Week 7 Journal

5/28/14

3:00 PM

65 Degrees F

Partly Cloudy

Week 7 Journal

This week the site seems to have grown exponentially in terms of the giant horsetails and skunk cabbage. The horsetails themselves are at about 4.5 feet now. I heard a few more birds this week compared to last week. Specifically the song sparrow as well as a number of crows that were eating some scraps of food left behind by visitors. 

The brown creeper nest I found two weeks ago was still in the tree bark, however I did not see it or evidence of offspring so I'm assuming it left for another nest. 

Like last week, I was able to find many bugs, especially millipedes and mosquitos because of all the moisture on the ground. In the thickest parts of the horsetails the ground is complete mud. 

Gray squirrels were everywhere around the site and chasing each other around trees which I've heard is a mating ritual of sorts. In any case, it is funny to observe.

Fungi and Lichen

On this tree I was able to find two different species of lichen. The more prevalent free/yellow species appears to be of the crustose variety while the light gray species in the small patch is a foliose. It is interesting how two species can live in such close proximity to each other.

This fungus enjoyed the benefits of a fallen nurse log as it grew out of its rotten exterior. This species had long slender gills beneath the caps and produced a greyish spore.

This species of fungus was very rigid and stubborn when it came to prying it from the log. The spores produced were black when tapped out. There wasn't much as far as gills went, and this species really had no stem.

I found a fruticose lichen in a ball laying at the base of a tree. There was more attached high up as well. The majority of the mass was green with some brown and gray portions as well.

This fungus was very stubborn when it came to its attachment to the tree. No spores were produces from its hard, thick body when prompted. It appeared to be feeding on the heartwood of the tree. I wonder if it was negatively affecting its host.

Lastly, a lichen that greatly resembles a head of lettuce. Of the foliose variety, it was fairly flexible and had deep dimples in the surface of the leaves. The hue of green changed in different locations on the lichen. I'm wondering if this was due to sunlight exposure. 

Week 6 Journal

 Weekly Journal # 6

Nisqually River Delta:

The wildlife preserve here was one that consisted of such a variety of organisms the it was hard to take it all in within just a few hours. One of the first aspects about the park that I noticed was its abundance of bugs and insects. There were many damsel flies as well as various beetles to capture the attention of a few of us who wanted to take the time to check them all out. The most interesting organism in the park to me, was the tent caterpillar. They had huge colonies bunched together atop tree branches interwoven with their silk. Another exciting point was that the herbivory was so clearly present in these areas. The leaves around the caterpillar nests would be desolated and only the vascular tissues remained in many. Lastly, there was a huge green darter dragonfly in the lawn between the two barns that had sitting on it a green darter dragonfly. I thought it was beautiful but I found it admirable to see how excited Charlie got over it. He was a solid bug guide throughout the entire trip.

After departing from the initial parking lot and seeing not only a Wilson's warbler but also a yellow warbler, who oddly enough, came out of hiding to the same call, we ventured out to the barn area where we watched the swallows roost in their mud nests banked against the roof eaves. It was kind of sad when I discovered a carcass of a baby bird stuck just inside the window of one of the barns. It must have fallen in through a hole in the roof then was never able to escape. 

Along the way we found a garter snake that a few of us unsuccessfully attempted to capture, as well as what I found to be the most interesting bird at the refuge, the yellow legs sandpiper. Watching it in the scope eating away at organisms deep down in the sand made me think of all the weird adaptations life comes up with to survive in different niches. 

Mount Rainier:

This part of the trip was breathtaking. The entire drive up was packed with scenic views of the mountain and park area, I'll definitely have to go back again and perhaps even climb it. Below is a sketch of the glacier seen from the bridge. Learning all about how the river channels change and hedge their own damns to begin a new path was very interesting. Also, being able to see where the glacier used to be in comparison to now was a bit mind blowing. Its fascinating to see how fast our climate can change these days. It makes you wonder how long before its all gone. The trip us to paradise gave a perfect view of the summit and really backed up its name. Unfortunately my phone broke on the way home so hopefully I'll be able to recover some of the photos I took.

Week 5 Journal

Invertebrates and Site Update

5/13/14

Sunny

6:00 PM

68 degrees F

The skunk cabbage at my site seems to be completely gone now, presumably it was taken over by the giant horsetails which are obviously the dominant open space species here. The horsetails take over the real estate of many other plants too, many ferns, thimbleberry bushes, and flower species have been pushed out of the little meadow that is most of my site. 

The Brown Creeper that I discovered last week seems to have completed the building of its nest. It has created a nice and seemingly safe place to raise its young under the flaky bark of its tree. Its interesting how difficult it would be to notice if I had not seen the bird actually fly in. 

The slopes at my site within 30 feet of the stream are still quite wet where I expected them to be more dry now due to the hotter weather. As I was searching for invertebrates I got my shoes stuck in the mud at least five times. There is some evidence of slope failure there judging by the overturned maple.

Invertebrates:

 Here is a photo I snapped of the yellow and black centipede found at my site as it was moving. It traveled quite quickly and never stopped. Terrain never seemed to be an issue for it as it just trampled over any obstacle in front of it.

Here is one ant I found away from its nest. Interestingly I didn't see any others around it so it must have been lost considering they usually travel together. 

Sitting on one of the thimbleberry flowers at my site was a honey bee. It was quite docile and ignored my presence as I drew it. It had a few full pollen sacks on its legs and looked like it would probably go drop off its load soon.

I had the pleasure of being bitten by a mosquito as the daylight was beginning to fade and they were out in force at the time. I took this opportunity to draw the mosquito. It hadn't sucked enough blood to show in its stomach yet. It flew away before it got full which I thought was interesting; something must have spooked it or maybe it just didn't like my blood.

As I was exploring my site for inverts, I happened to smash up a rotting log in hope of finding a grub. I have experience with this species from splitting wood at my family's Leavenworth, WA home and figured I could find the grub of the long horned beetle in the dead wood. When I pulled it out it wiggled around pretty vigorously for its fatness and seemed very unhappy I pulled it from its home. When I put it back after drawing it began to burrow back into the wood.



Other invertebrates I encountered at my site include many flies, they varied in size but never stayed still long enough to analyze, I think some were horseflies. I also ran into a couple bunches of flying gnats (dipterid nematocera) I belive. They stayed together in clusters as they flew, hovering about six feet from the ground. 

Week 4 Journal Entry

4/29/14

Sunny

68 degrees F

Week 4 Ravenna Park Observations

Here is my weekly photo. As you can see Springtime has arrived with a bang with almost every plant growing at great speed.

Everything is coming to life with incredible haste now that the temperatures are becoming warmer and the sun is out far more than before. There are also far more birds out now than in the previous weeks and often times you can see their nests. Most of the berry bushes such as the salmon and thimbleberries are beginning to flower and should be yielding some delicious fruit soon. 

Below I will be identifying some of the different plant species around my observation spot:

Giant horsetail

(Equisetum Telmateia)

Very common in large groups, a dominant species in wooded areas, needs sun.

Tips for identification: Horizontally shooting bristles up stem

Segmented stem/ very wet inside

More bristles along stem than the common horsetail

Indian Plum

(Oamleria Ceraciformis)

Fairly large compared to other shrubs, found in understory of area.

Tips for identification: Long, ovular leaves.

Thin, bendable stems.

Western Sword Fern

(Polystichum Munitum)

Found mostly on hillsides, grows in large patches together.

Tips for identification: Leaves attach to stem at a node.

Serrated edges of leaves resemble a blade or sword.

Glossy, rigid leaves

Salal

(Gaultheria Shallon)

Prefers shady understory

Tips for identification: Thick, deep green, waxy leaves.

Serrated edges on leaves.

Tiny sharp point at tip of leaf.

Thimbleberry

(Rubus Parviflorus)

Found in prominent sunlight

Tips for identification: Leaves are extremely soft

5 points per leaf

White flowers

Fragile red berry produced when ripe

Brachen

(Pteridium Aquilidum)

Very common in large groups, a dominant species in wooded areas.

Tips for identification: Fronds shaped like triangles

Each frond usually has 3 leaflets

Thick, root-like stems

Oregon Grape

(Mahonia Aquifolium)

Prefers partial shade and moist soils

Tips for identification: Sharp serrated edges on leaves

Leaves are shiny and rigid

Red stems

Small, blue berries when ripe

Snowberry

(Symphoricarpos)

Grows in partial shade in understory

Tips for identification: Small, very soft, ovular leaves.

Some leaves are lobed, some may not be.

Variance of green shade in leaf color on same plant.

Forget-me-not

(Myosotis)

Found in sparsely vegetated spots with little shade

Tips for identification: Tiny yellow ring around middle of blue flower

Small leaves with large serrations

Found often times on hillsides