laurars13's Journal

It was March 29th and it was heavily raining with significant cloud cover. The area is primarily coniferous and it consists of various larger trees, smaller trees, shrubbery, and ferns. Two primary items of interest are the Western Hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla) and the Bigleaf Maple (Acer macrophyllum).
The Western Hemlock is of particular interest because there are several heron nests located up in the branches of one of the Western Hemlock trees located in the rookery. At one point, I witnessed two herons mate. The male heron that had not socially bonded with the female attempted copulation and was attacked by another male that had presumably socially bonded with the female heron in question. This attempt to deter copulation was ineffective and I believe that copulation did in fact occur. This is fascinating to witness because it offers insight into the behavioral tendencies of the heron species and particularly heron within this pacific northwest region. The Western Hemlock provides the habitat in which this type of behavior can be engaged in and observed.
The Bigleaf Maple, or what I believe to be a Bigleaf Maple is of particular interest to me in this setting because it appears to be entirely bare; meaning that it has no leaves of any kind. This was intriguing because Big Leaf Maples typically bloom in spring and it is currently spring, which causes me to believe that there must be some deficiency with this tree.
It was difficult to make concise observations do to the challenges that the weather presented I was unable to make detailed notes in my field notebook and was forced to work more quickly than usual, but I hope to return to this area to make more detailed and reflective observations.
Species List:
Western Red Cedar (Thuja pilcata)
Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)
Western Hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla)
Bigleaf Maple (Acer macrophyllum)
Dull Oregon Grape (mahonia nervosa)
Oregon Grape (mahonia aquifolium)
English Ivy (Hedera relix)
Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis)
English Holly (ilex aquifolium)

I walked along the Burke Gilman trail directly adjacent to the IMA and the soccer and baseball fields. It was an extremely warm day around 70 degrees with minimal cloud cover. I observed numerous plant species and because we are now in the Spring season, I was particularly interested in all of the various flowering plants along the path. Many of the flowering plants I observed were bright blue or purple and I found that I had trouble identifying them. I late learned that many of these flowering plants were horticultural plants that were non-native to the area, which would explain the difficulty I had identifying them.
I was also particularly interested in observing the various moss and lichen species that were still apparent on tree trunks and cement barriers along the path. I was interested in observing moss and lichen species because I have only previously observed these species in extremely damp environments and I was curious to see how these species change in a climate that is drier. I felt what I believe to be a lichen and moss specimen and they felt extremely dry and rough. Their color was either dark brown or a dark olive green and both specimens were showing signs of an extreme lack of moisture. Both felt like carpet almost and had a rough crunchy feel to them. It is interesting to me how much moisture changes the color and composition of lichens and mosses.
I was also able to observe some bird species, I saw numerous small brown birds which could either be Brown Creepers or Sparrows. I have not been able to effectively identify the bird that I was able to photograph, but I am working and researching to accomplish that. I found that observing birds is particularly difficult because of the rate at which they migrate from tree to tree. It is difficult to get close enough to record necessary details to make identification, but I am certain this will improve with practice.
I observed one shrub in particular that was extremely interesting to me. I am not sure if it is a native species because I have never seen it before but it had oval shaped leathery green leaves and clustered deep purple flowers. There were bees pollenating these shrubs and I could observe the bright yellow pollen located on the tip of the flower clusters being transfered from the petals to the legs of the bee. The pollen appeared to just multiply on the legs of the bee and will undoubtedly be carried with the bee wherever it may travel.
I also was able to observe some ferns, I was able to see Sword ferns as well as Bracken. I had never observed Bracken before and it was interesting to see how each out-growing leaf on the fern seemed to be composed of several other leaves, this is evidenced in the photo I was able to capture.
I have not completed my identification of the species I observed on this outing but I will add an updated species list to this journal entry when I am able to do so.
Species List:
Bracken (Pteridium aquilinum)
Horsetails (Genus Equisetum)

Red deadnettle (Lamium purpureum)