Here are a few pictures from the Vernal Pool I visited last Sunday.

There were so many macroscopic critters... fairy shrimp, Vernal Pool tadpole shrimp, flat worms, water mites, and seed shrimp. ooo and frog eggs! VERY COOL!

Vernal Pool Critters
All those specks are a type of shrimp or mite. The two larger specimens are flatworms.


More Critters
This hole was about 2.5 inches in diameter. It was absolutely teeming with life!


Frog Eggs
The Vernal pools of California's Central Valley commonly have Bullfrogs, Western Spadefoot Toads, or Pacific Chorus Frogs. Not sure to whom these belong though.


Grass
This grass was in the dry areas of the pool. I have no idea what type it is.


Lone Flower
Again, no idea what this is, but it's my favorite photo of the bunch.

__________________
~~Steph

"This I believe: That the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most valuable thing in the world." John Steinbeck

*applaud* frog eggs!

__________________
My name is Liz
Do what's best for the animal, not what's best for you.

Neat pics! If I'm not mistaken, those eggs belong to some sort of toad. Toads lay eggs in long strings like that, whereas frogs (and spotted salamanders, I can say from personal experience -- I don't know about other sallies) lay them in "blobby" masses.

__________________
Amy

Good to know! They must be from a Western Spadefoot Toad then.

__________________
~~Steph

"This I believe: That the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most valuable thing in the world." John Steinbeck

Nice.

__________________
MARSHA

:D I'm smiling because I have no idea whats going on!

awesome!

__________________

Awesome, looks like you had fun. It will be months before we have frog and toad eggs around here!

__________________

"If you're not falling, you're not trying." - Sonni Trotter

~*~Lacey~*~

My Photos