Environmental Study Of Lechtenberg Park

[Turtle]

Turtle and I delved deep into the heart of Lechtenburg Park on a pleasently warm afternoon yesterday. Environmental Study was the name of the game.

Several samples were taken, as were photographs.

 

Here is a sample of what we encountered:

...The highlight of our Trek was the discovery of a colony of heron. There was about 5 or 6 congregating in closely assembled nests. These heron are different becuz' they hunt frogs and salamanders at night and are social birds...

 

 

the highlight indeed. :lol: we earlier identified them as the Black-crowned Night Herons - Nycticorax nycticorax. in racoon's pictures the necks look longer than in this description? Black-crowned Night-Heron - BirdWeb

 

while Racoon worked in for a camera shot, i stood back and observed the birds with binoculars. some had a clearly mottled brown/light breast. i think this is the same species i saw singley on the other side of the creek in april.

 

racoon & i came upon the nest trees as we walked west toward the creek, and more the worse for viewing and photos, the sun was behind them in our eyes. the nest trees are dead douglas firs; 3 or 4 trees in close proximity. the entire colony had their nests grouped within a roughly 20 foot area, and the 5 or 6 larger birds seemed none too disturbed by our approach. the vocalizing by the birds is interesting and something like a bark or croak. i did see the heads of young in at least one of the nests. :)

[Cedars]

the highlight indeed. :lol: we earlier identified them as the Black-crowned Night Herons - Nycticorax nycticorax. in racoon's pictures the necks look longer than in this description? Black-crowned Night-Heron - BirdWeb

 

while Racoon worked in for a camera shot, i stood back and observed the birds with binoculars. some had a clearly mottled brown/light breast. i think this is the same species i saw singley on the other side of the creek in april.

 

racoon & i came upon the nest trees as we walked west toward the creek, and more the worse for viewing and photos, the sun was behind them in our eyes. the nest trees are dead douglas firs; 3 or 4 trees in close proximity. the entire colony had their nests grouped within a roughly 20 foot area, and the 5 or 6 larger birds seemed none too disturbed by our approach. the vocalizing by the birds is interesting and something like a bark or croak. i did see the heads of young in at least one of the nests. :)

 

The birds in the above pictures look like Great Blue Herons to me.

 

The size difference between the Night Heron and Blue is great. A Night Heron is around 2 feet tall and a Great Blue is around 4 foot tall.

 

Their ranges overlap in most areas so you can find both birds in the same location.

[Turtle]

The birds in the above pictures look like Great Blue Herons to me.

 

The size difference between the Night Heron and Blue is great. A Night Heron is around 2 feet tall and a Great Blue is around 4 foot tall.

 

Their ranges overlap in most areas so you can find both birds in the same location.

 

OK i won't set easy 'til i get back for some more looks. racoon found one of their feathers and i scanned it. too big to fit entirely on the scanner. :)

[freeztar]

i have a lot of materials still to process, but i took a sample of a plant that freeztar commented on from the last expedition. at least i think it's the same plant. anyway, here's a scan freezy of what you though might be an invasive species.

 

more to come. that's a wrap. ;) :cup:

 

That looks like a Ranunculus Turtle.

Without knowing the scale of the scan, I'll hazard a guess of Ranunculus occidentalis, though it could also be this one.

[freeztar]

Identify us these?? We have yet to identify these species. :cup: ;) :D

 

 

I believe this one is Oceanspray, but I would have to see more details to be sure.

 

 

This one looks like Cascara (Rhamnus purshiana). I would almost bet my life on it. ;)

[Turtle]

That looks like a Ranunculus Turtle.

Without knowing the scale of the scan, I'll hazard a guess of Ranunculus occidentalis, though it could also be this one.

 

roger buttercup. my sample seems rather hairless, however i have found that the 'authoritive' descriptions seldom make for a perfect match with what i find in the field. for instance, both sources you give describe the stems as 'upright', but my field observation was that the plant is low and spreading. ;)

 

I believe this one is Oceanspray, but I would have to see more details to be sure.

 

alas i did not collect a sample from this plant, but the description in the article is apt.

 

This one looks like Cascara (Rhamnus purshiana). I would almost bet my life on it. ;)

 

i did collect & scan a sample from this plant. >>

 

this wiki on cascara may save your life, but they say the berries start red and go darker wheras my sample has green berries. :eek: careful with that axe eugene. :D

 

i think my plant #005 in the gallery is a hawthorn. i observed thorns on the small-tree-sized plants in the field, and encountered them in the area of the the old homestead.

 

i weighed the log rac & i carried back at 25 pounds; i'm carving it into a turtle for a child's stool. that's a wrap. :cup:

[freeztar]

roger buttercup. my sample seems rather hairless, however i have found that the 'authoritive' descriptions seldom make for a perfect match with what i find in the field. for instance, both sources you give describe the stems as 'upright', but my field observation was that the plant is low and spreading. ;)

 

Yeah, the descriptions are general and do not hold true always.

I've seen a monoculture patch of buttercup displaying both growing habits.

 

alas i did not collect a sample from this plant, but the description in the article is apt.

 

It's a good guess at least as it is fairly common up there in that type of habitat.

 

i did collect & scan a sample from this plant. >>

 

this wiki on cascara may save your life, but they say the berries start red and go darker wheras my sample has green berries. :D careful with that axe eugene. ;)

 

This picture will hopefully spare me yet.

;)

 

i think my plant #005 in the gallery is a hawthorn. i observed thorns on the small-tree-sized plants in the field, and encountered them in the area of the the old homestead.

 

Good call Turtle!

You also bring up a good point with the homestead. A colleague of mine claims to be able to tell the locations of old homesteads by using a combination of topology and what plant species are present.

i weighed the log rac & i carried back at 25 pounds; i'm carving it into a turtle for a child's stool. that's a wrap. :cup:

 

That sounds cool! Do you have a design worked out? :eek:

[freeztar]

in my haste i neglected to include a scale with these scans :eek:. suffice it to say all are small enough to fit comfortably on a scanner. ;) the blue/purple flowers are barely 3-4mm across though. :D :cup:

 

Plant003 looks like heal-all.

I'll have to dig a little deeper to figure out the other three. A challenge! ;)

[Turtle]

This picture will hopefully spare me yet.

;)

 

your sentence is not only commuted, i give you full pardon. :D i'm glad rac nor i chose a branch of it to chew on. ;) :eek:

 

 

Good call Turtle!

You also bring up a good point with the homestead. A colleague of mine claims to be able to tell the locations of old homesteads by using a combination of topology and what plant species are present.

 

nice! that's a well honed skill aright. :) i also saw a small holly in the homestead area; another non-native long-time ornamental. in retrospect, rac & i are lucky neither of us stepped into the old crapper or through the top of a well-rusted metal septic tank. :doh: ;) we did come across a small pond some distance before the home-site, which may be natural or the old cesspool. ;)

 

attached below is an updated google map of the park. the east & north boundaries i have gree-lined is a wall of blackberry. red dots mark entry/exit, the garry oak in rac's pic, and the location we found the deer scat. below the blue dot is the debris covered house foundation.

 

 

That sounds cool! Do you have a design worked out? :)

roger that. outlined in last few posts here. >> http://hypography.com/forums/artists-weightroom/11850-woodshop.html

 

:cup: :cup:

[Racoon]

The birds in the above pictures look like Great Blue Herons to me.

 

The size difference between the Night Heron and Blue is great. A Night Heron is around 2 feet tall and a Great Blue is around 4 foot tall.

 

Their ranges overlap in most areas so you can find both birds in the same location.

 

I also thought they might be Blue Heron's.. I've seen straglers of similar color around the city in realtive wooded, marshy surroundings. Same gray and white patterns.

 

But I was quiet, and let Turtle do all the explaining on this one... :) I need to find my Audubon book. I misplaced it somewhere

 

They made a deep "Gaaawwwwwwkkk" sound. But thats probably common amongst herons.

 

Their wing span was large. dare I say 5-6 feet? I'd say they were at least 3 feet tall.

 

A wonderful bird and enlightening observation none-the-less :cool: :cup:

[Turtle]

.

 

But I was quiet, and let Turtle do all the explaining on this one... :)

 

and don't you think for one minute that that goes unrecognized nor unappreciated racoon. :cup: you stand as a rarity among my acquaintances inasmuch as you accompany me inspite of myself. i am never so tall as when i stand corrected. :cool:

[Mercedes Benzene]

It's rather sad that I just discovered this thread today! :cup: :cool:

 

Anyway, it reminds me of something that I took part in earlier this year that I think you will find interesting and relevant to your own endeavours.

 

National Geographic: Rock Creek Park BioBlitz 2007

 

It happened at Rock Creek Park in Washington DC, and apparently they are held in different places around the US. It was a very interesting experience, although the group I worked with was not very successful at discovering anything interesting....

 

Cheers!

[Turtle]

It's rather sad that I just discovered this thread today! :( :doh:

better happy than never, i always say! :hyper:

 

Anyway, it reminds me of something that I took part in earlier this year that I think you will find interesting and relevant to your own endeavours.

 

National Geographic: Rock Creek Park BioBlitz 2007

 

It happened at Rock Creek Park in Washington DC, and apparently they are held in different places around the US. It was a very interesting experience, although the group I worked with was not very successful at discovering anything interesting....

 

Cheers!

 

interesting. racoon san suggested during the expedition that i instigate something similar for Lechtenberg, but i rather poo-pooed the idea on a couple of counts. mind you, this is another example of me inspite of myself which racoon simply nodded & smiled at.

 

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par for the course i guess. if this place gets spoiled, i'll just head off and find another neat place no one knows about. that's how i get the best power. i think it's gentetic inheritance from my crackpot cousin johnny appleseed's side of the family. you know he once threw away his shoe to punish his foot for stepping on a worm!???:eek: what a maroon. :hyper: :)

[Cedars]

I also thought they might be Blue Heron's.. I've seen straglers of similar color around the city in realtive wooded, marshy surroundings. Same gray and white patterns.

 

But I was quiet, and let Turtle do all the explaining on this one... :D I need to find my Audubon book. I misplaced it somewhere

 

They made a deep "Gaaawwwwwwkkk" sound. But thats probably common amongst herons.

 

Their wing span was large. dare I say 5-6 feet? I'd say they were at least 3 feet tall.

 

A wonderful bird and enlightening observation none-the-less :doh: :evil:

Your wingspan is within the range of the Great Blue and much larger than the Night Heron.

 

This is kinda rapid because the bird is alarmed. Usually each call is longer and separated by at least a few seconds. The young in the nest will sometimes make what can only be described as a growling noise, usually at each other, even at other herons in nests nearby. Great Blue Heron:

 

http://www.naturesongs.com/gbhe2.wav

 

This is the Black crowned Night Heron:

 

http://www.naturesongs.com/bcheron1.wav

 

If something occurs with the above links, heres the page they link from:

 

Gaviiforms to Anseriforms

[freeztar]

 

Just an aside, but that big leaf maple that you are climbing appears to have some licorice ferns growing in the moss along the limbs. I used to love to dig them up and nibble on the roots. At first the taste is very sweet, but then turns kinda bitter. An acquired taste no doubt. Carry on. :lol:

[freeztar]

 

My colleague ID'd this one. According to him this is Platanthera dilatata.

 

 

Achillea millefolium?

 

 

I believe that is Myosotis laxa.

 

:lol:

[Turtle]

My colleague ID'd this one. According to him this is Platanthera dilatata.

 

 

Sweet! I'll change the title on the photo ASAP. Interesting that the Washington map from USDA on its distribution shows no record of it where I found it (Southern Clark County Washington).

Washington County Level Distribution for Platanthera dilatata (scentbottle) | USDA PLANTS

 

I'll follow up on the other ID's as well. Thanks very much for all your help. One note, the big tree I'm climbing with the tasty fern is a Garry Oak rather than Big Leaf Maple.

 

I'm thinking that I soon as I tire of my own study of Lechtenberg, I'll bring it to the attention of the botany departments at the local college and/or university. It would make a great student lab I think. :) :lol: