Site Description
Behind the employee housing of historic Fenn Ranger Station, an outpost of the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest (USFS) which lies along the Selway River in northern Idaho, lies a roughly 0.8 ha plot (GPS track of unit boundary/project area to follow, in subsequent posts) with two gradients present. The first is a change from rolling shady hillocks with Western redcedar and fern understory, to a sunny, steep (~80% slope), south-facing hillside of sparse Grand fir with heavy shrub understory. The second gradient present, partially a result of the first, is a relatively recent burn scar which roughly bifurcates the project area, east-to-west, at the base of the slope. There are obvious signs of human activity; an old two-track road and hiking trail, cut logs and felled trees, and previously-burned hand piles. The following are observations from the unit’s first site visit, with further details in scanned images of the observer’s field journal:
- Date and Time: July 1, 2022. 14:26 – 16:14, subsequent quick visit at 17:20.
- Specific Location: 46.099209, -115.538932, taken from roughly middle of unit.
- Elevation: 518m in middle of unit; upper and lower boundary elevations to follow in later posts.
- Observed Weather from Kestrel 4000:
- Temperature: 30° C
- Relative humidity: 32%
- Sky: Cloudless, some light haze present.
- Wind: Light from SW, or upslope/up-valley.
- Seasonality: True beginnings of summer. Prior two weeks were mostly sunny with a ~38° C day four days prior to visit. April, May, and early June received heavy precipitation, but recent precipitation has been non-existent.
- Fire Danger Rating: Moderate.
- Observed fauna: two white-tailed deer, one doe at least, chipmunk, multiple bird calls.
- Observed flora:
- Western redcedar
- Grand fir
- Potential Douglas fir on slope – will need to investigate
- Himalayan blackberry
- Pacific blackberry
- Two unknown fern species, to be identified
Three Questions to Consider
- Do the smaller ferns with black shoots prefer growing immediately adjacent to burn pile scars? Do they follow the flow of water?
- Are the shrubs upslope of the firs on the hillside more shade-tolerant? Do the two species share a symbiotic relationship?
- Are there other invasive species growing alongside Himalayan blackberry in the fire scar? If so, what are they?
Project Ideas
As a wildland firefighter somewhat read in Rocky Mountain fire ecology, I am interested in whether or not the burned hand piles produced their desired effect (nutrient cycling). This could potentially be observed by comparing flora in the immediate vicinity of the piles to flora in the general redcedar forest area. Specifically, I am curious about the smaller fern species with the black shoots. I visually noticed it more in the immediate pile vicinity that in the understory in general. Upon further inspection, though, I realized it also grew beneath the larger fern species present throughout the redcedar forest; perhaps it is ubiquitous in the unit. This is something I would like to get a “quick count” of next visit, to roughly gauge whether it could be proven using plots and statistics that this fern species prefers the areas around burned piles.
I am also interested in learning more about primary succession; for this, the exposed southerly slope of the burn scar could be an excellent venue. It would definitely encourage more shrub identification!
Link to field journal: