Noticing Things at the Hefflefinger Cliff

After roughly two years as a naturalist at Wolf Ridge, the one thing engrained in me and the way I process the outdoors are the naturalist practices: slow down, notice your surroundings, gather information, and share with others. A very simple construct, but I think in its simplicity it opens the door to complexity. As I was out exploring today I really got thinking about noticing.

The first time I made my way out to the Hefflefinger cliff this past November I thought that I noticed quite a few interesting plants and lichens. On this trip I noticed my first calicioid lichens other than fairy pins (Phaeocalicium polyporaeum) and my first lichenicolous fungi, Abrothallus peyritschii. Right as I was beginning to get interested in lichens, this trip was obviously very formative to my development as a naturalist. Slowing down and zooming in, I was able to notice these extremely small lichens. As I continued to explore the area for other species and went down the rabbit hole in researching them, I was gathering all sorts of information and sharing that on iNat and with those I have adventured with. But, it was really that second step (although they all happen simultaneously) that was the most important. In first noticing these things, I became aware of a vast diversity of life that I have probably seen my whole life, I've just never bothered to notice. Now that I know to look, I find them all the time. A whole new world exists with these organisms in it (they were always there, but never noticed). What else is out there but never noticed?

Chaenotricha obscura seen in November

Abrothallus peyritschii from today

The most noteworthy observation of that trip was large leaved sandwort (Moehringia macrophylla). This was also my first time seeing this species. It was quite a time past the growing season and hard to notice; I saw 2 clumps of plants, one had died back for the year (like most of them on that cliff that I failed to notice at the time) and the other was still green. Today I saw hundreds of plants, they were there in November, but I didn't see them. Noticing takes a lot of things: getting the seasonal timing right, doing some research, relying on lived experiences in the field. I think over time all these aspects meld together and start to look like intuition. A few posts ago I wrote about finding mountain campion and being suprised to find a leaf miner on it. As I was looking at these sandworts, I found a very similar looking leaf mine on it. Would I have noticed it without that past experience fresh in my memory? 

Large leaved sandwort (Moehringia macrophylla) seen in November
State Threatened Species

The first plants I noticed were dead going into the winter

I saw hundreds today, these two were the only ones in full bloom

A large patch

Leaf mine from a Pegmoya species 

Larva up close

I noticed many lichen species that I missed last time, they were there I just walked right past them and failed to notice them. Some of these are species I've seen before, some were new. Now that I have this experience, will I start noticing those new ones more; I've probably seen them before, just didn't notice them. 

Moss shingle lichen (Fuscopannaria praetermissa)

Forst lichen (Physconia sp.)

Spiny gray horsehair lichen (Bryoria nadvornikiana)
State Watchlist Species: Newly Discovered

Port-hole lichen (Menegazzia terebrata)
State Special Concern Species

Pannariaceae, I'm not sure what this species is yet 

Abrading ring lichen (Arctoparmelia subcentrifuga)
State Special Concern

Concentric ring lichen (Arctoparmelia centrifuga)
State Special Concern Species

Burred horsehair lichen (Bryoria furcellata) is quite common, but it rarely has apothecia

I noticed many other species that I didn't take pictures of, some I could identify, most I couldn't. Many, many more went by unnoticed. Part of that is me and my current knowledge and experience dictating what I might notice. Part of it is the physical limitations of what I could notice. The cliff probably goes on for a half mile or more and is maybe 200 feet high. For the most part I was limited to noticing things about six feet high, although there were a few spots I could climb up and down. What might be at the middle or top of the cliff that I failed to notice? I was also only there for about four hours, surely had I stayed longer I would have noticed more. Some of it might be just chance or coincidence. There were a few times where I stopped to swat at the hoard of mosquitoes following me and itch all around for a few seconds. During these pauses I noticed things that I otherwise would have walked right past. How many more things did I notice because of the mosquitoes? Then again, if the mosquitoes weren't there I probably would have walked a lot slower and taken more pauses. Would I have noticed more then?

What might I notice if I go back to this spot in a month, or two, or three? When it is a different part of the season and I will have different experiences that will shape my perception. Maybe I'll have to see. 



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