removing sweetgum
Community Service Meadow Restoration Lorton, VA
Reply
Monthly Archives: April 2011
Hemlock Overlook Bull Run 4/20-4/21, 2011
Went Herping with Mike both days at Hemlock Overlook. Had a routine start finding numerous red back salamanders in three color forms of red and yellow striped and gray. Most of these were found at higher elevations such as hill tops under logs or rocks along the the slopes near the river. As Mike and I descended to the river we switched our focus to the rocky shorelines next the blue trail. I spent much of the rime next to the water while Mike worked the slopes. Mike found more of the red backed sals.
He later joined me along the river flipping rocks hoping to find copperhead. We found two aqautic snakes, no copperhead. Two of the snakes were juvenile aquatic snakes. One was a queen the other a northern water snake. Both under rocks. Other animals we found in this region were pickerel frogs. Leaving the stream bank we continued northward up the blue trail checking under rocks and logs alongthe way. Mike discovered what we both agreed to be a member of the”mole” salamanders which we later determined might have been a marbled salamander- which would have made an awesome photo. Our total finds today were 2 skinks, 2 ringneck snakes, oneworm snake, one northern water snake, one queen snake one american toad four pickerel frogs. We stopped counting the number of redback and the variants after about twenty were caught. All animals were (and are always) released to the original location after we photograph them.
Click: HERE to view our encounter with this animal
Click Copperhead ambushes frog to watch what happens next!!
Day two was quite a a treat. We headed fown yatesford trail turned left where it intersected with the river on the blue trail and mafe our wat back to somerocky outcroppings along the river bank. We have always made it our goal to find a copperhead so that seemed like the best place to find them and it is where I have found them in the past. Along the way we, as before, checked the wooded slopes and next to shoreline flipping rocks and logs finding more redbacks andtheir variants. Mike did manage to find one salamander that has eluded me for years – a slimy salamander. Ihadnt seen one in nearly 20-25 years. That was cool. We coninued down the trail back the other direction the way we came in but then made our way past the intersection of the yatesford trail and river heading toward the old dam ruins. I stopped by a rocky section of shoreline where a seapage from the highlands drains into the river. Walking along I look up and almost stepped on a rather large copperhead. I yelled for Mike to come over. He had never seen one in the wild before so it turned outto be quite a treat for us. We must have taken hundreds of photogtaphs wfhile the snake lay there motionless. What we didnt realize is that the snake was lying in ambush for a meal. Much to our surprise the animal was extremely docile or focoused on its prey that it ignored us all together. Even when we poked at it gently it didnt move. But suddenly it began to flick its tongue and jertk its head towards a clump of exposed roots along the shore.It then proceeded to crawl in that direction and partially disappear under the roots. A few seconds later out jumps this green frog onto my feet and then into the water -apparently to escape from being eaten by that snake-surprised the shit out of me.
Eakin Park : Alluvial Forrest and Fresh Water Pond Community
Eakin Park : Alluvial Forrest and Fresh Water Pond Community
Our second field trip led us to Eakin Park, located in east, central Fairfax County. Eakin Park is among several protected areas that collectively contribute to the Accotink Stream Valley Water Shed. There are two different ecological communities within the park, an alluvial forrest and a fresh waterpPond, which were the focus of Friday’s excursion.
An alluvial forest community is a type of wet land area that can be defined as a flat land area adjacent to a stream, composed of unconsolidated sedimentary deposits (alluvium), and subject to periodic inundation by a source of water, typically a stream. However, in the case with Eakin Park significant sized streams were not evident, but a small creek did exist. The entrance to the park appeared to be more open flood plain area with a random mix and dispersal of deciduous trees.
The trees in this area were Sweet Gums, Red Maple, and a few varieties of oaks especially as we arrived closer to the edge between the open area and the start of the forest. Some of the more notable trees along the edge were Black Gum, Mockernut Hickory and again some oaks. There were also several depressions filled with damp, dead and decaying leaf matter, and nothing else. Since no flora was present, these depressions may indicate an ephemeral body of water or vernal pool existed in the not too distant past.
Much of the water that flows into Eakin is derived locally from runoff, direct rain fall, and from the creek that traverses the park. Frequent inundations of water in this low lying area contribute to a soil content rich in clay. The clay rich sub soil at Eakin forms what is known as gleyed or hydric soils. This type of soil retains water easily. The water retaining properties of the hydric soil and the overflow and the transport of nutrient rich sediments from flooding in the region helps to perpetuate a diversity of deciduous hardwood and herbaceous plants. In one area of the park the soil retains water so well that a freshwater pond community has become established along with flora distinctly different than what we observed in the alluvial forest community.
Marsh Merigold?
The main feature of a fresh water pond community is obviously the fresh water pond.
There are several ways to describe a Freshwater Pond. Freshwater Ponds are ‘bodies of water where light penetrates to the bottom of the waterbody, or ‘bodies of water shallow enough for rooted water plants to grow throughout, or ‘bodies of water which lack wave action on the shoreline. Unlike the flora found within the alluvial forest community which dominates Eakin Park, the pond had its own distinct flora. These included mostly herbaceous plants of which broad leaf cat tails dominate. Other types of herbaceous plants were red clover, common plantain, path rush, deadford pinks, and cat briar.
Toad Eggs
Plant List Observed at Eakin Park
| Alluvial Forest Community | |||
| Habitat | Woody Deciduous | Herbaceous | Vines |
| Open Field | sweet gum, *red maple, | None discussed | Non discussed |
| Edge | black gum, mokernut hickory, white oak, pin oak, box elder | horse nettle, red clover, water hemlock , pokeweed | cat briar, poison ivy, va creeper,honey suckle |
| Forest Area | sycamore, river birch, red maple, sweet gum | chickory, jap stiltweed, | cat briar, poison ivy, va creeper |
| Creek Riparian Zone | black willow, river birch | horse nettle, lesser clearweed, true nettle | |
Spring Beauties
| Fresh Water Pond Community | |
| Habitat | Herbaceous |
| Riparian zone | red clover, common plantain, deadford pink, chickory |
| Litoral zone | path rush, ** broadleaf cattail |
* Most dominant deciduous tree in alluvial forest community was Red Maple
** Most dominant plant in freshwater pond community
River birches are medium to large trees between 60-80 feet tall fully grown and are generally found in flood zone areas. They (especially the younger trees) can be distinguished by their reddish-gray, papery bark, and have triangular, short stalk, coarsely double toothed 3 inch leaves.
Two characteristics that appealed to me about this tree was its bark and how the tree responds to living in a wet environment by growing multiple trunks. My original thought when I saw trees like this was that they were diseased –especially looking at the bark. But I have since learned this is characteristics of the species, particularly with younger trees.
Future filed trips might entail looking at the transition zones between these two different communities. It would be interesting to see if there were an abrubt transition in flora unique only to the transition area or perhaps some sort of gradual zonation of floral species separating the two communities.
Hemlock Excursion 4/12/2011
Went on an in outing today to Hemlock Overlook looking fro some critters. Weather was overcast with few brief sprinkles. Bull Run was somewhat swollen with floodwater from previous rains and the trails were moderately muddy. Today I had great success locating 4 species of snakes and two species of salamanders and one pickerel frog. Snakes encountered today in the wooded section of the trail were worm and northern brown snakes. Unofrtunately the northern brown snake had been killed maybe squashed in path by hikers (unknowingly of course). Near the river along the rocky banks were perfect habitat for the water snakes species. Under flattened, dinner plate like rocks I found a northern water snake and a queen snake. Over the years I have seen fewer queen snakes. Northern water snakes seem to be doing quite well however.
Only two species of salamanders were caught and released. Upland species typically found were led and red back or plethodonts. These are terrestial slalamaders that complete their life cylce inside of an egg and hatch as minature adults. Plethodonts also have no lungs and breather entirely through their skin. They also exhibit variation in their externmal appearance having all gray, or a dorsal red, yellow or silver stripe. Common varieties encountered today were of the red then gray colored.
(At Hemlock we had frequent encounters with plethodonts like the pair above)
I only found one species of streamside salamnder today. Eurycea occur along the stream banks and in seapages that bridge the forest to the river. Often encounter two lined, three lined and long tails in this region.
Over all a great day.
Night Excursion to Vernal Pool Clifton, VA
This time of year the sounds of peepers are everywhere. Tonight I visited a vernal pool next to the southern side of the rail road trax located at the western edge of town. The pool was teaming with spring peepers and the sound of their calls deafening. Their small size made them very difficult to spot but with patience and persistance I was eventually rewarded with a single sighting of an indivicual tucked away under some “swamp grass”
Above small frog captured, and released unharmed, from vernal pool where spring peepers were calling.
On my way home down Chapel street I could hear the sound of toads calling from a nearby drainage ditch. The ditch is part of a sewr line separating one of the properties in town and the fire station. Tonight there was water slowly flowing through although normaly it’s dry. Water was pretty foul smeling too but that didnt deter a pair of male american toads from wrestling around in the nasty water. At one point one tried to amplex with the other.
