How Stormwater Ponds Act as Kitsap's Amphibian Nurseries
Dr. Melissa Fleming, Stillwaters Program Director
Kitsap Community News, March 2022
Love is in the air – or the water – for amphibians throughout Kitsap County. Pacific tree frogs (Pseudocris regilla) usually start calling for mates in late January or early February around Kingston, but this year’s low temperatures dampened their ardor somewhat. The tree frogs’ calls make them the most obvious to us, but quieter species like the red-legged frog (Rana aurora), the Northwestern salamander (Ambystoma gracile) and the long-toed salamander (Ambystoma macrodactylum) typically start breeding earlier in January or even December.
Although not all local amphibians lay their eggs in water, these four species do, and in 2018 Renee Scherdnik and colleagues with Kitsap County Stormwater Division started training volunteers to help monitor amorous frog and salamander use of stormwater ponds across the County. Frogs and salamanders readily take advantage of these man-made wetlands in addition to natural habitats like beaver ponds, lakes, and vernal pools – seasonal pools of water that form in low lying areas during our wet winters. Our local species start breeding in winter so they can take advantage of the abundant vernal pools, which often persist just long enough for their eggs to hatch into tadpoles, grow, and metamorphose into adult, air-breathing frogs and salamanders before the rains taper off in early summer.
Renee and others in the Clean Water Kitsap partnership are investigating ways to naturalize stormwater ponds, providing better habitat for wildlife like birds and amphibians while maintaining their important functions. Native vegetation planted around stormwater ponds provides food and nesting areas for birds while reducing the need for county maintenance like mowing. Enhancing the ponds for frogs and salamanders includes providing natural substrates for females to attach their eggs to, like aquatic and semi-aquatic plants and submerged tree branches. Volunteer monitoring of amphibian egg masses in stormwater ponds provides data that county biologists use to evaluate and adapt their naturalization efforts.
Volunteers are trained to identify the distinctive egg masses of four water-breeding amphibians and then visit designated stormwater ponds once or twice a month between February and May. Monitoring involves counting egg masses of each species, and noting various stages of embryonic development, what the eggs are attached to, and any adult frogs or tadpoles seen. If you want to get involved in egg mass monitoring, contact Renee Schernik (Rscherdn@kitsap.gov) to learn more about volunteering and upcoming trainings.
To learn more about the importance of stormwater management and how we all can help to keep the water in our streams, wetlands, and shorelines clean please visit www.cleanwaterkitsap.org. To volunteer with Stillwaters and/or learn more about how to identify amphibian egg masses in your own pond, visit www.stillwatersenvironmentalcenter.com.
Although not all local amphibians lay their eggs in water, these four species do, and in 2018 Renee Scherdnik and colleagues with Kitsap County Stormwater Division started training volunteers to help monitor amorous frog and salamander use of stormwater ponds across the County. Frogs and salamanders readily take advantage of these man-made wetlands in addition to natural habitats like beaver ponds, lakes, and vernal pools – seasonal pools of water that form in low lying areas during our wet winters. Our local species start breeding in winter so they can take advantage of the abundant vernal pools, which often persist just long enough for their eggs to hatch into tadpoles, grow, and metamorphose into adult, air-breathing frogs and salamanders before the rains taper off in early summer.
Renee and others in the Clean Water Kitsap partnership are investigating ways to naturalize stormwater ponds, providing better habitat for wildlife like birds and amphibians while maintaining their important functions. Native vegetation planted around stormwater ponds provides food and nesting areas for birds while reducing the need for county maintenance like mowing. Enhancing the ponds for frogs and salamanders includes providing natural substrates for females to attach their eggs to, like aquatic and semi-aquatic plants and submerged tree branches. Volunteer monitoring of amphibian egg masses in stormwater ponds provides data that county biologists use to evaluate and adapt their naturalization efforts.
Volunteers are trained to identify the distinctive egg masses of four water-breeding amphibians and then visit designated stormwater ponds once or twice a month between February and May. Monitoring involves counting egg masses of each species, and noting various stages of embryonic development, what the eggs are attached to, and any adult frogs or tadpoles seen. If you want to get involved in egg mass monitoring, contact Renee Schernik (Rscherdn@kitsap.gov) to learn more about volunteering and upcoming trainings.
To learn more about the importance of stormwater management and how we all can help to keep the water in our streams, wetlands, and shorelines clean please visit www.cleanwaterkitsap.org. To volunteer with Stillwaters and/or learn more about how to identify amphibian egg masses in your own pond, visit www.stillwatersenvironmentalcenter.com.