Album of Moon Slough Field Trip

Selected photos by Rod Crawford and Laurel Ramseyer from our 30 July 2017 spider collecting trip to the Ferbrache Unit, a public land tract beside Moon Slough on the Chehalis River, Grays Harbor County, Washington. After a few hours at the main site (where Laurel sampled Sitka Spruce cones), we crossed the river to an upland forest that yielded several additional species, for a total of 26-28. Laurel's account of the day is here.
READ TRIP NARRATIVE PHOTO ALBUM INDEX MAIN JOURNAL INDEX
2015 aerial photo of Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington hay field beside Brady Loop Road West, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
P= parking lot, S= giant spruce tree; Moon Slough upper right
 (Grays Harbor County, 2015)		 Parking lot and hayfield with grass & woodland habitat        © Rod Crawford
Dictyna web on metal fence post, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington looking along edge of first hayfield, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Dictyna web on steel fence post      © Laurel Ramseyer Looking along edge of first hayfield              © Rod Crawford
female Theridion varians theridiid spider from Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington dirt road through woodland belt, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Theridion varians             © Rod Crawford Dirt track passes through woodland belt             © Rod Crawford
female microspider Ceratinella sp. from spruce cones, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington dirt track through woodland belt, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Female Ceratinella from spruce cones    © Rod Crawford Dirt track continues into next hayfield              © Rod Crawford
pteromalid micro-parasitoid wasp from Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington sprinklers in hay field, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Pteromalid wasp found in sweep sample   © Rod Crawford A nice warm day to run through sprinklers!             © Laurel Ramseyer
radio-controlled model plane, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington model plane site, Willis Field, across road from Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Radio-controlled model plane…            © Rod Crawford …flown from "Willis Field" mini-airport across the road     © Laurel Ramseyer
looking up trunk of giant Sitka spruce tree, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington giant Sitka spruce at edge of field, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Trunk of giant Sitka spruce             © Laurel Ramseyer Giant Sitka spruce stands out from riparian woods        © Laurel Ramseyer
tangle of Marah oregnana (wild cucumber) at base of spruce tree, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington big Sitka spruce trunk, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Tree skirts draped with Marah oregana       © Rod Crawford Giant spruce trunk deep in the "jungle"            © Rod Crawford
Rod Crawford breaking trail to spruce trunk, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington Rod Crawford breaking trail to spruce trunk, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Rod sets out to break trail          © Laurel Ramseyer Almost made it to the trunk!                  © Laurel Ramseyer
sitka spruce cones, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington Rod Crawford examining beat catch in tangle of Marah oregana, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Spruce cones beside the trunk        © Laurel Ramseyer Rod examines beat catch deep in the Marah-vine jungle    © Laurel Ramseyer
sitka spruce foliage too high to reach, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington understory of deciduous forest, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
All that lovely spruce foliage, just out of reach!   © Laurel Ramseyer Interior of woodlands very hard to access              © Rod Crawford
Laurel Ramseyer collecting spiders from spruce cones, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington grass seed and blue sky, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
Laurel collecting from spruce cones        © Rod Crawford Golden grass and blue sky                  © Laurel Ramseyer
Rod Crawford beating spruce foliage, Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington cornfield across road from Ferbrache (wildlife) Unit, Moon Slough, Grays Harbor County, Washington
I can just about reach that one branch! © Laurel Ramseyer Across the road, the corn grows tall              © Rod Crawford
alder-maple forest along Hislop Road (off Minkler Road) across Chehalis River from Montesano, Washington illegally dumped mattress, Hislop Road (off Minkler Road) across Chehalis River from Montesano, Washington
Across the river, an alder-maple forest   © Laurel Ramseyer Illegal dumping is why they gate these roads               © Rod Crawford
unreachable conifer branches, Hislop Road (off Minkler Road) across Chehalis River from Montesano, Washington powerline clearing on Hislop Road (off Minkler Road) across Chehalis River from Montesano, Washington
Conifer foliage tantalizingly out of reach     © Rod Crawford Powerline clearing added two species           © Rod Crawford
Rod Crawford in lush forest understory, Hislop Road (off Minkler Road) across Chehalis River from Montesano, Washington western hemlock foliage, Hislop Road (off Minkler Road) across Chehalis River from Montesano, Washington
Rod almost vanishes in dense, rich understory    © Laurel Ramseyer Laurel added a few more from shaded western hemlock     © Laurel Ramseyer
Rod Crawford sifting leaf litter on car hood, Hislop Road (off Minkler Road) across Chehalis River from Montesano, Washington Chehalis River from Highway 107 bridge south of Montesano, Washington
Rod sifts litter on Laurel's hood          © Laurel Ramseyer We cross the broad Chehalis              © Rod Crawford
spider Dirksia cinctipes from understory foliage, Hislop Road (off Minkler Road) across Chehalis River from Montesano, Washington Mount Rainier from near Tacoma, Washington on 30 July 2017
Dirksia cinctipes from understory     © Rod Crawford Mt. Rainier viewed from the Tacoma Traffic Jam          © Rod Crawford

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This page last updated 5 August, 2017