Album of Parke Creek Field Trip

Selected photos from the spider collecting field trip to Parke Creek, NE of Kittitas and N of Whliskey Dick Mountain, Kittitas County, Washington, on 9 October 2008, with Laurel Ramseyer and Rod Crawford. Photos by both, as credited. Collecting with permission on private land, we got a great variety of species from litter, several from shrubs, and a bunch more from ungrazed grassland and marsh, with a total of 23 for the day (30 with prior records). The contrast between the overgrazed riparian zone of the creek and the ungrazed flora inside the fence was amazing! A fine collecting day even though we didn't get the mature orbweavers I was expecting.
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aerial view (2000) of riparian forest site on Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington riparian woodland on Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
You can just make out the rectangular fenced area in this aerial view      (USGS, 2000) Riparian woodland stands out sharply against the shrub-steppe   
© Laurel Ramseyer
heavily overgrazed riparian meadow, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington fence divides overgrazed and ungrazed meadow, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
Outside the fence, cattle have chomped the meadow down to the quick!       © Rod Crawford Grazed on the left, ungrazed on the right    © Rod Crawford
ungrazed riparian meadow, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington ungrazed riparian meadow, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
Weedy part of ungrazed meadow     © Rod Crawford Lush, rich ungrazed meadow        © Laurel Ramseyer
disintegrating baldfaced hornet Dolichovespula maculata nest, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington cattle grating, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
A lonely bald-faced hornet in its disintegrating nest       
© Laurel Ramseyer		 Cattle grating helps separate cows and meadow  © Rod Crawford
scotch thistle Onopordon acanthium, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington riparian wetland, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
Scotch thistle in the meadow   © Rod Crawford Unexpected wetland among the trees      © Rod Crawford
sedge in riparian wetland, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington riparian glade, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
Sedge clump in a wet spot   © Laurel Ramseyer Floristically rich riparian glade             © Rod Crawford
Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington riparian understory shrubs, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
Parke Creek itself        © Rod Crawford Riparian shrub understory     © Rod Crawford
Pacific tree frog Hyla regilla, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington terraced hills at evening, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
Tree frog in the creek    © Laurel Ramseyer Evening paints the terraced hills     © Laurel Ramseyer
sagebrush Artemisia tridentata, Park Creek NE of Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington sunset over Kittitas, Kittitas County, Washington
Sagebrush foliage         © Rod Crawford Sunset over Kittitas           © Rod Crawford

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This page last updated 30 November, 2008