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Douglas Tree Squirrel, native to Pacific Northwest, mostly in coniferous forests Photo Credit: Jeanne Fancher Location: West Hill Passive Park |
The West Hill Passive Park
The Park is a good example of Pacific’s uplands habitat and common animals. The toe of the slope below the Park is crossed by a small stream with red alder and salmon berry and is a candidate for wetland restoration which would support amphibians, small mammals, and song birds.
The slope and uplands contain mature Douglas fir woodlands, salal, salmonberry, vine maple, and sword fern. This understory supports coyote, Douglas tree and flying squirrels, short-tailed weasels, mountain beaver, neotropical songbirds, hummingbirds, owls, hawks, long-toed salamanders and other small animals. These include skunks, possums (non-native) Eastern grey squirrels (also non-native), and some amphibians (tree frogs) and reptiles such as garter snakes, rubber boas, and small lizards.
Old hay pastures in the Park are punctuated with hawthorn and young cascara, Himalayan and mountain (trailing) blackberry and some red elderberry, shelters various prey species such as native rabbits, voles, shrews, moles, quail, and returning native plants like snowberry, dewberry, and trailing blackberry.
Other vegetation around homes include fruit trees, ornamental shrubs, rhododendron, Norway spruce, pines, hawthorns, wild cherry, stinging nettle, salmonberry, raspberries, Himalayan blackberry and native blackcap (wild raspberry) provide cover and food for chickadees, towhees, song sparrows, Stellar's jays, golden crown kinglets, Bewick's wren, and winter wren which are among the species which visit from the green belt and wooded ravine. An adjoining property of approximately ¾ acres of woodland and an artificial pond contains mostly grasses, red alder, and some wetland plants. The pond is used by wildlife from adjoining wooded areas. This is a portion of the Davidson property which was offered to the City as a donation in about 2004.
Lower White River Valley
The White/Stuck River Valley encompasses wet meadows and shrub and forested wetlands of various sizes. A typical valley habitat area, the “White River Alluvial Fan” and it’s wooded wetlands, can still be seen along Ellingson Road. North of Ellingson Road red elderberry, willow species (4+) and red alder dominate the overstory, with Sitka spruce and western red cedar punctuating the canopy.
To the south of Ellingson Road, there are fewer conifers until one passes south of an East-west branch of the Government Canal, where again spruce and cedar are found. There are also a few rare lowland Pacific yews and a large clump of devil’s club, which testify to the ancient forest that once grew in the valley. Thickets of red twig dogwood, vine maple, several species of willow, and salmonberry flank the east branch of the Government Canal. Almost everywhere skunk cabbage punctuates the ground cover. Stinging nettles, and trailing blackberry contrast with the less well-armed licorice fern and horsetail. West of the Union Pacific Railroad, and south of ALPAC Elementary School, an old pasture/hayfield has large cottonwoods, pasture grasses, and Himalayan blackberries.
Some of the birds observed during a brief winter inventory of the site included American robin, chickadee, Mallard duck, Steller’s jay, and possibly a pair of common snipe. Evidence has been seen of moles and muskrat. Possoms, coyotes, raccoons and skunks are reported in the area. Bald eagles, small hawks, Great Blue Herons, and neo-tropical song birds have been observed by a long-time Pacific resident. West of the Union Pacific Railroad track (and south of ALPAC Elementary School) an old pasture/hayfield has large cottonwoods, pasture grasses, and Himalayan blackberries. This area supports mice, voles, rabbits, and their predator species.
This 80+ acre wetland, along Ellingson Road in Algona, is probably the largest and least altered forest wetland remaining in the Green/White River Valley between Seattle and Tacoma. It is larger than the King County property along the White River floodplain to the southeast. This wetland is also part of the White/Puyallup River Watershed Management Area and is an important aquatic resource for salmon, trout, and steelhead. Salmon have been observed in the Government Canal between this wetland and the Pierce County Water Program Wetland 1½ miles to the south. While salmon are not actually spawning here, the Algona and Pacific wetlands supply a large amount food to the fish in the White River. These wetlands are the “food bank” of the aquatic life cycle.
Valley soils can help determine pre-contact plant and animal habitats. Most of the White River Valley consists of “Puyallup-Sultan Association”, alluvial soils, well to moderately well drained. There are wetter soils in pockets along West Valley Highway, characterized by peats and mucks, which indicate standing water, and hence various water fowl species.
TO BE CONTINUED
Jeanne Fancher,
Historical Exploration Volunteers
Pacific Park Board
May 15, 2018