September 23, 2020 - Mending the Turtle Habitat at Pierce

    Since July, we have been hosting volunteer work parties up at the Pierce National Wildlife Refuge. The main purpose of these work parties is to eradicate the sheer amount of Himalayan Blackberry that impedes habitat for the Western Pond Turtles that call this refuge home. 

The western pond turtle is listed as a species of concern by the US Department of Fish and Wildlife. This turtle requires a large range of habitats - both aquatic and terrestrial. They utilize both permanent and seasonal aquatic habitats including rivers, lakes, sloughs, reservoirs, ponds, and even irrigation canals. In particular, the western pond turtles gravitate toward land for nesting, overwintering, dispersal, and basking. Nesting will typically occur within 200 meters of aquatic habitat, where there is sparse vegetation and good solar exposure. 

A baby western pond turtle for reference. This photo was found on the Friends of  the Columbia Gorge website which can be accessed by clicking here.

Why Remove the Blackberries? 

    Because Himalayan Blackberry is considered an invasive species in Washington State, it can quickly over-take an area and outcompete native plants. Not only this, but once a large patch of blackberries is established - their root structures are elaborate and make them very difficult to eradicate. We have been removing a huge amount of blackberries on the South Side of Domestic Springs (seen below), and in doing so, we are drastically improving the habitat for these endangered pond turtles. 

    

    These turtles require the terrestrial habitat surrounding Domestic Springs to be cleared of blackberries so that they can travel to nesting and over-wintering habitats. If the blackberries were to be left in place - the turtles would ultimately be stuck, and they would miss out on large portion of their habitat. This would drastically hurt the population of existing turtles at the Pierce Refuge, so we have shifted a huge portion of our restoration efforts to improving turtle habitat near the Gorge. 

A view of domestic springs. 

A pathway carved into the blackberries by our tractor.

A couple of our volunteers brush-blading away. 

One of our licensed tractor volunteers taking out some Himalayan Blackberry on the south side of the refuge.