Final Post - Discovery Park

Location 47.66125000000, -122.41150000000, Discovery Park
Time - around 2 pm
Weather - somewhat chilly, 57 degrees, slight breeze, overcast
Date - June 4th, 2012

For my final location, I went to Discovery Park and did my observations there. My location was in a sheltered forested area, dominated by Big Leaf Maples and Deodar Cedars. The ground was wet and soggy, as the area was shaded and it had previously rained, and walking around on the understory meant a lot of sinking shoes in leaves and breaking rotting branches. At the beginning of the walkway that I entered I noticed a large Western Redcedar surrounded by Big Leaf Maple, along with several Deodar Cedars to my right. Indian Plum and Vine Maple were interspersed with these as well. On many of the branch intersections I noticed spit like substances, which I identified as spitbug nests.

I made my way off the trail to look at the understory and some fallen logs in more detail. On my way in, I saw several tall Oregon Grape plants, some lichen covering a trunk, and some grasses, which looked very similar to invasive Sweet Vernal Grass that we identified on the last field trip. Some interesting looking red flies were sitting on all of these plants, and were hard to disturb, only flying away when I got extremely close to them. On a fallen log I saw some black fungus, which I identified as hypoxylon, based on what I learned from the fungi tour of UBNA. Next to this, on a living tree, I spotted a fungus that looked a lot like a Turkey Tail, with green on top. I also spotted several black slugs that could have been European Black Slugs.

I continued to walk through my site until I came to a small path lined on either side by Oregon Grape. Here I noticed an English Holly Plant, and a tree covered in Oyster Mushrooms (about twenty of them traveling up the right side of the tree). There was also a birch tree, and a Redcedar that seemed to be torn/scratched into pieces. I wonder if it was a human that did this damage to the tree.

Species List

1. Big Leaf Maple - Acer macrophyllum
2. Deodar Cedar - Cedrus deodara
3. Western Redcedar - Thuja plictata
4. Vine Maple - Acer circinatum
5. Spitbug/Froghopper - Cercopoidea
6. Indian Plum - Oemleria
7. Tall Oregon Grape - Mahonia aquafolium
8. Lichen
9. Hypoxylon - Biscogniauxia
10. Turkey Tail - Trametes versicolor
11. European Black Slug - Arion ater
12. English Holly - Ilex aquafolium
13. Oyster Mushroom - Pleurotus

Posted on June 5, 2012 02:28 PM by ashersh