We look forward to all inquiries that involve this dedicated service and provide free consultation with any party or entity that suspects their presence.
 
Red Wing Blackbird Scream
(B 19)


  
Giant Water Beetle on Buttonbush Flower Head
(I 8)
  Spadefoot Toad Eye with Ant
(A 4)
 
 
Jason Tesauro In Vernal Pond 
 
 

Swamp Darner Laying Egg in Vernal Pond

(I 7)

 
 
Wood Frogs Vernal Pond Obligate Species
(A 5)
 
 
Blue Spotted Salamander
(A 6)
 

 

David. M. Carroll, well-known wetland specialists, describes these wetland types best in his book 
“A Swamp-Walker’s Journal”:
 
 

“Specialized wetlands known as vernal habitats are extremely variable, ranging from broad, heavily vegetated, water-filled clefts a few feet in diameter in hemlock-shrouded ledges of mountain forests. Although typically associated with wooded areas, vernal pools can be situated in open meadows, Sandy washouts, and River floodplains. Some features rank growth of grass and sedge, some are crowded with emerald – moss islands of highbush blueberry and swamp azalea, encircled by a high canopy of red Maple; many are bowls of dark water with sunken black leaf floorings in which no plants grow, ringed by a narrow band of wetland trees like swamp white oak and black gum, are surrounded by upland trees like pigs not hickory and white oak. They may be set within an extensive wetlands complex or, more typically, entirely isolated from other wetlands and him an upland forest setting. Within this bewildering array of physiographic settings and plant associations, vernal pool habitats are defined by a common key set of ecological parameters: they lie within confined depressions that lack of permanent outlet stream; have seasonal, impermanent flood periods that generally lasts from 2 to 5 months; dry out completely most years, usually by late summer; are free of fish; and, most significantly, support the life cycles of animals that are utterly dependent upon this habitat for perpetuation of their species. The pools defined these animals; these animals in turn define the pools”.