East Slope of the Cascades
Saturday May 31

This weekend half of the class went on a field trip to the East slope of the cascades. On the drive we passed through the Douglas fir forest, into the pine forest dominated by Ponderosa Pine and finally made it to the steppe habitat of Eastern Washington. 
When we got out of the car at the first stop along the Yakima valley river it was about 11:00 am and the sun was brutal. Such a sharp contrast from out first trip to the Olympic Peninsula. We were clearly on the dusty, dry slopes of Cascade rain shadow. Although I am from Eastern Washington, I never really wondered about the natural history of this region. However coming to this area with a new perspective and sense of wonder really made this trip meaningful to me. 

Mountain Daisy

After arriving at our first destination we walked across a wobbly bridge to get to the trails. Flying all over the river were loads of cliff swallows probably catching insects over the water. It was a little overwhelming watching all of them and walking over that bridge! We stopped for a while in a clearing to look at the birds of this region. We spotted the magnificent Lazuli Bunting, Turkey Vultures, Ravens as well as the Yellow Chat and  Bullock’s Oriole. It was refreshing to see some new birds today but also a challenge to pick up on new calls. 

White markings on cliffs indicate areas frequented by hawks

Nootka Rose also found in Seattle 

Tall Sagebrush

After a 911 emergency call, quiet an exciting morning, we made our way up one of the trails looking out for the native plants of this area and rattlesnakes! Most abundant was the Tall Sagebrush, Artemisia tridentata, tri for the three pronged leaved. We also saw Bitterbrush and Prickly Pear cactus. Most of the plants in this area are brittle and dry, they grow close to the ground due to exposure to wind. They also store water in their roots. 

Orange lichen on Tall Sagebrush

Sulphur Buckwheat

Our next location was the expansive shrub steppe habitat. At first glance it seemed like a rugged barren landscape, however, up close there is an entire ecosystem of fragile plants and wildflowers growing in the dry soil. This side of the state was not affected by glaciers like the west side, it has rolling hills and mysterious mounds instead. Although I didn't see it, we heard the bubbling song of the Meadow lark which is now my favorite song to date. 

Bitterroot

Unfortunately sometime around now my camera ran out of battery. Some of the exciting species I saw with my naked eyes were the Horned Lizard, Scorpions, and Tent Caterpillars. The caterpillars were the most fascinating to me, there were bunches of them crowded together in webs on the Tall Sagebrush!  

Our final location was the waterfall trail in the Pine forest. Here I noticed many familiar species we had notice in Seattle including Nootka Rose, Douglas-fir, Cottonwoods and Snowberry. There was also another type of alder I think Sitka Alder. Also common along the trail was the Rocky Mountain Iris a beautiful blue/purple flower, my favorite new species! 

I was glad to have the chance to practice natural history observations in a new place even if I couldn't immediately identify everything I was seeing!