Album of Horse Lake Mountain Field Trip

Selected photos (by Rod Crawford and Laurel Ramseyer) from our 2 July spider collecting trip to a mountain meadow and Ponderosa pine forest at the 3400-foot level on Horse Lake Mountain (WSW of Wenatchee), Chelan County, Washington. After a rainy June, weather worked out perfectly and we enjoyed outstanding solitude, great natural beauty, and decent spider collecting all day. Although we only got 26 species (adding to 3 others taken in a brief class field trip stop back in 1982), they included very rare or unfamiliar species of Neon, Dictyna and Philodromus. See here for Laurel's recollections.
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2006 aerial photo of spider collecting site, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington Laurel Ramseyer parking at rough part of Number Two Canyon road, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Aerial view of collecting area (Chelan County, 2006) When the road gets rough, the tough get out and walk         © Rod Crawford
bumble bee on Laurel Ramseyer's shirt, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington Rod Crawford pauses on Number Two Canyon Road, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Bumble bee mistook Laurel for a flower   © Rod Crawford Rod pauses to adjust pack straps                © Laurel Ramseyer
slope ponderosa pine forest and understory, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington mountain meadow in pine forest, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Balsamroot-shrub understory        © Laurel Ramseyer Mountain meaadow surrounded by open pine        © Laurel Ramseyer
flowering herbs at mountain meadow edge, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington clouds over mountain meadow, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Diverse herbs at edge of meadow      © Rod Crawford Clouds and breeze kept things cool          © Rod Crawford
theridiid spider Euryopis formosa from pine cones, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington young Ponderosa pine tree with pollen, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Euryopis formosa         © Rod Crawford Young Ponderosa pine producing pollen           © Rod Crawford
acmon blue butterfly Plebejus acmon nectaring, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington setup for collecting spiders from pine bark scales, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Plebejus acmon            © Laurel Ramseyer Pine bark scale scraping, often productive but not this time!     © Rod Crawford
cheliferid pseudoscorpion from pine cones, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington ponderosa pine cones, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Cheliferid pseudoscorpion from pine cones         © Rod Crawford Laurel's favorite spider habitat               © Laurel Ramseyer
cobweb weaving spider Theridion rabuni from pine cones, Nason Creek Rest Area, Chelan County, Washington Balsamorhiza and Castelleja flowers, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Rare pine cone spider Theridion rabuni      © Rod Crawford Lots of herbs were still in bloom           © Rod Crawford
Laurel Ramseyer sitting in pine grove, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington understory vegetation in pine grove, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Laurel looks chilly as evening comes on    © Rod Crawford Understory of pine groves had lots more spiders than open meadow       © Rod Crawford
jumping spider, Neon new species near pixii, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington rocks where spiders were collected, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Third known specimen of undescribed Neon © Rod Crawford Rocks had good spiders, as expected           © Laurel Ramseyer
mariposa lily, Calochortus lyallii, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington cobweb weaving spider Theridion neomexicanum from foliage, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Mariposa lily            © Rod Crawford Theridion neomexicanum was common         © Rod Crawford
willow and shrubs in ravine, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington unidentified crab spider Philodromus sp., Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Willow and shrubs in a ravine               © Rod Crawford Unfamiliar Philodromus will have to await dissection        © Rod Crawford
Douglas maple Acer glabrum from riparian grove, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington western eyed click beetle Alaus melanops from under stump bark, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington
Sprig of Douglas maple             © Rod Crawford Eyed click beetle: I've never seen one before!       © Rod Crawford
mixed leaf litter in riparian grove, Horse Lake Mountain, Chelan County, Washington clouds obscure sunset near Cashmere, Chelan County, Washington on 2 July 2010
Litter in ravine added 3-4 species      © Rod Crawford The dark clouds of western Washington await us         © Rod Crawford

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This page last updated 11 June, 2015