Journal 7

Interesting growth of this one W. Hemlock limb

Canopy

Developing young Doug-Fir needles

Jumbled/crowded feeling of the forest

It is Tuesday, May 15th, and 8:00 PM at my observation spot. It is a lot colder and overcast outside than my last visit. It is 52 degrees Fahrenheit outside. The soil is very moist and the stream is a lot louder than past, indicating recent past rain. The forest itself is quieter in terms of bird calls and animals, possibly due to coming a lot later than I usually do. There were a lot of gnats flying in moderately sized groups as I walked to my observation spot. The needle buds of Western Hemlocks, Douglas-Firs, Grand Firs, and other trees that had burst last week are becoming more developed into mature needles. The buds are still a much lighter green than the more mature growth. A lot of the deciduous trees are also heading towards full growth. When I was sitting at my observation spot, a dog barked at me for a good minute at least, and after it stopped barking, the birds were quiet for at least 20 seconds following. The sword ferns are pretty dominant on the ground at my observation spot, and it seems to be that the new fern growth is upwards, whereas older growth is more outwards. The forest appears a lot more jumbled and crowded than the beginning of the quarter, thanks to the heavy growth on the floor and the filling in of the canopy. Although the forest is a lot quieter, there are still a fair amount of bird calls- most are back and forth between the same bird, and most of the calls were coming from higher up in the canopy than past visits. The forest is (obviously) more shaded. The forest definitely smells wetter- entering and leaving the forest I smelled a sort of wet moldy kind of scent. The fallen leaves on the ground seem to be decomposing and becoming part of the soil; at the beginning of the quarter, there was an obvious layer of fallen leaves, whereas now they are basically becoming part of the soil layer below them. Leaves of some of the Sword Ferns around me and a couple of the Western Hemlocks that are shaded are yellow, probably because they don't have enough access to sunlight as other plants are growing and shading them.

Unfortunately, I think I didn't see a single bird during my visit, except for one crow flying in. I think this might have been because by the time I went to my observation spot it was already pretty late. All of the bird calls I could hear were in the trees, with very few that I could pinpoint as being close to the ground. Because I didn't see and/or get to follow any birds, I decided to elaborate on a pair of crows that I followed for a good amount of time during one of my last visits. I sketched them multiple times.

The two crows were obviously traveling as a pair. They ventured from each other but always stayed within three meters of one another. They spent the majority of their time perched and rooting in the open floor debris and on fallen logs. They flew to perch on a couple of branches during the time I followed them, from the ground to a branch about 8 feet off the ground to another branch in a different tree about 25 feet off the ground, one following the other's flight. They had very steady, long sweeping motions of their wings when they flew (which helped me identify them as crows, not ravens). During the time that I followed them, they stayed mainly on the ground, not going higher than ~35 ft off the ground. They flew and fed in open areas mainly. Feeding on the ground while I observed them, they turned over pieces of bark and kind of rooted through the debris on the ground. I believe they overturned whatever they could and used sight to locate any food and then ate whatever they saw. I think they mainly eat insects, as I am unaware of very many other organisms living in the floor debris that are easily visible and substantial enough for nutrition. The crows were social with each other, and at one point another pair was nearby and they seemed aware of each other, but did not stick together. They didn't make any vocalizations during the time that I followed them. They are predatory on insects, and must be competitive with other birds that forage and eat in the same way (on the ground for insects. I thought they acted pretty cute as a pair- if one got too far, the other would fly to catch up, and they would occasionally just perch on a branch next to each other for a little bit. I'm well aware that these actions are probably not because they like hanging out with each other, but I thought they were cute nonetheless. It was interesting to be near one, too. I was kind of hanging out near one and it made eye contact with me, observed me, and was aware of me while foraging, though seemingly unafraid. Awesome birds.

Feeding

"Looking at me! (slightly less cheery than portrayed)"

Perching and flying