Tryon Creek Naturalist Notes

Pacific Giant Salamander, Dicamptodon tenebrosus

During the last week of day camp at Tryon Creek, campers and counselors found one of the most impressive examples of Pacific Giant Salamander that we have seen in years!  Adults can reach over a foot long, which this guy (or gal) was close to.  A good place to look for these prehistoric-looking creatures is in moist, coniferours forests near cold, clear streams ~ we have seen them in the water, under ivy and along the trail here at Tryon Creek.  In fact, visitors and staff reported seeing two others last week here in the park.  Check out the unique marbled tan and reddish brown pattern on this one. 

 We’ve heard stories of these giants vocalizing and wouldn’t you know it, we did hear a low-pitched bark from this individual when we lifted him onto his mossy rock for his photo shoot. Keep an eye out of the trail for these Oregon Giants!

On Saturday we visited Wapato Access Greenway at Sauvie Island for a morning of birding.  We heard and saw juvenile Cooper’s Hawks calling and saw a group of juvenile Evening Grosbeaks resting in a Douglas-fir. We were fortunate to find 37 bird species, including a Red-eyed Vireo, a very uncommon bird for the Portland area.

Wapato Access Greenway’s 2 ½ mile trail invites both strolling and birding, and wanders around Virginia Lake, which is an important overwintering area for waterfowl.  For more information, see Audubon’s Wapato State Access Area bird list at http://www.oregonstateparks.org/images/pdf/Wapato_birds.pdf.

After our scheduled walk, park staff hung around for a bit to work on reconstructing Wapato’s observation platform.  In doing so, we stumbled across both Red-legged Frog and Western Long-toed Salamander!  Both of these amphibians are very secretive and are seldom seen here.

It was another wonderful outing at our Sauvie Island unit, and please stay tuned for more walks and programs at this location.

Birders viewing dozens of extremely rare and even thought-to-be-extinct species at Virginia Lake

Can you find the animal in this photo?

 

Bushtit Nest

 

Red-eyed Vireo! Great photo, Jim!

 

Western Long-toed Salamander!!!

A closer look at their green dorsal markings.

 

Species Found:

Pied-billed Grebe

Wood Duck

Mallard

Cooper’s Hawk (3+)

Red-tailed Hawk

Osprey

American Coot

Band-tailed Pigeon

Vaux’s Swift

Rufous Hummingbird

Northern Flicker

Downy Woodpecker

Western Wood-Pewee

Pacific-slope Flycatcher

RED-EYED VIREO

Steller’s Jay

Western Scrub-Jay

American Crow

Tree Swallow

Barn Swallow

Black-capped Chickadee

Chestnut-backed Chickadee

White-breasted Nuthatch

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Brown Creeper

Bewick’s Wren

Pacific Wren

American Robin

Swainson’s Thrush

Cedar Waxwing

Common Yellowthroat

Wilson’s Warbler

Black-headed Grosbeak

Spotted Towhee

Song Sparrow

EVENING GROSBEAK

American Goldfinch

Red-legged Frog

Pacific Treefrog

Western Long-toed Salamander

Good birding…and herping!

Rangers Patricia and Rhett