Walking Tour: Ravenna Park

Walking Tour of Ravenna Park

To get a feel for the park, view the short video below!

Ravenna Creek

Hi, and welcome to the Walking Tour through Ravenna Park! In store for you here are 10 different stations where you can learn about the park, some of its history, and some of the plants and animals making up this park. A portion of these stations are dedicated to an area near my observation spot, where I spent many hours during the course of my Natural History Class, so get comfortable and spend time observing this area. Often, if you move too quickly through nature, you miss a lot! However, feel free to move through the stations in whatever order and at whatever speed you please. Below is an aerial map of Ravenna Park.  The orange lines depict the trails in the park, and I have marked your path through the park. Begin at the Southeast Corner, at the Ravenna Softball Field. Enjoy!

Station 1

For the first station in this walking tour, I have chosen the entrance trail. In this relatively open area during the spring, wind is a common abiotic factor that affects the plants in different ways. The most interesting way that wind affects this area, in my opinion, is through its interaction with the Black Cottonwood tree. Have you ever been walking outside on a spring day and noticed white fluff that appears to be cotton floating through the air? Well, interestingly enough, this fluff is actually the seeds of the Black Cottonwood tree (the name makes sense now, right?). Named after its seeds, the Black Cottonwood tree relies on wind disturbance to spread its seeds through wind pollination. At this station, the clearing is edged with multiple Black Cottonwood trees. Thus, the wind-reliant species is made happy by this abiotic factor. Many of these seeds won't become trees, which is somewhat obvious since they land anywhere from the middle of the trail to the middle of the road. Because of this low survival rate, there is a very high amount of seeds distributed by these trees each year in order to compete and succeed against other tree and plant species. If you are at this station on a spring day, even with just a slight breeze, you can see the seeds floating through the air. They are also quite apparent and show evidence of recent wind on the trail itself. Below are two links exhibiting the wind dispersion of Black Cottonwood seeds- the first link is at the Union Bay Natural Area through a scope that is focused on a Great Blue Heron, but also depicts the phenomena of the floating Cottonwood's seeds. The second link shows the station itself, with harder to notice but still visible wind dispersion of the seeds.
Black Cottonwood Seeds (ft. Great Blue Heron)
Black Cottonwood Wind Dispersion at First Station

Trailhead- note white specks on ground

Closer view of white specks- Black Cottonwood seeds

Station 2

The second station in your journey merges history and human interaction. This station covers the land use history of Ravenna and Cowen Park. In 1903, the city planned to create a network of boulevards leading between parks within the area that required the nearby Green Lake to be lowered 7 feet. However, when the lake was lowered, Ravenna's outflow creek was no longer necessary and was diverted underground, proving detrimental to Ravenna Park's ecosystem. The creek dried up and became a mere shadow of what it had once been. Furthermore, for decades during the 17th and 18th century, the Ravenna Park ravine was mainly ignored by loggers and farmers. As a result, the area had trees stretching to nearly 400 feet that were featured in the Alaska-Yukon Pacific Exposition of 1904, which was the World's Fair held in Seattle that explored the development of the Pacific Northwest Region. Eventually, a few trees at a time, different men in power made the decisions to cut many of the huge trees in Ravenna down, meeting much opposition by locals. Years later, the Cowen Park ravine was largely filled in by the mid 1960s and was planned to be part of a stormwater drainage system. However, members of the area's surrounding neighborhoods rallied to successfully protect and restore the park. Since 1991, the Ravenna and Cowen parks have been majorly restored by the community's people and the city. In store for you at this station is a view of the creek, visible after many "daylighting" projects were led by Seattle's local community to uncover the creek and restore Ravenna to its former glory. Although, Ravenna Park has been fundamentally changed by human interference during past centuries, this station shows the promise of a positive environmental impact that humans can make when they work together. Today, Ravenna Park is a thriving and diverse ecosystem. The location for this station overlooks Ravenna creek, no longer as large as it once was, but still improved from the dry area that it was after the lowering of Green Lake.

Station 3

The third station on this Walking Tour exhibits the concept of interspecies relationships within an ecosystem. On your right farther up the trail is an area of the trail with a large group of Thimbleberry plants growing. Thimbleberry plants can be identified when in flower by their white, five petaled flowers with yellow central anthers that have petals with a sort of wilted, tissue paper texture.

Above and below images- thimbleberry flowers

Thimbleberry leaf

Thimbleberry plant

 

During the spring, an awesome interaction that can be seen all over the park and at this station specifically is the pollination of these plants (and others) by pollinators- primarily bees. Bumblebees can be seen obtaining nectar from the center of these Thimbleberry plants' flowers, while also moving between the flowers and thus pollinating them by catching and carrying pollen between the flowers. Most easily spotted in the spring, it is always fun to watch these species engaging in what is called mutualism. Mutualism is the interaction between species through which both species are benefited. This is exhibited by the Thimbleberry plant and the bees as the bee benefits by gaining access to the nectar of the flower, while simultaneously spreading the pollen of the plant and aiding in its reproductive cycle. Bees are extremely ecologically important to plants all over the world, pollinating all kinds of plants. Below is a link to a video exhibiting this mutualistic relationship, followed by another video of the same occurrence, but at a different area in Ravenna Park and with a Nootka Rose bush. This is a widely observable relationship! 
Bumblebee on Thimbleberry
Bee on Nootka Rose

Station 4

Trail overlooking open area of creek.

Now, you are coming up on the fourth station on this tour. This station covers the animal behavior within this park. There are tons of different animals you can observe within this park, but I have chosen to center in on one specifically- the American Crow. The American Crow is one of the most common and widespread birds in North America, and is also very common at Ravenna Park. Crows are extremely intelligent and have very interesting behavior to observe. If you look to your left into the woods, imagine the sound of an enormous group of crows all cawing at the same time, surrounding a Barred Owl common to this area. You are imagining an event that often occurs when groups of crows engage in an activity called mobbing. Mobbing when performed by crows is the surrounding and attacking of a predator or threat in order to drive it off. One day when I was at Ravenna Park, I was able to witness this incredible event as 20-30 crows all made their way through the park to this spot, mobbing a Barred Owl that they had become aware of. Below is a link to an audio recording I took of the crows mobbing. They were about 50 meters from me, but can still clearly be heard.
Crows mobbing
To you right, crows can be seen foraging for food, usually in pairs or small groups on the side of the trail. One of my favorite things to watch from this station is the creek, in which crows can often be seen preening themselves in the creek to maintain their feathers. Something to note when you are observing these intelligent creatures: Crows have the ability of recognizing and recalling different human faces. When you look at these beautiful birds and they look back at you, they are recognizing you, which is amazing and even disconcerting to some.

Crows preening themselves in the creek

Crows foraging

Station 5

To get to Station 5, walk a little further up the trail and take this path down to the large boulder you see.

The fifth station is about the geology and geomorphology of Ravenna and Cowen park. Geology and geomorphology are about the physical features and physical history of the surface of the Earth. At Ravenna, one of the most interesting aspects of the geological history are reflected in the large hills spread laterally throughout the park and in a very large rock (boulder, if you will) deposited in the stream. These two aspects are visual remnants from when a glacier called the Vashon Glacial Ice Sheet was moving across the Puget Sound Region almost 20,000 years ago! The hills, ellipses stretching in northern/southerly directions, are called drumlins. Drumlins are hills that have been carved by glaciers moving over the ground in the past, dragging and compressing glacial till into the hills that are visible today at Ravenna Park. 

Note the sharp incline on the left- this hill is a drumlin! It is hard to tell in the picture, but on the right side the slope continues downward before leveling out at the creek. 

The aforementioned boulder is also a remnant left behind by a glacier. This boulder is called an erratic. An erratic is a large rock that has been deposited by a glacier moving over the ground. 

The erratic! Note the carvings in the moss done by people- an interesting interaction between the mark left by a glacier thousands of years ago and present day humans who also wish to leave their mark (also note that it's a heart with two names- cute that it's love these people chose to document :) ).

The same glacier that caused drumlins and erratics at Ravenna Park created Ravenna Park itself. Ravenna Park was a drainage ravine that was part of the Green Lake drainage basin emptying into Lake Washington. This ravine was deepened as the glacier moved over the area and later became what we now know as Ravenna and Cowen Park(s). The Ravenna Creek that runs through Ravenna Park and establishes much of its wetland habitat is sourced from the western face of Ravenna Park's ravine system.

Further up the path are the next couple of stations, which are all centered around one area- my observation spot. This is the area you'll hopefully know the most intimately by the end of this Walking Tour.

Station 6

The sixth station is about BIRDS! My favorite bird at Ravenna, which can be found in abundance and has already been described behaviorally in a past station, is the American Crow, or Corvus brachyrhynchos. Especially during the spring time, one standing on the trail can find multiple groups of American Crows at the Ravenna Park. I have had the most success spotting crows on the main trail that runs along Ravenna Creek. The crows often can be found foraging on the ground for food, perching in the trees, preening themselves in the creek, or can simply be heard all throughout the park calling to each other. American Crows are arguably the smartest birds in this region, which makes them really fun to observe! American Crows are about 10-14 inches from beak to tail, are completely black, and have an easily identifiable "Caw!" call. Crows are smaller, have shorter tails, and have smaller beaks than Ravens- the two species are often difficult to distinguish. 

Another cool bird to observe that is often more difficult to find is the Anna's Hummingbird. The Anna's Hummingbird is a vibrant forest green. Adult males have gray edged feathers and bright red or dark blackish heads and throats, while adult females have green heads with a small patch of red on their throats. I often describe these birds' calls as the sound of two marbles being rubbed together, phonetically sounding like a "stit". These birds can be found in early spring, flitting between different flowers and feeding. I have had the most luck finding these birds at flowering plants like Salmonberry, often near Ravenna Creek or on the higher ridges on the sides of the park. My favorite bush to spot or watch for Anna's Hummingbirds at is right across from my observation spot, where a flowering Salmonberry plant provides the perfect setting to watch these beautiful birds flitting around. There have been multiple times when I, standing at this same station myself, have been passed by or had the company of an Anna's Hummingbird for a few moments while it went from flower to flower. Another interesting fact about these birds is that they also communicate using their tail feathers; during courtship rituals, male hummingbirds will fly high into the air and proceed to dive down, gaining speed, and flipping their tail feathers up at the last second to create a high-pitched chirp that add to their aerial displays.

Anna's Hummingbird feeding, photo courtesy of Brian E.Small, in collaboration with VIREO.

Station 7

The seventh station you'll be visiting on this walking tour is the PLANT station, through which you'll be covering a lot of area and can really venture throughout the park wherever you please and will still be able to find a ton of plants from this station! There is a plethora of wetland plants that make up the habitat at the base of the drainage area of Ravenna Park, including Sword Ferns, Common Horsetail, Skunk Cabbage, Pacific Yew, Common Buttercups, and Common Daisies. The most common trees in the area are Bigleaf Maple, Western Hemlock, and Western Redcedar. Pacific Yew is common in the wetland area, as it is a tree that loves to be in a moist soil climate. Other plants that can be found include Salmonberry, Red Huckleberry, and Thimbleberry, all of which have edible berries! Red Huckleberry is supposedly delicious. Other plants you can find are Tall Oregon Grape, Dull Oregon Grape, Salal, and Snowberry. Snowberry's berries are poisonous, but one or two have been used to settle the stomach before, surprisingly! Something really cool to observe during the spring is new growth on all of the plants and trees. New growth on the trees is presented as bursting ends of the existing branches of the trees, showing lighter green leaves. 

New Douglas Fir needles right after buds opened

Developed young Douglas-Fir needles two weeks later, still distinguishably younger

Western Hemlock needles near the end of Spring- barely distinguishable from mature needles 

The specific spot I have chosen for this station is my observation spot! Standing on the path, the uphill slope is covered in Sword Ferns, identifiable as generally the largest fern at Ravenna, with a 'thumbs up' at the base of each leaf. Sword Ferns also have brown seed spores on the underside of their leaves that supposedly can be rubbed on Stinging Nettle rashes to prevent irritation. 

Looking towards the creek from this position, you can also see many Common Horsetails and Skunk Cabbages growing in the marshier lower habitat. Common Horsetails are pretty unique looking, with a seemingly hairbrush appearance. 

Skunk Cabbages have large flowers with a yellow leaf at the center of the plant earlier in the spring and have large, oval, waxy leaves. These plants also emit a scent very similar to that of a skunk that attracts flies and can be smelled throughout the park at certain times of year (hence the name Skunk Cabbage).This spot is interesting because, like many areas in the park, the ravine creates different habitats with different plants visible right before your eyes!

Station 8

Next up, in this same area, is the eighth station. This station is dedicated to invertebrates. There are an amazing amount of invertebrates everywhere in this park, if one only knows where to look. Past the Salmonberry plant you were just at, there is a small clearing with two trees next to the creek on the side of the trail. This area is my favorite for exploring the world of invertebrates. The area at the base of trees is often one of the best areas to search for these little critters. To look for invertebrates, search in the floor debris, lightly picking up leaves and fallen branches to find whatever you may- just make sure to replace everything including the invertebrates you do find just like you left them, so as not to disturb them too much.

Debris piles like this one are perfect for finding invertebrates!

Searching through the debris, you can find many different orders of invertebrates. The order Coleoptera is the order of Beetles. Beetles are distinguishable by their hardened wing cases, six legs (they are insects), and the often glossy sheen of their wing covers.

Small beetle on a Nootka rose. Not at this specific station's location, but invertebrates are observable all around the park!

You can also find the order of Diplopoda, which is millipedes. Millipedes are invertebrates with a LOT of legs, which is one key feature in distinguishing them. Millipedes are distinguishable from Centipedes because they have 4 legs per body segment, with a pair of legs on each side of their body segment. These little guys are one of my favorites to find and watch making their way throughout the debris.

Millipede diagram

Millipede!

Looking ahead into the creek, you can often also find Flies (order Diptera, distinguishable by their two wings), and Dragonflies or Damselflies (order Odonata, with two sets of wings and longer abdomens than the Diptera order) hovering over certain areas of the water. 

Station 9

To your left, fallen logs provide the perfect spot to look for lichens and fungi!

Hidden by the amount of new growth in late Spring, to your right is a large fallen log on which I found some of the coolest fungi.

From the ninth station, head to the creek behind the eighth station to discover this station devoted to Lichens and Fungi. Fungi thrive in moist environments, so the creek is the setting I have chosen for you to find some of these intriguing organisms. Fungi are actually not considered plants, and are more closely related to animals. Wet logs are an awesome place to find fungi, because fungi thrive by decomposing dead matter and love moist areas- therefore, a fallen log that can be decomposed over a creek is a perfect place to search for lichens and fungi. The log that makes up this station is home to many varying kinds of fungi. Some of the most common lichens, such as dust lichen are found on the trees and logs at this station. 

Dust lichens can be observed growing on the bark of many trees!

More common in fall, mushrooms thrive in moist environments.

Lichens and fungi are often difficult to identify, so if you have a lichen or fungi identification book, it would be very handy to bring to this spot to identify for yourself! In the very early spring, the most interesting fungi that I found on this nurse log I was unable to identify- it had a kind of scale appearance and varied in coloring from gray to black, and lighter areas were cream with a tan center. The gray area appeared and felt soft and velvety to the touch and coulee be rubbed off pretty easily. The underside of this growth was a deep black and was moist. I believe the cream areas, which were between 1-2 centimeters in diameter, were Crepidotus Mushrooms, and the gray/black growths were some sort of lichen. 

Observed during the beginning of Spring, the above images show the fungi that puzzled and intrigued me.

At different times of year, find and try to identify your own fungi!

Station 10

The view from Station 10

The final station I have decided to call Human Behavior. A little bit further back down the trail  before where the 5th-8th stations have been centered, there is a bench facing the portion of the trail that you have passed. To the right of this bench is a plaque with the quote, "There is no remedy for love but to love more," which was said by Henry David Thoreau, one of the most famous American naturalists. One day, when I was visiting this park with one of my best friends, we ended up sitting on this same bench, looking at the quote, talking about it, and talking about life together. This station represents one of the stations that I myself went through at a time. For this station, take the time to sit and not only observe the nature, but also remember to observe the people you see. People are amazing, and Ravenna Park is an amazing place to observe. All different kinds of people come to Ravenna, from families with their kids, bringing them to play, to preschool classes there for the day, to couples on their awkward but magical first dates. Joggers, cyclists, and friends can be seen at any time of the year at Ravenna. I have met bird watchers, parents, and kids at Ravenna during the time I have spent there, and it is amazing to meet other people who have come to nature to enjoy it as you have. 

My brother and father, who spent a day with me at Ravenna Park.

For this station, remind yourself that you are a human too, and are as interesting, unique, and amazing as all of the other people you see at this station. During turbulent times like these in our country and our world, it is important to remind ourselves of the importance of both nature, which we have flocked to as refuge and have been supported by throughout the existence of our species, and ourselves, who are one of the biggest factors impacting nature and each other today. 




Take as long as you'd like to complete this tour at the final station, sitting at the bench and observing for however long you'd like. 

Thank you for walking through this tour, and I hope you enjoyed it, learned some new species, and hopefully were able to leave feeling more relaxed and positive!

To read more information about this beautiful park's history and the journey it has taken to find itself in its present state, check out the source below!
Blecha, Peter. "HistoryLink.org." Ravenna Park (Seattle) - HistoryLink.org. History Link, 23 Jan. 2011. Web. 06 June 2017.