VERNAL POOLS
Vernal pools are unique wildlife habitats best known for the amphibians and invertebrate animals that breed in them. They support rich and diverse invertebrate faunas; Elizabeth Colburn’s book “Vernal Pools, Natural History and Conservation” states:
“More than 550 species of multicellular animals have been reported from northeastern vernal pools. If animals that have been identified only to the family or generic level are included, the number exceeds 700.”
Vernal pools have variable hydroperiods; that is, many fill with water during the fall and persist throughout the winter, while others remain flooded into the summer and/or do not dry out every year. These periodic dry periods prevent fish from establishing permanent breeding populations. Animals that only breed in vernal pools ("obligate species") have evolved breeding strategies that are intolerant of fish predation. Many obligate species, including wood frogs (live 3-5 years) and mole salamanders (live 20+ years), return to the same breeding pool year after year.
Vernal pool-breeding frogs and salamanders live in the uplands that surround their breeding pools during the majority of the year. These species only visit their breeding pools for a few weeks during the spring and will often migrate more than six hundred feet away after breeding is completed. Retaining/protecting the non-breeding upland habitat around vernal pools is essential to protecting the species that breed in them.
Locating and certifying vernal pools (through MNHESP) is only the first step to protecting them. In Foxborough, the Wetland and Groundwater Protection Bylaw (Article IX) safeguards our vernal pools' water quality and inhabitants by protecting the 100 foot upland area around vernal pools as a "no build, no disturb zone” (buffer zone). However, this 100 foot buffer zone should be considered a bare-minimum protection, since it only preserves a small percent of our obligate species' critical upland habitats.
At least 11 of Foxborough’s vernal pools have been officially certified, but many more have been documented. Conservation Commission members and staff often find and certify vernal pools during their regular course of business. A map of Foxborough’s certified and potential vernal pools are identified on Map 4 of the Open Space and Recreation Plan (downloadable above).
Please help us protect Foxborough's vernal pools by learning about them (info, downloadable above) and certifying them yourselves!
FOXBOROUGH'S STATE LISTED RARE WILDLIFE SPECIES
Reptiles
Wood Turtle (Glyptemys insculpta)
Blanding’s Turtle (Emydoidea blandingii)
Amphibians
Marbled Salamander (Ambystoma opacum)
Blue-spotted Salamander (Ambystoma laterale)
Fish
Bridle Shiner (Notropis bifrenatus)
Butterfly/Moth
Hessel’s Hairstreak (Callophrys hesseli)
Frosted Elfin (Callophrys irus)
Oak Hairstreak (Satyrium favonius)
Dragonfly/Damselfly
Mocha Emerald (Somatochlora linearis)
ASIAN LONGHORN BEETLE ALERT!
The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) recently confirmed a small infestation of Asian Longhorn Beetles (ALB) at the Faulkner Hospital in Jamaica Plain. This is the time of year when the adult beetles are emerging from the trees. Dr. Jennifer Forman Orth, State Plant Pest Survey Coordinator at MDAR, asks everyone to be on the lookout for the following:
1. Adult Asian longhorned beetles (shiny black beetles with white spots and long, banded antennae)
2. ALB exit holes (dime-sized, perfectly round holes, especially in maple, but also in birch, elm, horsechestnut, willow and other hardwood trees…but not oak)
3. ALB egg-laying sites (divots in the bark ranging in size from 1/4 to 3/4 inches across – fresh pits often have oozing, foaming sap)
If you see anything suspicious you should report it immediately at http://massnrc.org/pests/albreport.aspx or call toll-free: 1-866-702-9938. Take photos if you can. MDAR can also provide you with free ALB ID cards and fact sheets to share with your neighbors and associates.
For additional information, please refer to the downloadable guides, above.
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