Fixin' Fences !

I've spent my share of time climbing over barbed wire fences while doing wildlife surveys, but now I'm responsible for some of them ! Our barbed wire fences are used to keep grazing livestock where they're supposed to be, whether it's within a certain area or outside of an area we want to protect, such as a meadow, riparian corridor, or aspen grove. Here, my coworker Casey shows me how we repair breaks in the fence. Don't tell him though, he hates having his picture taken. ;) The fences can break under pressure from the snow that covers the Bodie Hills in winter. One solution is the installation of "let-down" fences that can be put up or taken down with relative ease. We also use let-down fences in areas near sage-grouse leks, since the birds flying in to strut their stuff aren't always paying attention to where they're flying...

the fence let down

close-up of the simple post attachment

Cool birds of the day: sage thrasher and green-tailed towhee.

And some semi-random bonus pictures:

Calochortus leichtlinii


each sheep flock has its own burro

Tracking Sierra Nevada Bighorn Sheep

There are four herds of Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis sierrae) on the eastern side of the Sierras. They usually stay at higher elevations on Forest Service land, but they may venture down onto BLM land and into grazing allotments for domestic sheep. Domestic sheep may be able to transmit respiratory diseases to bighorns if they come in contact with each other. While this is unlikely to occur given the timing when grazing is allowed, we still keep an eye on the activity of the bighorn herds. The California Department of Fish & Game has fitted a number of bighorn sheep with radio collars that transmit coordinates via satellite. We're able to log into the system to see where the herds are hanging out and to make sure none of them are entering into areas where they may be at risk. It's a bit hard to see in this graphic, but this demonstrates locations of five radio-tagged rams over the past 6 months. They don't go far, do they?

What are these bighorns doing in the middle of Bishop?! And right across the street from my apartment?! The Fish & Game office is a half a block from where I live. Clearly these collars were still transmitting when they were turned on or returned to the office. We also sometimes get points from when the collars are sent back to Maine for repairs. Kinda funny. :)

Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest

On sunday, we escaped the valley heat and headed up to see the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. We didn't get very far up Highway 168 before I made Brent stop for some showy wildflowers along the roadside.

Penstemon floridus

Opuntia erinacea

The oldest Great Basin bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva) trees are found here in the White Mountains, some older than 4,000 years old ! I have to admit to feeling a sense of awe walking among the ancient giants on the Discovery Trail at Shulman Grove.

growth rings

young cone

cone bristles

My reverence was broken as we followed the trail through a talus slope because I caught sight of my first ever pika scrambling over the rocks !!! Holy stinking cute. We watched him pop in and out of sight until we couldn't see him anymore, then continued down.

We braved the 12-mile unpaved washboard road up to the Patriarch Grove at the timberline (11,000 feet). If not the oldest, this Grove holds the largest bristlecones. We were also able to watch red crossbills feeding on the cones ! Other birds we saw on the trip included: gray flycatcher, mountain bluebird, and Clark's nutcracker.

Patriarch Tree

Inyo National Forest - Land of the Ancients

In search of Willow Flycatchers at Dog Town

On friday, we were able to sneak in a survey within protocol for willow flycatchers (Empidonax traillii adastus, WIFL) on two grazing allotments up for renewal. As their name suggests, willow flycatchers are found in riparian areas dominated by willow or alder, including streams, ponds, seeps, and meadows. The loss of these habitats at lower elevations has restricted their range to elevations generally between 4,000 and 8,000 feet. This subspecies is currently considered State Endangered. This habitat near Dog Town was marginal and we didn't detect any WIFLs, but we did get eaten alive by mosquitoes and see a number of other bird species including: yellow warbler, song sparrow, red-winged blackbird, spotted towhee, green-tailed towhee, spotted sandpiper, Bullock's oriole, and black-headed grosbeak.

A Willow Flycatcher Survey Protocol for California (Bombay, et al. 2003)

What about Dog Town? Dog Town is the location of the first major gold rush to the Eastern Sierras in 1857. While never highly profitable, it is allegedly said to have produced the largest gold nugget found on the eastern slope and led to the discovery of more profitable areas nearby, including Bodie. This marker is along Highway 395, just south of the turnoff to Bodie.

Aurora Canyon, Bodie Hills

Today, my coworkers and I met with an engineer to discuss options for repairing headcuts along Aurora Canyon Creek in the Bodie Hills. A headcut occurs when a portion of the stream bottom suddenly drops away due to excessive erosion. If not restored, the headcut can "unzip" and form an incised channel or a gully in a meadow. I won't bore you with more details, but I thought you might appreciate some photos of wildflowers in bloom !

a small headcut

my "office"

Castilleja sp. paintbrush

Delphinium andersonii larkspur

Astragalus sp.

Circium scariosum var. congdonii

Lewisia rediviva bitteroot

Phacelia humilis

A Visit to Fish Slough

After spending my first two days on the job in riparian assessment training, I got to slow down a bit today and spend a little time at Fish Slough with Martin, our botanist. Fish Slough is located about 5 miles north of Bishop on the Volcanic Tableland. The meager amount of precipitation we get passes through the porous volcanic rock, flows underground, and then escapes to the surface from three springs that form the slough. The area is home to a number of unique and sensitive species and is designated as a BLM Area of Environmental Concern (ACEC).

The only Federally listed plant species in our field office jurisdiction is found here: the Fish Slough milk-vetch (Astragalus lentiginosus ssp. piscinensis). It is found on the alkali flats surrounding the slough. It can be difficult to locate, but we were fortunate enough to have both blooms and fruits to help us. I think the fruits look like some sort of alien cocoon.

What could be more exciting than a Federally Threatened plant? How about a Federally Endangered fish! Fish Slough is the last remaining home of the Owens pupfish. Previously found throughout the Valley, they succumbed to water loss from diversions and the introduction of exotic fish species. Pupfish are adapted to survive in warm, salty water with little oxygen. The flashy males are territorial, and I spent some time watching them patrol the spring.

Counting down...

Today was my last day in the BLM State Office. I'm definitely going to miss everyone there, but we'll still be working together, if not face-to-face. Taking a week's vacation in Vancouver before I move to Bishop for good on the 21st, when posting will resume !

Spellbinder Books and Black Sheep Espresso Bar

Excuse me, miss. There seems to be a mistake. I ordered the large cappuccino... Hello !

On a lazy Memorial Day morning, Brent and I checked out the Black Sheep Espresso Bar for coffee and breakfast. Thank goodness for local coffee shops ! Tasty breakfast sammiches and quiche, big pretty espresso drinks, free wifi, hip servers, art on the walls. I'll definitely be spending more time here !

The coffee bar is in the back of Spellbinder Books, an awesome independent bookstore. Last time I was in town, I picked up The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar as a staff suggestion and loved it. I was laughing out loud by page 3. Along with a good crop of normal bookstore readings, they have an amazing collection of books on the Eastern Sierra. I picked up an autographed copy of Wildflowers of the Eastern Sierra (Lone Pine Publishing) and Brent grabbed Exploring Eastern Sierra Canyons (Bored Feet Press) along with a panoramic of the Valley with the peaks and canyons labeled. Now we're equipped to spend our weekends exploring !

http://www.spellbinderbookstore.com/

Mammoth Brewing Company

On Sunday afternoon, Brent and I took a trip up to Mammoth Lakes for the Mammoth Brewing Company. It's not a restaurant, just a brewery with a tasting room. Tasting all 10 of their beers was free and delicious ! We particularly enjoyed their pale and IPA. I really like their IPA 395, made with locally grown hops and locally harvested sage and juniper berries. Something we didn't know: Lake Tahoe Brewing went out of business, but Mammoth bought the Tahoe Red recipe so they still brew it under that name. Sad to lose a brewery, but cool that the beer persists ! They have most of their beers in 22s or 6-packs, one variety in cans, some really classy t-shirts, and homebrewing supplies. It's about a 40 minute drive from Bishop, but I plan on making it when I can ! Most likely on 1st and 3rd Wednesdays when they fill growlers for half price. ;) PS Thanks to Cynthia for comping us free welcome magnets ! :) And in Bishop, Whiskey Creek always has 5 Mammoth varieties on tap. If nothing else, I won't go without good beer ! =D

http://www.mammothbrewingco.com/

Moving and Mule Days

We spent Memorial Day Weekend packing up my furniture, books, and other things I can spend the next three weeks without and moving them into my new apartment in Bishop ! Our local U-haul had two trailers available: one with a picture of puffins and the other with some silly flowers. Our original receipt had us taking the flowery one, but Brent asked if we could take the puffins since I'd commented on it. The man helping us was so amused that he switched it for us, so I had puffins helping me move ! =D

The previous week's snow wasn't enough to keep Monitor Pass closed, so we were able to take highways 50-89-395. The drive really is pretty, especially when you drop down on the east side and pass over the summits along the way. Coming over Conway Summit into the Mono Basin gave us a gorgeous view of Mono Lake.

We were worried that the Mule Days crowds would make the move more difficult, but it seemed like most of the activity was confined to the fairgrounds. We saw a few mules and lots of cowboy hats, but everything went smoothly ! Not much time for nature this trip, but I'll add some restaurant "reviews" in their own posts soon !

And because Carmen asked: