frondsinhighplaces's Favorites

Marin Headlands hike, specifically trying to visit new plant communities I haven't explored yet. Earlier I visited Horseshoe Bay to try dock fouling for the first time.

My observations from Marin Headlands:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?nelat=37.85513634622161&nelng=-122.48313099141484&on=2024-07-09&order=asc&swlat=37.81785403291719&swlng=-122.55711704488164&user_id=joemdo

My general observations from Horseshoe Bay:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?nelat=37.837174671353196&nelng=-122.44929503408186&not_in_project=dock-fouling-in-california&on=2024-07-09&order=asc&swlat=37.82785358970445&swlng=-122.49465655294172&user_id=joemdo

My dock fouling observations from the one small public dock:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2024-07-09&order=asc&project_id=2675&user_id=joemdo

Gametophytes, previously reported from this stump. Far smaller than I realized!

Step 1: Consult the iNat app from Port Alberni to confirm the location in a last-second plan before driving to Kennedy Lake.
Step 2: Walk the access road, find a small trail in the right area, and walk until my location dot on the iNat map matches the middle of the cluster of sightings.
Step 3: Spend at least 10 minutes searching the nearby forest for a stump matching the ones in the photos.
Step 4: After finding the right stump, spend another solid 10 minutes in miniature world searching the stump for the ferns, including going back to the photos several times for every clue I could find!

I thought I was looking for something larger, but the biggest ones were only about 2mm in size. Even more fun than Botrychium searches ;-) And I must say, I only saw them through the iPhone lens/screen, as they were too small to really see unassisted.

Now that I've seen them once (with all this tech help), hopefully I can find more!

On rotting cedar stump. Only found once despite extensive search. Super exciting!!!

Gametophytes with gemmae.

First iNat record for Vancouver Island, although known from the general area (e.g., Duffy et al., 2015).

Another potential hybrid plant in the Squamish River valley, again growing directly with P. munitum and only a few meters away from a couple of P. braunii.

This one certainly isn't pure P. braunii, as it is distinctly less divided (although I would easily overlook this at first glance). In fact, it isn't very different from some of the more divided P. andersonii that I have seen, although some fronds are more divided than others. No bulblets present, although note similar hairy growth at broken stem tip in photo 13.

Basal acroscopic pinnules significantly larger. Most pinnules not truly stalked.

I'm not sure what story, if any, the closeups of the sori tell at this point in the season.

The circumstantial evidence of growing right with P. munitum, and so close to a couple of P. braunii (which is uncommon overall in the area), leans against P. setigerum. There is a slight but distinct habitat preference between P. braunii vs munitum in the area, with braunii found in small areas where munitum is distinctly missing, and plants like this one conspicuously at the habitat margin between the two.

Compare other potential hybrid from slightly different location: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/110250991
Compare other two pure P. braunii in immediate area:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/111804763
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/111804360

Large group of plants at base of limestone cliffs.

This population at Horne Lake was first reported by @rambryum 3 years ago.

I saw about a dozen groups of plants along the cliff base, over about 150m. All were strictly associated with the cliff base, with a couple of the furthest "outliers" being only a couple of yards away into the forest. The cliffs were near vertical for the most part (and hence don't even show in the Google satellite view of the location) with no opportunities for any plants to grow higher up, and then moderately dry Douglas-Fir forest on a medium-steep slope at the base of the cliffs, continuing down for about 100m to the large lake at the base

P. munitum was abundant in the forest below, but generally absent from the immediate rocky cliff base, so plants were easily distinguishable by habitat/location. I did not observe any P. imbricans in the area.

The access was far easier than I had expected. I was fearing a steep bushwack and/or boulder scramble, but there was a well developed climber's trail through solid evergreen forest on the approach. While it was overcast on my visit, it looked like this location would be quite shady throughout the day due to the forest at the base of the cliffs, despite the south facing exposure.

There was quite a variety in the depth of divisions in the leaflets, with the small heavily twisted plants being the most deeply incised, and mostly clearly recognizable as this species. The texture of the leaflets was extremely heavy, noticeably more robust than P. munitum, and still in very fresh condition given the season. Other individual plants growing in soil rather than directly on rock were larger and less deeply divided - like the large one pictured at the front here (feel free to debate potential hybrid with munitum, but they did seem to form a continuum from small & deeply divided at the back, to large and less divided at the front). These looked very similar to P. andersonii to me, and at any other location I may well have mistaken them. All were checked carefully for any bulblets, of which none were found. Other small plants found in sheltered locations, while mature, where noticeably softer and more rounded.

I'll upload more photos of the rest of the plants later this week.

Growing on dry disturbed ground, in cleared cross-country skiing area in subalpine forest, with B. lanceolatum.

About half a dozen plants over 2 square feet. Somehow I overlooked these ones earlier in the week when I found the lanceolatum, but they are growing right together.

I searched some other similar habitat patches in the area this time, but did not come across any further Botrychium.

Leaf right at the ground, no visible common stalk below this point. Delicate sporophore stalk weighed down by rain.

A new species for me!