Album of McLane Creek Field Trip

Selected photos from the spider collecting field trip to a floodplain forest and grassland along McLane Creek Nature Trail at the edge of the Black Hills, southwest of Olympia, Washington on 11 May 2007 with Laurel Ramseyer and Rod Crawford. Photos by both, as credited. A nice place with reasonably natural habitats and unintentionally amusing interpretive signs. The spider fauna wasn't terribly rich in most microhabitats, but the grass litter in the meadow made up for all, with the day's best specimens.
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aerial photo (1990), McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington Interpretive sign, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Our site from the air in 1990 (USGS) Signs on the trail lean toward purple prose     © Laurel Ramseyer
Dicentra formosa bleedingheart flowers, Bozy Creek, Black Hills, Grays Harbor County, Washington McLane Creek, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Dicentra were everywhere     © Laurel Ramseyer McLane Creek and gravel bars             © Laurel Ramseyer
nurse stump, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington McLane Creek, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Nurse stump      © Laurel Ramseyer Foliage overhanging creek        © Rod Crawford
old stump from early logging days, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington Tall grass meadow, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Mossy surface of big old stump     © Rod Crawford Laurel forges through the grass jungle      © Rod Crawford
Laurel Ramseyer in tall grass meadow, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington grass meadow litter in sifter, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Laurel sorts through her catch    © Rod Crawford Productive meadow litter in sifter            © Rod Crawford
apple blossoms, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington Misumena vatia flower crab spider penultimate female, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Blossoming apple tree was the scene of drama
© Rod Crawford		 Penultimate female Misumena vatia was the bone of contention
© Rod Crawford
Misumena vatia flower crab spider in leaf, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington Misumena vatia flower crab spider males on apple tree, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Female was in this leaf preparing to molt
© Laurel Ramseyer		 Meanwhile, three males just happened to be hanging out nearby
© Laurel Ramseyer
assassin bug Reduviidae preys on crane fly Tipulidae, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington forest understory and bigleaf maple Acer macrophyllum, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Ruthless assassin bug stabs defenseless crane fly
© Laurel Ramseyer		 Dense flood plain forest understory       © Rod Crawford
mossy trunk of bigleaf maple Acer macrophyllum, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington Clubiona pacifica female sac spider Clubionidae, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
Mossy bigleaf maple trunk      © Rod Crawford Clubiona pacifica female from leaf litter     © Rod Crawford
Geometridae larva inchworm caterpillar on flower crab spider Misumena vatia, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington marsh and beaver pond, McLane Creek Nature Trail, Thurston County, Washington
"Hey! I'm not gonna eat this thing! Get it off me!"
© Laurel Ramseyer		 Marsh adjacent to main beaver pond         © Rod Crawford

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This page last updated 24 June, 2007