Well, after a false spring, a second winter, and another spring we finally got it right and on Wednesday night got to see lots of males, their spermatophores, and hoards of wood frog males swimming around hoping for mates.  Then Thursday night we struck the fairy shrimp jackpot!  See the red video as they came towards that color, and the white one taken right afterwards.  These 3/4″ long crustaceans live their entire life cycle over several weeks, then wait as eggs for conditions they ‘like’.  They are not seen often, and this was my first sighting.  Yesterday and todays rain should bring the female spotted salamanders into the pools to lay their eggs, and for the next several weeks these will be easy to see and watch as embryos develop.  Last year I even saw  juveniles slither out into the water from egg masses.