Pinyon Jay Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus Courtesy US FWS Dave Menke, PhotographerFew birds have such a strong association with one plant that the plants name becomes part of the birds name. Sage grouse is one, Acorn Woodpecker another, but the Pinyon Jay is our topic today. Pinyon Jays are usually found in close association with pinyon-juniper forests throughout the Great Basin and the nutritious nuts of the pinyon pine are their preferred food. The blue and grey birds collect and cache pinyon nuts in summer and fall for later consumption. They have an uncanny recovery accuracy and excellent spatial memory, which allows them to rediscover these scattered caches and eat pinyon nuts all year. They do not recover all the stored seeds, however, and therefore aid in the dispersal of pinyon pines.
Pinyon Jays have a complex social organization and are highly gregarious. [Pinyon Jay Audio Courtesy Kevin Colver]
They spend their lives in large flocks of up to 150 or more individuals. Nesting is communal, although rarely are there more than 2 or 3 nests per tree. Breeding season is in late winter. Many birds spend their entire lives in the flock into which they were born.
Pinyon Jays are not migratory, but they tend to be nomadic; traveling to wherever there is a good crop of pinyon nuts. They will also eat a wide variety of seeds, insects and berries to supplement their diet and can be found in adjoining sagebrush, ponderosa pine forest and riparian habitats. The conservation status of Pinyon Jays is considered vulnerable. Destruction of pinyon-juniper forests for grazing and changes in fire regimes have resulted in loss of habitat. And what is a Pinyon Jay to do without its pinyon nuts?
Thank-you to Kevin Colver for the use of his bird recordings.
This is Linda Kervin for Bridgerland Audubon Society.
Clark’s Nutcracker Nucifraga columbiana Courtesy US FWS Dave Menke, Photographer
Red Squirrel Tamiasciurus hudsonicus Courtesy US FWS Donna Dewhurst, Photographer
Hi, this is Mark Larese-Casanova from the Utah Master Naturalist Program at Utah State University Extension.
Throughout Utah’s forests, many plants and animals take advantage of other organisms to survive. Whether it is a caterpillar eating a tree leaf, mistletoe growing on a juniper branch, or an owl catching a mouse to eat, one organism being consumed by another is almost inevitable. However, some organisms may inadvertently help others not only survive, but also increase their range.
Many conifer trees, including pines, spruces, and firs, depend on fungi that live in and around their roots. The fine fibers of the fungi act as root hairs, helping trees better absorb water and nutrients from the soil. Some fungi also have symbiotic relationships with bacteria that are able to take Nitrogen from the air and turn it into ammonia, which is one of the forms of nitrogen that helps plants grow. Conifer trees reproduce via seeds from their cones, and fungi produce mushrooms to release spores. Squirrels happen to find conifer seeds and mushrooms particularly tasty, and will readily eat them. As squirrels are known to do, extra food is cached away for winter, and some seeds and mushrooms are inevitably forgotten. This helps disperse seeds and spores, aiding in population growth. So, the fungus helps the tree grow, the tree and fungus provide food for the squirrel, and the squirrel helps the tree and fungus spread to new areas.
The Clark’s nutcracker, a bird closely related to the crow and raven, is also particularly important in aiding in the spread of pine trees. Living at higher elevations, nutcrackers must store food for the long winters on Utah’s mountains. A nutcracker’s stout beak is used to crack open pine cones to retrieve the seeds inside. It stores seeds in a pouch under its tongue, and flies away to cache the seeds for winter. Each Clark’s nutcracker stores tens of thousands of seeds every year. While many seed caches are found and eaten, some are forgotten and germinate into young saplings.
So, while squirrels and nutcrackers are ultimately just looking for a good meal, both play a crucial role in establishing and maintaining healthy forest ecosystems in Utah’s mountains. For Wild About Utah, I’m Mark Larese-Casanova.
Larese-Casanova, M. Utah Master Naturalist Mountains Wildlife Field Guide. Utah State University Extension. 2012.
Maser, C., and Z. Maser. 1988. Interactions among squirrels, micorrhizal fungi, and coniferous forests in Oregon. The Great Basin Naturalist 48(3):358-369.
Utah Sand Fulgurites Found on Mount Raymond Courtesy Utah Geological Survey Carl Ege, Photographer
Rock Fulgurite (circled) Found on quartzite at the summit of Mount Raymond, Wasatch Range, Salt Lake County, UT. Courtesy Utah Geological Survey Carl Ege, Photographer
‘Frozen’ leaves pointing in the direction of prevailing winds during the passage of the fire.
From the ‘Wildfire Origin & Cause Determination Handbook’ Courtesy National Wildfire Coordinating Group(NCGW.gov)
Hi I’m Holly Strand of Utah State University’s College of Natural Resources.
It’s fire season in UT. The hill slopes have turned a parched yellow-brown and the trees look thirsty and flammable. As of Aug. 13, there were 7 fires burning across the state.
One of the first questions that arises with any wildfire is “What started it?”
And I wonder: “How in the world would you figure this out given the destruction that a fire leaves in its wake?”
The first step toward identifying a cause involves finding the exact spot where the fire started. To do this, investigators look for witnesses. And having information on wind direction for the duration of the fire helps a lot. But even in the absence of these, the fire itself leaves clues regarding the direction of movement. And if you know the direction of movement, you can trace the path backwards to the ignition site.
For instance, on a tree or post, the side exposed to the oncoming fire will show deeper charring, more loss of wood and more white ash than the unexposed side.
However the leeward side of a tree may have the highest char mark. That’s because as strong winds blows the fire past a tree, the flames are drawn into the eddy zone on the leeward side and extend higher up the trunk. Still, the deeper char will be on the side facing the advancing flame. So to get to the area of the fire origin, you’d want to follow direction indicated by the most damaged tree face.
When green leaves of shrubs or trees are scorched, they tend to become soft and pliable and bend in the direction of the prevailing wind. After the fire passes they become fixed in this position as they cool, still pointing in the direction of the wind. So the opposite direction of the pointing leaves will take you closer to the fire origin.
Another thing that generally helps fire investigators is the fact that all fires need time to achieve their maximum spread rate/intensity. A newly ignited fire may take 30 min or more to ramp up. As a result even with high intensity fires, the area of initial ignition will show relatively less damage; upper foliage and branches may even remain intact.
Once the area of origin is identified, investigators look for the human or natural source of the blaze. Footprints, tire marks or evidence of a campfire are noted with interest. Nearby power lines, railroad tracks or electric fences may have provided the initial spark. Investigators often end up on their hands and knees searching for things such as cigarette parts, ignitable liquid residue; bullets or empty shell casings.
If lightening is a suspected source investigators look for strike marks or splintered wood fragments. Lightening can also leave a glassy residue, called a fulgurite, when the strike melts sand on the ground or on vegetation.
Thanks to Wesley Page of USU’s Department of Wildland Resources for sharing his wildfire expertise.
For sources and more information on investigating the cause of wildfires go to www.wildaboututah.org
For Wild About Utah and USU’s College of Natural Resources, I’m Holly Strand.
Credits:
Images: Hyrum Fire, Courtesy & Copyright 2013 Holly Strand
Courtesy Wikimedia, John Elson, Licensed under GNU Documentation License V1.2
Also images from Wildfire Origin & Cause Determination Handbook, Courtesy National Wildfire Coordinating Group(NCGW.gov)
Text: Holly Strand
Wildfire Origin & Cause Determination Handbook. 2005. A publication of the National Wildfire Coordinating Group Fire Investigation Working Team NWCG Handbook 1. PMS 412-1. May 2005. https://www.nwcg.gov/pms/pubs/nfes1874/nfes1874.pdf
Live Worldwide Network for Lightning and Thunderstorms in Real Time, Blitzortung, https://en.blitzortung.org/live_lightning_maps.php?map=30 [URL inactive as of 1 Aug 2020}]
70% of our planet is covered in water, but you certainly wouldn’t know it by looking around Utah in August! It’s been hot and dry for about 3 months now and my yard and garden are really starting to feel the pinch.
Water can be a touchy subject in the West, and will become increasingly so as we look to the future.
Already our water resources are overextended, and all projected forecasts show an increasing need for water in the years ahead. Continued population growth combined with higher summer temperatures and drought conditions mean that this all important resource is only going to get more precious. Utah’s municipal water comes from either underground sources such as wells and springs or surface water including our many man-made reservoirs. Utah relies heavily on mountain snowpack to fill reservoirs and recharge springs, which leaves us wanting after weak winters. Many state reservoirs are predicted to drop to as low as 30% of their storage capacity this fall.
So how much water do we actually use? The average Utah household passes 650 gallons through its pipes each day, the vast majority of which goes towards bathing, toilets, and laundry. Household water use is of course only a fraction – about 13% – of our overall state consumption. Nearly 83% of the water used in Utah goes towards crop irrigation. Agricultural use plus household and industrial water add up to an astonishing 5 billion gallons of water used in the state of Utah each and every day. Per capita, Utah ranks 2
Utah is also the second driest state in the nation, again behind Nevada, though the amount of precipitation varies widely among our deserts and mountain ranges. On average, we receive around 13 inches of water each year across the state with some areas receiving less than 10 and others upwards of 50. All of that water has to be shared among the plants, animals, and humans living in each watershed. There are, of course, lots of ways to conserve water in the home: take shorter showers, run the washing machine or dishwasher only when full, and turn off the faucet while brushing teeth. Outside, water your lawn and garden only in the late evening, overnight, or early morning hours, but check the forecast first. In order to address our widespread and long-term water issues, however, bigger solutions are needed in addition to standard household water conservation. Last year, for example, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation sponsored a contest to reinvent the toilet in an attempt to save water and increase sanitation for people worldwide.
Governor Gary Herbert is also asking questions about Utah’s water this summer. He has convened a handful of meetings around the state to contemplate Utah’s Water Future, and is asking for public comments and suggestions on how to address the complicated issues that will face our state with regards to water use in the coming years. The last of these public meetings are being held in Salt Lake on August 13 and in Logan on August 15 can still add your comments and ideas to the record by visiting utahswaterfuture.org. Humans are an incredibly creative and adaptable species, and it will take our best efforts to overcome this daunting challenge. The future of this great state, and all the species who call it home, depend upon it.
Find links to the Governor’s water forum as well as more information on Utah’s water resources at our website: www.wildaboututah.org.
For the Stokes Nature Center and Wild About Utah, this is Andrea Liberatore.
Pinyon Jay
