Virginia Vernal Pools, LLC

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Harrisonburg, VA
Virginia Vernal Pools, LLC

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Specializing in freshwater wetlands ecology and conservation.

10/13/2026

We got to travel last week and enjoyed camping to celebrate Alex's birthday. We spent time kayaking, hiking, fishing, and reading around the campfire. Mike also inspected a tree planting we did in Alleghany County in 2024, and went to a new client consult in Rockbridge County. It was a rejuvenating week in the woods!

10/07/2026

Happy birthday to our dear Alex! We like to joke that he always dreamed of this job, since his fascination with heavy equipment began as a toddler. We are so proud of the skills he has learned, and the energy and wit he brings to each job!

10/05/2026

Last week we completed the second project of our National Fish & Wildlife Federation grant through the James River Association on a private farm in Cumberland County. We refurbished an historic pond that had been defunct for nearly a century - repairing the breached berm, removing farm refuse from the 1950's, and enhancing the springhead seepage which supplies water to it. We discovered a distinctive, blue grey soil layer beneath the old pond, plus fragments of terracotta drainage tiles in that zone beneath the basin.

It was gratifying to restore more riparian habitat back to naturally-functioning wetlands. We are grateful for this impactful opportunity!

10/01/2026

We enjoyed a great trip to rural WV last weekend. We explored a gravel road, one of Kylie's very favorite things to do! We soaked in the beauty of the river and woods, and got to see the Monongahela Blue Crayfish and several salamander species. We also enjoyed a great interaction with mushroom foragers before traveling home under the full moon.

09/30/2026

Mike enjoyed an outing last week with staff from The Nature Conservancy, visiting a conservation property along Potts Creek in Alleghany County, where he grew up. The site is slated for restoration of bottomland forests and riparian wetlands. Virginia Vernal Pools anticipates having a role in this important project!

While exploring the property, the group noted some interesting trees including yellow buckeye, swamp hickory, and Swamp White Oak. The latter find represents the fifth such rare remnant population of "Quercus bicolor" that Mike has encountered in the upper James River headwaters region. He has been promoting the planting of this wetland tree species for ecological restoration in the Western Highlands region of Virginia.

09/28/2026

Last week the guys spent two rainy, muddy days in Rappahannock County project, making improvements to a small farm pond. They replaced an outlet pipe with a stone-armored spillway and conducted vegetation management. One edge overgrown with invasive Autumn Olive was cleaned up, while overgrown cattails and aquatic mats of Asian spiderwort (Murdannia) were surgically weeded from the pond shoreline. They enjoyed seeing White turtlehead (Chelone glabra) flowering at the inlet.

09/24/2026

Last week we got to see giant Atlantic Sturgeon breaching in the James River on a viewing tour with the James River Association. These huge fish live their adult years in the ocean, and return to coastal rivers like the James to spawn in spring and fall. Spawning behavior includes "breaching," when the fish leap completely out of the water. We were thrilled to see several 4-6' sturgeon breach within 15' of the boat, and many others farther away. In addition to learning about sturgeon we also got to hear about the health of the river, threats to fish and river quality from power plants, and what the James River Association is doing to clean up the river. It was a wonderful trip. Check it out if you live near Richmond, and support the good work of the James River Association!

09/23/2026

On September 17, Mike gave a presentation and field tour at Sweet Briar College in Amherst County, for personnel of the Virginia Department of Forestry at the agency's annual Forest Management Academy.

His "Importance of Vernal Pools in the Forest Environment" talk was one of four given to the professional assembly. The afternoon tour was of the Kentucky Ridge vernal pool that Mike and partners installed some 15 years ago, when he was teaching at the college.The small pool was functioning as designed, although in its dry phase for fall.

Training has always been an important part of the Virginia Vernal Pools mission!

09/21/2026

We had a nice opportunity to build a quality wetland habitat in Loudoun County last week, at the base of the Blue Ridge near Harpers Ferry.

We were contacted by environmentally conscious folks who discovered they had an obligate amphibian community in need of a naturally-functioning breeding pond. The salamanders, frogs and toads were trying to use an old, derelict swimming pool, so we came to the rescue! We designed the pool with Jefferson Salamanders in mind, to support the rare enclave of this species found along the Loudoun Heights area.

The guys found adequate clay below the well-drained, very rocky silt loam soil at the ridge base, and shaped a basin 32'x25'x3' which they lined with ample organic debris and structure. The abundant (metamorphic phyllite) stone was repurposed for amenities and habitat, including a snake cairn and a simulated "talus slide." This seasonal aquatic feature should save and support their local amphibians that have been there for ages!

09/17/2026

Mike and Kylie enjoyed participating in the Maryland Native Plant Society's annual conference in College Park, MD last Saturday. He gave a keynote talk on restoring vernal pools and preserving their fragile habitats in the morning, and led a group of 17 on a field trip to see a nearby vernal pools site in the afternoon. Participants got to see an ancient vernal pools complex, learn about native wetland plants & trees, and see first hand how Mike plans to enhance the hydrology in this system, which is suffering from the effects of drought. That hopeful project will be next year, in partnership with the Anacostia Watershed Society and Prince George's County Parks.

Address

Harrisonburg, VA
22802

Website

https://www.virginiavernalpools.com/

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