February 12, 2006
Memaloose Overlook
Nothing in bloom yet!
Animals seen: California ground squirrels, one western gray squirrel
* Pungent Desert Parsley: Lomatium grayii - A few plants are beginning to bloom on west facing cliffs above the valley running along the western edge of the preserve.
* Scale Pod: Idahoa scapigera - Beginning to bloom.
* Columbia Desert Parsley: Lomatium columbianum - Beginning to bloom, with perhaps 20+ plants with pink inflorescences peaking out of the ground (very few leaves yet).
* Pungent Desert Parsley: Lomatium grayii - A few plants are beginning to bloom.
* Salt and Pepper: Lomatium piperi - Abundant.
* Scale Pod: Idahoa scapigera - Beginning to bloom.
* Smooth Desert Parsley: Lomatium laevigatum - Yellow inflorescences poking up between the first tufts of new leaves.
* Salt and Pepper: Lomatium piperi - Abundant.
Gold Stars: Crocidium multicaule - In bud, perhaps a week from bloom.
Animals Seen: numerous rafts of ducks in the Columbia River (scaups, American widgeons, common goldeneyes), common mergansers, grebes (western or Clarks), cormorants (probably double-crested), ravens, red-tailed hawks.
A pleasant day at this location with temps in the low 50s and good views northwest to Mt. Adams, the Goat Rocks and Mt. Rainier. Numerous horned larks were calling and chasing each other across the steppe.
* Dalles Mt. Buttercup: Ranunculus reconditus - 3 plants seen in full bloom.
* Scale pod: Idahoa scapigera - Beginning to bloom.
Woolly-pod Milk-vetch: Astragalus purshii - A number of plants seen with well developed leaves but no sign of blossoms yet.
Lupine: Lupinus sp. - A few small clusters of emerging leaves, the leaves glabrous.
Lupine: Lupinus sp. - A few small clusters of emerging leaves, the leaves very hairy (L. leucophyllus?)
* Canby's Desert Parsley: Lomatium canbyi - Fairly numerous at all elevations.
Biscuit Root, Gray-leaf Desert Parsley: Lomatium macrocarpum - Numerous leafy clusters at middle elevations, with only one plant seen almost in bloom.
Barestem Desert Parsley: Lomatium nudicaule - A few leafy clusters seen at middle elevations.
* Salt and Pepper: Lomatium piperi - Abundant.
Nine-leaf Desert Parsley: Lomatium triternatum - A few leafy clusters seen at middle elevations.
Animals Seen: ravens, magpies, red-tailed hawks, kestrel, abundant American robins, numerous horned larks, one western bluebird, Brewer's blackbirds, one red-winged blackbird and several California ground squirrels.
* Yellow Bells: Fritillaria pudica - About a dozen plants in bloom along the steep trail up to the first bench.
* Grass Widows: Olsynium douglasii -
Panicled Death-camas: Zigadenus paniculatus - Leaves emerging.
* Spring Whitlow-grass: Draba verna var. boerhaavii - A few plants in full bloom.
* Northwestern Saxifrage: Saxifraga integrifolia (this may have been renamed) - Numerous plants with enormous leaves, but only a few beginning to bloom above 500'.
* Columbia Desert Parsley: Lomatium columbianum - Numerous plants beginning to bloom on south-facing slopes on the north side of SR 14 both to the west and east of Doug's Beach.
* Pungent Desert Parsley: Lomatium grayii - A few plants are beginning to bloom.
* Salt and Pepper: Lomatium piperi - Abundant.
Ballhead Waterleaf: Hydrophyllum capitatum var. thompsonii - Several plants with well-developed leaves (but no flower heads yet) poking up from amongst the rocks at the base of the cliffs.
Balsamroot: Balsamorhiza sp (probably deltoidea?) - One plant with leaves emerging from amongst the grasses.
Animals Seen: ravens, golden eagle, and California ground squirrels.
* Grass Widows: Olsynium douglasii - A few beginning to bloom.
* Western Saxifrage: Saxifraga occidentalis -
* Columbia Desert Parsley: Lomatium columbianum - Several beginning to bloom on rocky slopes high above the eastern side of Catherine Creek.
* Salt and Pepper: Lomatium piperi - Fairly abundant.
Animals Seen: numerous golden-crowned sparrows (eating new grass shoots), scrub jays, one small burnt-orange butterfly.