Album of Delphi Pioneer Cemetery Field Trip

Selected photos by Rod Crawford from my 18 March 2016 spider collecting trip with Ben Diehl to Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington. We found the site easily and were able to walk onto the gated grounds; the actual cemetery is small, leaving plenty of natural riparian woodland and even a trail going south along the creek. Pickings were reasonably rich, including both Antrodiaetus and Hexura under logs, with 35 species in all. Then we spent some time in a working forest at the east edge of the Black Hills, with largely complementary spider fauna (and a bunch of gun enthusiasts bang-banging into a gravel pit), and ended the day with no less than 56 species!
READ TRIP NARRATIVE PHOTO ALBUM INDEX MAIN JOURNAL INDEX
2015 aerisl view of Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington entrance gate of Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Little cemetery in the big woods     (Thurston County, 2015) Entry gate to main graves area         © Rod Crawford
gravestone of main graves area, Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Grave of German pioneer Fred Lehman, 1851-1900    © Rod Crawford Main area of graves (still being added to)              © Rod Crawford
mossy maple trees, Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington moss on suspended log, Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Mossy maple trunks              © Rod Crawford Moss draping a branch           © Rod Crawford
moss-sifting for spiders at Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington Oregon-grape Berberis sp. at Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Moss-sifting             © Rod Crawford Oregon-grape in understory         © Rod Crawford
diverse forest understory at Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington Ben Diehl sweeping understory for spiders at Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Diverse understory with salal          © Rod Crawford Ben sweeping understory for spiders                   © Rod Crawford
carapace of Hexura picea spider Mecicobothriidae from Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington sword fern Polystichum munitum in understory, Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Ben's prize Hexura             © Rod Crawford Sword ferns in understory              © Rod Crawford
alder tree trunk, Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington trail leading south from Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Alder trunk             © Rod Crawford Trail (to where?) heads south from cemetery           © Rod Crawford
maple-alder leaf litter at Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington male spider Scotinella sp. from leaf litter, Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Maple-alder litter fills in between shrubs     © Rod Crawford Curiously, some adult Scotinella in the litter          © Rod Crawford
tall roadside grass at Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington Stony Creek flowing beside Delphi Pioneer Cemetery, Thurston County, Washington
Tall roadside grass added a species     © Rod Crawford Stony Creek flows beside the cemetery              © Rod Crawford

Our second site was a working forest at the west edge of the Black Hills, with clearcuts and gravel pits.

Douglas squirrel on boulder talus mossy boulder talus, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington
Douglas squirrels like to pose for me       © Rod Crawford Rocks had Calymmaria under them            © Rod Crawford
pure maple leaf litter, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington maple forest in stream gully amoung planted clearcuts, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington
Pure maple litter, distinct spider fauna        © Rod Crawford Maple woodland in stream gully; planted clearcut above         © Rod Crawford
carapace of crab spider Ozyptila pacifica from maple litter, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington clearcut planted with Douglas-fir, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington
Carapace of Ozyptila pacifica           © Rod Crawford Clearcut planted with Douglas-fir              © Rod Crawford
young Douglas-fir tree, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington logging slash piled in gravel pit, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington
Young Douglas-fir – with spiders          © Rod Crawford Slash piled in gravel pit               © Rod Crawford
epigynum of wolf spider Lycosidae Pardosa wyuta, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington moss & lichen on talus rock, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington
Epigynum of wolf spider Pardosa wyuta      © Rod Crawford Moss and lichen on talus rock       © Rod Crawford
DNR shooting hours sign, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington after-hours shooters, E of Waddel Creek Road, Black Hills, Thurston County, Washington
Shooting hours          © Rod Crawford Ben prepares to run the gantlet of 6:30 shooters             © Rod Crawford
Mount Mainier from behind Bush Mountain, north end of Black Lake, Thurston County, Washington Black Lake from Black Lake Boulevard, Thurston County, Washington
Mt. Rainier peeks over nearby ridge   © Rod Crawford Black Lake at dusk, still looking blue                    © Rod Crawford

This page last updated 23 March, 2016