Vernal Pools

It’s just near midnight on an early April evening and the dripping of the rain has finally let up while the quacking of wood frogs can still be heard in the background. We are walking along the slick black pavement, with small rivulets flowing along the roads edge – my flashlight held low, and shining ten feet ahead, slowly sweeping the width of the road, back and forth, looking for any bump in the road. Ah - there’s one! No… Just that same stick that I saw on previous passes. We meet at the half-way mark of our section and report our tallies. After recording another 2 wood frogs and 1 spotted salamander and with traffic non-existent, we decide to call it a night. 

We are part of a small group participating in an event called “Big Night”: the annual mass movement of terrestrial amphibians from their foraging grounds in the surrounding forests to their natal vernal pools for breeding. They usually move during the first rainy evening in Spring above 40F. Both salamanders and wood frogs move slowly across the roadway, sometimes stopping for minutes. We moved them across if they were in imminent danger. At this road crossing, we have seen maximums of 400 wood frogs (with approximately 20-30 casualties from cars), 32 spotted salamanders, and 6 blue-spotted salamanders on separate nights.

 

Vernal pools are unique wetland habitats that typically fill with fall and spring rains and dry out by summer. They can be as small as 100 sq ft, or as large as several acres in size, and are typically 2-3’ deep. Salamanders and wood frogs have adapted their breeding life cycle to use these pools since fish can’t survive in these conditions, providing protection for their eggs and larvae. The adults will only spend a few days in the vernal pool to mate, deposit eggs, and then head back into the surrounding woodlands. 

The most common salamander using vernal pools in Massachusetts is the spotted salamander. As adults, they are 6-10” long, as round as your finger, and a purply-brown-black color with pea size yellow spots in two rows. Their eggs are laid in fist-size clumps of up to 100 eggs, surrounded by an opaque or transparent gelatinous outer layer, and often attached to underwater plants or branches. They require that the pool does not dry out for at least 2-3 months to complete their metamorphose from an egg to larva to a juvenile salamander when they leave the water. 

Spotted Salamander and egg masses

The adult wood frogs are 2-3” and are brown with a dark eye mask. Their egg mass size is similar to salamanders but have up to 1500 eggs. The egg mass has an outside appearance of a bunch of grapes. They are also attached to underwater plant or branches and develop from an egg to larva (tadpole) and leave the water as a froglet.

Wood Frog and egg mass

In 2000, Massachusetts started a state-wide program to certify and map vernal pools by finding isolated water bodies on aerial photographs. Nearly 30,000 pools were identified. They are labeled “potential,” since it is not known if these pools contain fish or support species such as spotted salamanders, wood frogs, fairy shrimp, or a host of other species. The State not only recognized these pools as valuable environmental resources, but also the surrounding woodlands. The amphibians that develop here will travel as far as 800’ from the vernal pool into the uplands and subsequently, most return to the same pool to breed. 

Certification can be done by professionals or citizen scientists. It requires providing information on the pool location, its size, and showing evidence that obligate vernal pool species are breeding by having photographs of egg masses, larvae, or juveniles, or even audio recordings of calling wood frogs.

Certifying a Vernal Pool

This information can then be entered online at the State’s Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (NHESP) database, with further review by a state biologist for accuracy, and then certification if complete. 

 

Why certify the vernal pools on my land that already has a conservation restriction? 
 
There are several reasons to do this: 

• Landowner outreach – Experiencing the wonder of nature. Knowing that your land is protecting something special. Seeing the soft blue transparent salamander egg masses or a fairy shrimp swimming upside down through the pool. 

• Not all vernal pools were detected by the state mapping effort. Some of them were hidden under tree cover and others were too small, preventing identification during the aerial photograph review process. 

• Some Conservation Commissions have more stringent bylaws for certified vernal pools to not only protect them from being filled, but also protecting some of the upland habitat surrounding them to provide at least a minimal amount of uplands for them to survive.

• Observations of Jefferson or marbled salamanders should be reported to the NHESP, as land-protection efforts for these species are dependent on knowing where local populations occur.

Fairy Shrimp (< 1.5") can also be found in some Vernal Pools
(swimming upside down)

• MA-Forestry-BMP-Manual specifies: 

• No machinery can operate in a certified vernal pool at any time of the year 

• Filter strips are required for certified vernal pools. Filter strips extend 50 feet back from the bank. Within these buffer strips, no more than 50% of the basal area may be cut at any one time 

• Additional guidelines: Apply required certified vernal pool BMPs to potential vernal pools functioning as vernal pool habitat. Avoid making ruts deeper than 6 inches within 200 feet of a vernal pool. If filled with water, these can trick amphibians into laying eggs in them. 

Spring 2016 Conservation Restriction Program events - spring wildflowers, bears, and blue herons!

Don't try this at home!  Independent wildlife biologist Ben Kilham with a bear.
Photo Credit: Ben Kilham

Spring greetings from The Trustees' Conservation Restriction Program!  Much like black bears we are emerging for the Spring season, in our case from the cozy and busy office den at the Doyle Center.  We are excited for another field season working to ensure the protection of 400 CR properties around the state, and also to share some upcoming events with the public! 




Trout lilies coming in to bloom. 
Photo credit: Pete Westover

 Three public events are scheduled on Trustees' conservation restriction properties this Spring in eastern and central Massachusetts.  These are great opportunities to learn about the natural world from experts, and also meet members of our CR stewardship team to hear how The Trustees has protected land beyond its 115 reservations.

1)  Spring Wildflower Walk with naturalist Pete Westover 
Saturday, April 30th, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM 
Holly Hill Farm - 236 Jerusalem Road, Cohasset, MA 02025
Admission: FREE to all! 
RSVP REQUIRED at friendsofhollyhillfarm@gmail.com or 781-383-6565

2) Ben Kilham, Bear Whisperer  
Saturday, May 7th, 1:00-2:30 PM 
Shirley Historical Society - 182 Center Road, Shirley, MA 01464
Presentation then a walk at Farandnear, a Trustees' reservation with a past life as a private CR! 
Admission - Trustees Members: $10.  Non-members: $15
Please RSVP to Margaret Moulton, mmoulton@thetrustees.org, 413-298-3239 x3016 

3) Blue Heron rookery and wetland walk with ecologist Bill Lattrell  Saturday, June 4th, 12:00 - 3:00 PM 
Alder Meadow Conservation Restriction - Spencer, MA
Admission: FREE!   
Please RSVP to Sally Naser, snaser@thetrustees.org or call (978) 840-4446 x1917 to register and
receive directions to the site. As this is private property and a sensitive ecological area, group size will be limited to 15 participants.



Blue heron at the Alder Meadow CR.  Photo credit: Ryan Pennesi Photography.

An Introduction to Conservation Restriction stewardship at The Trustees

The Trustees of Reservations boasts a long and storied history, anchored in Charles Eliot's vision of inviting public use and enjoyment of natural and historic places in Massachusetts.  Our 113 properties now include landmarks from the shores of Crane Beach, Long Point, and Wasque, to shady forest hikes and views at places like Peaked and Monument Mountain, to historic houses and cultural history at Naumkeag and the Old Manse. We are a leader in the land conservation movement, actively protecting threatened landscapes over the decades, to preserve forests, farmland, and historic and natural resources without which much of a community's character may be lost. Our status as the largest private organization holder of Conservation Restrictions (CRs)  by acreage in Massachusetts is a testament to this leadership. 



The distribution of statewide CR properties protected by The Trustees!

In 1972, The Trustees accepted its very first perpetual conservation restriction (CR), which is most often a legal agreement between a land trust and a private landowner (state agencies and public municipal property sometimes, too) to permanently conserve their property.  The Trustees first CR protected 65 acres of land in Sherborn, fittingly next to our very first Reservation, Rocky Narrows.  Since then we have worked to protect over 390 parcels on about 21,000 acres statewide, making us the largest private holder of CRs in Massachusetts. This has been an integral, if not highly visible, method for The Trustees to protect land beyond our reservations.  After taking the CR, The Trustees DO NOT own the land, but we partner with the landowners to ensure permanent protection of the property.

 

Though it is not our goal to own CR properties, many great relationships with CR landowners have eventually resulted in generous donations of their land to become new reservations or pieces of reservations - for example Farandnear, Cedariver, and Rock House Reservation were first protected by our CRs before the landowner donated them to become reservations, while Crane Wildlife Refuge, Rocky Narrows, Brooks Woodland Preserve, and Menemsha Hillshave all been greatly expanded by contributions of CR parcels to become part of these reservations. 

The historic Brickyard site on Martha's Vineyard, long privately owned and subject to a 1990 CR, was recently generously donated to The Trustees and will soon become part of Menemsha Hills reservation. 

But what is a CR exactly?  And why are they important?  Why should the public care? How do The Trustees meet their stewardship responsibilities as a CR holder?

 

CRs, known as conservation easements (or CEs) in the other 49 states, are a legal agreement to permanently protect land, usually between a granting private landowner with a conservation organization. The landowner continues to own the land, but agrees to manage it according to certain prohibited uses and allowed activities. By law, CRs must provide public benefits. Some of these benefits may include protection of scenic views, enhancing public water supply protection, or wildlife habitat protection. CRs do not require a landowner to provide public access to their property, though a small number choose to do so in a limited capacity, perhaps by providing a trail easement to reach a Trustees reservation or other conservation land across their otherwise private land. CRs are meant to last forever, and are recorded at the county Registry of Deeds with the property's chain of title, and even when the land is sold, the future owners are bound by its terms. The importance of CRs for protecting our state's forests, farms, and threatened habitats is huge. With so many farms converted to subdivisions in recent decades, and nearly two thirds of Massachusetts forests owned by private landowners, typically in relatively small parcels compared to the land ownership pattern in western states, CRs between conservation organizations and willing forest landowners are one of the best tools to ensure that wooded and working landscapes in Massachusetts and New England remain largely intact.

Our CRs protect important wildlife habitat, including drinking water and swimming holes for the occasional bear family!

 

The negotiation of CR terms is a balancing act – the holding conservation organization wishes to see the most beneficial conservation outcome, but the needs of the landowner to continue using the land are also vitally important. Every CR document is different as a result of balancing landowner needs with conservation needs.

 

Hypothetically let's imagine a family owns a 100-acre farm, one of the last traditional farms in their community, which sits on prime agricultural soils, and abuts a Trustees' reservation. The family is generously willing to place a CR on the land to ensure that their land always remains in farming, though they need to make sure that the practical aspects of farming are allowed uses in the CR. Recognizing that their teenage daughter dreams of running the farm one day, the landowners see a possibility that she may wish to have one more house built on the property. They therefore propose that the CR allow structures for agricultural uses on a designated part of the property totaling 5 acres.  Another term allows for construction of one house in the future on a 2-acre lot on the property. After negotiation, The Trustees would recognize this as a good outcome. With no CR, there is the possibility that after the current landowners' death, the remaining family members might prefer to sell the land to become dozens of two-acre house lots. Not only would that be a sad outcome for the last farm in the community, but it would mean the waste of valuable agricultural soils, and a lost opportunity to connect conservation lands. Under the CR, one future house and new agricultural buildings would be allowed, while most of the property cannot be built upon and would remain in farming and as forest forever.



CRs on farms, such as Spring Street Farm in Millis seen here, balance permanent land protection with helping a successful community farm thrive.

The Trustees are responsible for stewarding all CRs that the organization holds. What do we mean when we talk about CR stewardship?  As opposed to direct stewardship and management of our reservations, CR stewardship involves partnering with the landowners to build positive relationships with them, promoting great land management practices, and meeting our legal obligation to monitor compliance with the CR terms and ensure permanent protection of the land. Our team of professionals in the CR Program must annually visit each and every property around the state to meet with the landowners, inspect the land, and complete reports documenting changes to the property. Other aspects of the job include:

• serve as a resource to CR landowners for referrals to foresters, invasive plant management specialists, surveyors, and other land management professionals; 
• negotiate certain activities on CR properties only allowed with permission of The Trustees; 
• create and maintain a Baseline Documentation Report (BDR) of maps, photos, and resource documentation for each and every CR property; 
• tracking changes in CR property ownership and working cooperatively to educate new landowners about the CR terms; 
• working to resolve any violations of CR terms.

These are no small tasks for stewarding nearly 400 CRs, but the work balances working outdoors with office time, and presents the opportunity to work with fascinating landowner partners and their beautiful properties. There is rarely a dull moment! We hope you will stay tuned to The Trustees' social media each month for a featured story about some of these amazing CR properties and landowners from our CR Stewardship team!

Some members of the CR Program staff pose last year on a private CR property by a sign for public access to a hiking trail.

The Trustees of Reservations Applies for National Land Trust Accreditation Renewal

We are excited to announce that The Trustees of Reservations is applying for renewal of its 2010 national Land Trust Accreditation award!  The Trustees is currently one of eleven Accredited land trusts in Massachusetts and 301 nationwide (click for list of accredited land trusts).  Accreditation renewal will provide independent confirmation of the soundness of the practices of The Trustees of Reservations and its supporting organizations.  Land Trust Accreditation must be renewed every five years, during which time the Accredited organization operates under Land Trust Standards and Practices, and works to accomplish any Expectations for Improvement for the organization set by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. 

 

You may have noticed the silence of this blog since last June!  Our Land Conservation and Conservation Restriction program staff have been hard at work ensuring that we complete conservation projects under the Land Trust Standards and best practices, and updating our baseline documentation reports (BDRs) - the required documentation of conservation values and property conditions for CR properties - for nearly 300 of our 390 CRs across the state.  These updates ensure that every BDR meets the current Accreditation standards.  Updating BDRs was among the single largest tasks necessary for The Trustees' Accreditation renewal over the past five years!  If you are a CR landowner, you likely received an updated BDR thanks to the tireless work of our staff.  With this herculean task nearly behind us, we hope our readership is excited for more news from out "On the Land" in 2015. 

2014 CR Program staff- L to R, Justina Smith (former BDR Assistant), Sally Naser (CR Program Manager), Jennifer Garrett (BDR Specialist), Andrew Bentley (CR Stewardship Specialist).  Not pictured: Sandy Lower (CR Program Assistant), Dani Christopher (former BDR assistant)

The following is the official press release regarding our Accreditation application.  
 

The Trustees of Reservations Applies for National Accreditation Renewal

Boston, MA – March 5, 2015 – The Trustees of Reservations, the nation’s oldest statewide land trust and one of Massachusetts’ largest conservation nonprofits, today announced that the organization is applying for accreditation renewal through the Land Trust Accreditation Commission.  The Accreditation Commission accredits land conservation organizations that meet specified standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. The Trustees of Reservations was originally awarded accreditation in 2010 and is now applying for the renewal of that accreditation. The Trustees of Reservations’ supporting organizations, including the Massachusetts Land Conservation Trust and the Boston Natural Areas Network, will also be applying for accreditation concurrently.  A public comment period is now open for those who wish to contribute.

The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance (LTA), conducts an extensive review of each applicant’s policies and programs. Since its founding in 1891 by open space visionary Charles Eliot, The Trustees of Reservations has served as a leader in the conservation community, striving to set the highest standards of ethics and performance in its ongoing care and maintenance of 113 reservations located on more than 26,000 acres across Massachusetts. Accreditation renewal will provide independent confirmation of the soundness of the practices of The Trustees of Reservations and its supporting organizations.

The Commission invites public input and accepts signed, written comments on pending applications. Comments must relate to how The Trustees of Reservations, the Massachusetts Land Conservation Trust, or the Boston Natural Areas Network, comply with certain of LTA’s Standards and Practices. These standards address the ethical and technical operation of a land trust. For the full list of standards see www.landtrustaccreditation.org/tips-and-tools/indicator-practices

To learn more about the accreditation program and to submit a comment on The Trustees of Reservations, the Massachusetts Land Conservation Trust, or the Boston Natural Areas Network, please visit www.landtrustaccreditation.org. Comments may also be faxed or mailed to the Land Trust Accreditation Commission; Attn: Public Comments: (fax) 518-587-3183; (mail) 36 Phila Street, Suite 2, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. Comments on will be most useful if received by April 24^th, 2015.

The Trustees of Reservations

The Trustees “hold in trust” and care for properties, or “reservations,” of irreplaceable scenic, historic, and natural significance for the general public to enjoy. Founded by open space visionary Charles Eliot in 1891, The Trustees is the world’s oldest land trust and one of Massachusetts’ largest conservation and preservation non profits. Supported by more than 100,000 members and donors and thousands of volunteers, The Trustees own and manage 113 spectacular reservations – from working farms, historic homesteads, and landscaped gardens, to community parks, barrier beaches, mountain vistas and woodland trials -- located on more than 26,000 acres throughout the Commonwealth.

A leader in the conservation movement, The Trustees has both served as a model for other land trusts, nationally and internationally, and worked with hundreds of community partners to preserve open land and the character of local communities statewide.  In addition to managing and caring for its own holdings, The Trustees also holds perpetual conservation restrictions on more than 20,000 acres—a total larger than any other conservation organization in Massachusetts—permanently protecting scenic and natural areas from development, and has worked with communities and other conservation partners to assist in the protection of another 24,000 acres around the state. 

With hundreds of outreach programs, workshops, camps, concerts and events annually designed to engage all ages in its mission, The Trustees invites you to Find Your Place and get out and experience the natural beauty and culture our state has to offer. For more information, visit: www.thetrustees.org.