Where to build your pond (cont.)

Woodland ponds attract spotted salamanders, spring peepers and wood frogs. These ponds usually dry over the summer. They are commonly formed by spring meltwater and because they are located in a forest, they contain cool water for much of the spring. The frogs spend the summer feeding in the woodlands and hibernate under leaf litter or stumps and logs. The large yellow spotted and blue spotted salamanders live underground in cool retreats beneath stumps for much of the summer and are often called "mole salamanders" because of this habit.

It is difficult to dig ponds in wooded areas. Where local hydrological conditions are right, you can either increase water by damming or directing water to low wooded areas. Wetlands can be planted with trees that in time will develop into a swamp (see Appendix for a list of water tolerant trees).

Green frog