ER 7 Trout Creek 16 March 2010

March hike in the Trout Creek Ecological Reserve

I was in the actual park for 1.5 hours this morning. It was cool for the

most part, but the increasing appearance of the sun warmed things up. The

only wind was a little near the top. I saw or heard 9 species of

birds, but none that were not expected. Unfortunately I missed the

Cassin`s Finch, but I did hear a lot of Red Crossbills. I recorded 5 plant

species in leaf, but missed the Mariposa Lily and the Sagebrush

Buttercup. The Bitterroot crop is plentiful this year. I removed 4- 5

invasive Sulphur Cinqufoil plants. Deer have damaged several small pines

by rubbing their antler velvet off on them. There were no rosettes of

knapweed, yah! I saw only the tracks and scat of a coyote.

I replaced about 8 fence staples and secured the rest by tapping on them

as many were working themselves loose. I saw no sign of human activity

other than the foot prints that I reported last month.

The reserve is in good shape and only the fencing that we looked at on

the 11th needs to be done. The reserve is at a perfect stage now for a

controlled burn to improve its productivity.

Cheers.................Laurie