Englewood Springs
Our first trip into the field to collect data was on September 16, 2010
Our purpose is to begin to monitor several parameters of the spring’s hydrologic assests. We will be mentored by Jill Larson, U.S.F.S. Botanist for the Northern Hills Ranger District of the Black Hills National Forest, (BHNF). We sampled NO3-, NO4+, Ca2+, pH, turbidity, dissolved oxygen (DO), flow rate, conductivity, and temperature. We intend to sample at the top of this site once in the fall and once in the spring (it is inaccesible in the winter and always fragile), and three times at the bottom.
Hydrologic parameters may tell us something about possible habitat requirements for the Broad-lipped Twayblade, Listera convallarioides, a rare orchid that occurs at only four sites in the BHNF, and the other species within this groundwater dependent ecosystem.
Another goal is to reduce the invasive species at the site. The students will count weeds in a sample plot, remove the weeds, and repeat every season to see if there is a reduction in the number of weeds in the sample plots over time. Seed heads of houndstongue (Cynoglossum officinale), Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) and bull thistle (Cirsium vulgare) were cut and removed from the site. In addition, Cirsium spp. plants were pulled and vegetative material was left on site to compost. Students are also working within an older test site where the weeds have undergone a pulling treatment, building on data over the previous five years.
Our purpose is to begin to monitor several parameters of the spring’s hydrologic assests. We will be mentored by Jill Larson, U.S.F.S. Botanist for the Northern Hills Ranger District of the Black Hills National Forest, (BHNF). We sampled NO3-, NO4+, Ca2+, pH, turbidity, dissolved oxygen (DO), flow rate, conductivity, and temperature. We intend to sample at the top of this site once in the fall and once in the spring (it is inaccesible in the winter and always fragile), and three times at the bottom.
Hydrologic parameters may tell us something about possible habitat requirements for the Broad-lipped Twayblade, Listera convallarioides, a rare orchid that occurs at only four sites in the BHNF, and the other species within this groundwater dependent ecosystem.
Another goal is to reduce the invasive species at the site. The students will count weeds in a sample plot, remove the weeds, and repeat every season to see if there is a reduction in the number of weeds in the sample plots over time. Seed heads of houndstongue (Cynoglossum officinale), Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) and bull thistle (Cirsium vulgare) were cut and removed from the site. In addition, Cirsium spp. plants were pulled and vegetative material was left on site to compost. Students are also working within an older test site where the weeds have undergone a pulling treatment, building on data over the previous five years.