While everyday life bustles about in Tri-Town, somewhere in a secluded vernal pool off Long Plain Road in Mattapoisett floats the cradle of the next generation of blue-spotted salamanders, a species of ‘special concern’ as designated by the Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program. The Mattapoisett Land Trust property Woodcock Preserve might be relatively inaccessible to humans, but it is a vital place for the blue-spotted salamanders that made the sacred journey last week to the vernal pool to mate for three days. They then lay their eggs during “the big night,” before leaving behind their ethereal floating masses of eggs and returning to the woods. They only lay their eggs in vernal pools, and the Mattapoisett Land Trust on Saturday, April 16, led a small group on a trudge through the woods to reach the vernal pool and witness the mystery before eggs hatch in less than a month. Photo by Jean Perry
