Co-evolution of the red-naped and red-breasted sapsuckers

The red-breasted Sphyrapicus ruber and red-naped Sphyrapicus nuchalis sapsuckers are two woodpecker species that overlap in their range near the crest of the Cascades.  These two species are sympatric, meaning that during the evolution process, they became two new species while inhabiting the same geographic region. Generally speaking in Washington, the red-breasted live on the west side, the red-naped on the east side.   At the North Cascades Basecamp in Mazama, we’ve had the opportunity to observe both species in a cedar and birch grove that is unique to the upper Methow watershed.

This year, a male red-breasted sapsucker was observed late in the winter along the Basecamp trail.  He drummed his broken drum on local snags, showed off his beautiful red head, called his quiet “mewing” call, and even excavated a perfectly round cavity in a birch snag.  A female red-naped sapsucker was often seen in the same area, licking (not drinking) up sap with her barbed tongue, making frequent visits to his territory, and exploring the newly constructed cavity with intrepidation (poking her head up to the entrance but not entering).  Finally in mid-June, after many hours of observation, we saw the red-breasted male and the red-naped female both enter and exist the nesting cavity with food in beak for the hungry nestlings, and he was being a good dad and dropping fecal sacs to the ground as his housecleaning duties ensued.   

These two species of sapsuckers are known to hybridize in south-central Oregon, northeastern California, along the California-Nevada border, and in southern Nevada.  Genetic studies by Johnson et al (1983, 1985) showed that red-naped and red-breasted sapsuckers have the highest avian genetic relatedness ever reported, similar to that found between avian subspecies.  They also found the hybrid F1 generation to produce viable offspring, although it seems that certain F2 backcrossings may have partial sterility issues.  These studies and others confirm that although these two species are nearly genetically identical, there is a low degree of hybridization while encountering each other regularly, and therefore they are still considered as separate biological species. 

It will be interesting to see what our new fledgling hybrid sapsuckers look like, and who they choose as mates into the future.

Ned K. Johnson and Robert M. Zink. 1983. Speciation in Sapsuckers (Sphyrapicus): I. Genetic Differentiation.  The Auk: 871-884.

Ned K. Johnson and Carla Bowman Johnson.  1985.  Speciation in Sapsuckers (Sphyrapicus): II. Sympatry, Hybridization, and Mate Preference in S. ruber daggetti and S. nuchalis.  The Auk: 1-15.

 

Pygmy Rabbit Recovery in Washington

A group of us from the Pateros-Methow Valley area headed to Sagebrush Flats
near Ephrata, WA to help WDFW biologists with pygmy rabbit recovery efforts this week.  Arriving at 6:30am on the site, we spent the day rounding-up pygmy rabbit kits born just weeks to a month ago in their naturalized captive facility.  Those that had Columbia Basin genes were put back into the captive facility to become breeders for the upcoming seasons.  All others (given they were old enough and weighed enough) were released into the captive nursery for relocation into the wild in a week or so. 

Emmet, our 5 year old, was more than excited to help transport and release the kits into the nursery.  He also had the best views under the sagebrush, and therefore was a great spotter for finding the kits as they scrambled into their burrows (both artificial and natural).  We had a great day, even with the
wind, cooler temperatures, and dust blowing in every direction.  The rabbits in their burrows sure didn't seem to notice!

Birding extravaganza at the Basecamp - May 16th!

A birding morning by the birch forest today was amazing- especially the red-breasted sapsucker!  And here is proof- we believe it is a male, who is coming and going from a newly excavated cavity in a birch snag.  Even more exciting is the female red-napped sapsucker in the area, who is visiting the cavity and poking her head inside while the red-breasted is inside... but not entering. 

Here are the birds Steve and I encountered this morning:  7:30-9:00am, partially sunny, cooler temps than last week, and the height of breeding song here in Mazama. 

Townsend's warblers
Wilson's warblers
Yellow-rumped warblers
Nashville warblers
Pacific wren (AKA winter wren)
House wren
Cassin's vireo
Warbling vireo
Varied thrush
Hammond's flycatcher
Black-chinned hummingbird
Caliope's hummingbird
Red-napped sapsucker
Red-breasted sapsucker
Golden-crowned kinglets
American robin
American crow
Raven

Methow Valley Elementary School Field Trips

Methow Valley Elementary School kids spent the last month studying science here at the North Cascades Basecamp.  2nd graders spent 2 field days studying ecosystems and the 'Life of a Log', while the 3rd graders spent another 2 field days studying plant growth and development in nature.  We all had a blast, school teachers, chaparones, science leaders, and 50 kids per day walking in the woods, studying nature in depth, and performing and teaching to their fellow peers all about what they learned.

Here are a few photo highlights from 2nd grade studying Ecosystems:  

team building a log ecosystem

learning the life of the down log

learning out of doors

magnifying an insect

studying the root ball

presenting with staff in hand

team building exercises

what does it taste like?

riparian ecosystem studies

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Photo highlights from 3rd grade field trip studying Plant Growth and Development:

studying the parts of a flower

magnifying the stamen

graphing tree age and diameter

counting tree rings

growth of a tree

making cordage from cedar

graphing creations

a walk across the bridge in the forest

drinking fir needle tea

Painting the Colors of Winter

Over President's Day weekend, John Adams, a Northwest watercolorist, led a 2-day watercolor course at the new Ecology Classroom at the Basecamp. The course introduced art into the classroom for the first time! With the sun streaming in the windows, it was a perfect Saturday morning for painting.

John's demonstration

John demonstrated his favored method of painting where he gracefully representing trees near and far and a looming mountain with few simple strokes. Instead of using cool blues, purples and turquoise to represent our chilly winter landscape, I was surprised to find John's brush dipped in the warm tones of alizarin crimson, cadmium red and yellow.

 Most participants painted a similar scene using John's techniques, but each piece reflected the personal style of each painter. It was a beautiful way to start the long weekend and gave inspiration to each of us to continue learning and painting through the end of winter!

Bald Eagle Surveys- Winter Foraging

Last Sunday, January 27^th, the North Cascades Basecamp lead another successful wintering bald eagle survey in the valley. After spotting our first eagle, a 1^st year juvenile, within minutes of meeting at the Barn in Winthrop, we took off. This winter, there seems to be fewer eagles in the Winthrop to Mazama area than last year. This is likely due to a small to minimal run of steelhead migrating back to the hatchery this winter, which differs from last January/February.  It also could be the result of a minimal deer mortality, since the deer have easy access to food this year; With hard winter years, there are more deer mortalities and therefore increased food resources for these scavengers. Another theory is that deeper snow in the Winthrop area during the winter pushes the eagles down-valley, looking for more food and foraging opportunities.    Regardless, we took off south to find eagles.

A 2-year juvenile perched shows off its beautiful mottling. 

We began to spot bald eagles along the East Country Road near Twisp where the cows are calving, leaving the fields littered with placentas, a nutritious meal for a bald eagle.  There was also an unidentified carcass (most likely a deer) in the field, which also attracted attention from eagles, ravens, and crows. In total, we saw 17 bald eagles at this site. Several were perched in cottonwoods around the field’s perimeter, while others feasted on the carcass. There was a nice array of juveniles at the field. The group got great views of 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd year olds, allowing us to see the progression in plumage, beak, and eye color.

An adult bald eagle watches over a carcass.
If you look close you can see the
blood on it's face! 

As we continued south along East 20 and 153, we saw 7 more eagles perched in trees near the river. We finally pulled over and discovered one of the night roosts the eagles are using this winter. From 4:45PM – 5:10PM we saw 22 birds fly in to the area to spend the night. We saw 12 of these eagles (6 adults and 6 juveniles) fly to into a portion of the night roost right off the road. As they perched, they noisily communicated with each other. We also saw 8 eagles head up a valley about 200 meters further south. These eagles were most likely headed to a different night roost, although we lost sight of them behind a hill, and do not know where exactly they ended up. We are excited to find out in upcoming surveys!

Want to join us next time? We are heading out again on February 10th and 24th,1-5:30pm; cost is $20/person.  Email info@northcascadesbasecamp.com, or call (509)996-2334 for more information.

Family Weekend at the Basecamp!

The basecamp has been host to many this winter. We have seen friends coming up for a weekend of skiing, honey-mooning couples beginning their wedded life, and families making a tradition of winter skiing with their tots.

This past weekend, a lively bunch came to the Methow: six couples including my and Catherine’s, the biology intern, parents! The group from Capitol Hill in Seattle has returned to the Methow for over two decades. The group of 12 or so adults were all those whose families and children grew up with Catherine and myself in our corner of Capitol Hill.

Many of the children from that group are now in school or working around the country, and the group has changed to a jovial group of adults. Catherine and I had the pleasure of spending the weekend with and parents and friends.

After leisurely breakfasts, accompanied with many cups of coffee, some went skiing, other read books and others enjoyed quiet moments to relax and take in the winter landscape. It tickled the group to reminisce about the ski trips at the basecamp 20 years ago

Instead of playing guitar, enjoying conversation, or going to bed early, evenings used to include intense snow-ball fighting, fort making, sledding, and bedtime stories. Up to ten children under age 10 would take the lodge by storm. One parent said it was their chance to let their city-kids be wild for a weekend and tire themselves completely.

This weekend included lots of laughter, love and good food. Here’s to many more winters in the Methow, Seattle families!