Today my class and I hiked in Pack Forest, and examined the flora and fauna. The weather was cloudy wtih occasional light rain and misting. The trees on our hike were mostly alders and big leaf maples. The tops of the trees were red with alder catkins. The maple trees were budding with the first signs of leaves. The undergrowth consisted of coltsfoot, grasses, herb-robert, sword ferns, and Mahonium aquifolium. There were tall shrubs of Indian Plum and Red Flowering Currant, both were beginning to blossom. I also spotted a long-tailed vole foraging in the leaves.
Long-talied Vole, Microtus longicaudus
Mushroom, Verpa bohemica
Osoberry, Oemleria cerasiformis
Herb-Robert, Geranium robertianum
Arctic Sweet Coltsfoot, Petasites frigidus
Pacific Madrone, Arbutus menziesii
Licorice Fern, Polypodium glycyrrhiza
Red-flowering currant, Ribes sanguineum
The weather at Longmire was surprisingly sunny, with only the occasional misting. There was still snow on the ground, but the temperature was moderate. The trees in Longmire were old growth, and the forest differet greatly from Pack Forest which was mostly second growth. At Longmire the trees were much taller, and Western Hemlocks and Red Cedars dominated the landscape. The trail, called the Trail of Shadows, looped around the Longmire hotsprings, which were steaming. Some interesting things that I saw on this trip were bright yellow oomycetes growing along a stick, and the beautiful red bark of the western yew. There was also moss and lichen covering many of the trees and stumps. Many young trees were growing out of old logs, and I learned that these were called nurse logs. There were also some beautiful fungus shelves growing along the trunks of the trees.
Western Hemlock, Tsuga heteropylla
Oomycetes
Western Yew, Taxus brevifolia
Western redcedar, Thuja plicata
Today the forest around Port Ludlow Bay was lush and green with new growth. The salmonberry bushes have grown to about seven feet tall and are blooming with fuschia pink flossoms. The weather is in the fifties, and there is a light cloud cover but the sun has been peaking through. In a very tall tree high up there is a large nest. I am not sure what bird it belongs to, but it is smaller than an eagles nest usually is. There are many new shoots of beach grass on the beack, and the skunk cabbage have large new leaves and bright yellow flowers in the swamp.
Aggregating Anenome, Anthopleura elegantissima
Ochre Sea Star, Pisaster ochraeceus
Northern Kelp Crab, Pugettia producta
Balnus nubilis
Western Skunk cabbage, Lysichiton americanus
Hairy Hermit Crab, Pagurus hirsutiusculus
Tresus nuttallii
Nucella lamellosa
Stinging nettle, Urtica dioica
Salal, Gaultheria shallon
Western Swordfern, Polystichum munitum
Purple Foxglove, Digitalis purpurea
Salmonberry, Rubus spectabilis
Fucus garneri
Turkish Towel, Chondracanthus exasperatus
California mussel, Mytilus californianus
American Robin, Turdus migratorius
Baldhip rose, Rosa gymnocarpa
European Holly, Ilex aquifolium
Red elderberry, Sambucus racemosa
