My sample site is the “wild” parts of Bowen Park in Nanaimo, BC. It’s a forest located on a 36 hectare parcel of land along the Millstone River. Much of the river’s channel is carved through bedrock with rapids and a waterfall, though an artificial side channel has been created for salmon. The downstream end of the park has steep hills on either side, and the upstream end is flatter and the river meanders more. Parts of the park have artificial structures, such as a gazebo, pool and duck pond, but much of it is undeveloped except for walking trails and some areas have frisbee golf, but a canopy of trees. There are sprinklers that water a rhododendron grove and water some of the surrounding forest as well.
I’ve been visiting the park regularly for a decade. While visiting I’ve seen numerous animals including barred owls eating crayfish, deer, squirrels, rabbits and otters. On my most recent visit there was snow on the gorund and I saw chickadees, deer and ducks. Over the last decade many trees have died in the park, especially during dry summers. Those have recently been numbered with spray-paint. A watermain and the path above it was replaced this year as well, disturbing some forest’s understory.
Three things I’ve found interesting and might be a basis for a research project.
1. Edible mushrooms have not been appearing when they “should” this year and 2022 was unusual weather-wise. I wonder if the mycelium has been affected by the overabundance of rain early in the year and the lack of rain into October.
I might examine this by seeing if the abundance of saprophyte mushrooms and their mix of species is different in the areas that got sprinkler water this year, compared to the areas that didn’t.
2.
One side of the river gets a large amount of pedestrian traffic, while the other does not. I’ve noticed that deer tend to prefer to graze on the side that has fewer humans. Has that affected the growth of the trees, or perhaps the mix of plants in the understory? I could measure the height of branches on young trees on both sides, or whether deer-resistant species are more common on the less-trafficked side.
3.
There’s a section of the park used for frisbee golf. Much of it is mowed, though there’s no attempts to control what grows there beyond that. Part of this area was disturbed for construction this year. Does that area have a different mix of plants now?