
Exploring and Monitoring Vernal Pools
Do you have a wet area on your property that dries up in the summer months? Do you enjoy the chorus of frogs each spring? If you answered yes, then you probably have a vernal pool on your property!
Class Number | CED.1025.H01
Section 60316
CLASS DETAILS
Dates/ Times
Thursday, May 23
5:30pm-8:30pm
Cost
$10 per family (appropriate for kids 7 and up)
Location
Harrison Campus, Room 275
Instructor
Julie R. Crick, Natural Resources Educator
Michigan State University Extension
Course Description
Vernal pools provide important breeding habitat for frogs – and many other species! This three-hour workshop will provide an overview of vernal pool ecology, their importance to the landscape ecosystem as well as teach you how to identify the macroinvertebrates and egg masses found in the pools.
This three-hour workshop will begin with a short indoor presentation prior to heading outdoors to a vernal pool. The indoor presentation will provide an overview of vernal pool ecology, hydrology and the indicator species that use the temporary wetlands. The outdoor portion will take us into the woods where participants can closely investigate a vernal pond by following the protocols established for collecting data necessary to monitor the ecology of the pool over time. The monitoring protocols were created by the Michigan Natural Features Inventory to create a database of vernal pools across the state. Participants will be provided with all of the documents necessary to monitor a vernal pool of their choosing in the future.