Rocky Prairie Explained

Rocky Prairie
Alt Name:Rocky Prairie Natural Area Preserve
Map:USA Washington
Label:Rocky Prairie
Location:Thurston County, Washington
Nearest Town:Tenino, Washington
Coordinates:46.9201°N -122.8612°W
Area Acre:810
Designation:Nature reserve
Owner:Washington Natural Areas Program
Washington State Department of Natural Resources
Website:Rocky Prairie Natural Area Preserve

Rocky Prairie is a Puget prairie that is about southwest of Seattle, Washington, and about south of Washington's capital city of Olympia. It sits very close to the Millersylvania State Park, the community of Maytown, and the city of Tenino.

Old Highway 99 runs through Rocky Prairie. The part of the prairie west of the highway is called West Rocky Prairie. Both the west and east sides of the prairie have various plant and animal species. Many of the plant species are flowering plants. Both sides also have areas of Mima mounds (not to be confused with the Mima mounds at Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve about 10.5 kilometers or 6.5 miles to the west).

Rocky Prairie is divided into several different properties. The two land owners west of Old Highway 99 are the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Port of Tacoma. A major land owner east of Old Highway 99 is the Washington State Department of Natural Resources. There is also another property on the east side owned by Thurston County which has a gravel pit located on it. Some of the prairie on the east side is private property, and has pastures and houses on it.

In West Rocky Prairie, the property that belongs to the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife is called the West Rocky Prairie Wildlife Area. The size of the property is 810acres.[1] [2] Part of the property is wooded, and part of it is in the prairie. The West Rocky Prairie Unit has over 300acres of woods, 360acres of wetlands, 40acres of Quercus garryana (Garry oak trees), and 300acres of Mima mounds.[3]

Plant species

Rocky Prairie plant species
(Click "show" to display table)
DivisionClassOrderFamilyGenus and speciesCommon name(s)
PinophytaPinopsidaPinalesPinaceaePseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii

English translation:
False hemlock spruce - Archibald Menzies - variety[4]
Coast Douglas-fir
Pacific Douglas-fir
ApialesApiaceaeLomatium triternatum

English translation:
Small border - three leaves
Nineleaf biscuitroot
ApialesApiaceaeLomatium utriculatum

English translation:
Small border - inflated
Common lomatium
Spring gold
AsparagalesAsparagaceaeCamassia quamash[5]

English translation:
Sweet - sweet
Camas
Common camas
Common camash
Small camas
Quamash
AsparagalesIridaceaeSisyrinchium angustifolium

English translation:
Pig snout - narrow leaf
Narrow-leaf blue-eyed-grass
AsteralesAsteraceaeAchillea millefolium

English translation:
Achilles - thousand leaves
Common yarrow
Yarrow
AsteralesAsteraceaeAntennaria microphylla

English translation:
Antenna - small leaf
Dwarf everlasting
Littleleaf pussytoes
Pink pussytoes
Rosy pussytoes
Small pussytoes
AsteralesAsteraceaeBalsamorhiza deltoidea

English translation:
Balsam root - triangle shaped
Deltoid balsamroot
AsteralesAsteraceaeSolidago canadensis

English translation:
Heal (to make well) - Canadian
Canada goldenrod
Canadian goldenrod
AsteralesAsteraceaeSolidago spathulata

English translation:
Heal (to make well) - small spathe
Coast goldenrod
Dune goldenrod
AsteralesCampanulaceaeCampanula rotundifolia

English translation:
Little bell - round leaf
Harebell
AsteralesCampanulaceaeHowellia aquatilis[6] Water howellia
AsteralesAsteraceaeErigeron speciosus

English translation:
Early old man - spectacular
Aspen fleabane
Garden fleabane
Showy fleabane
AsteralesAsteraceaeEriophyllum lanatum

English translation:
Woolly leaf - woolly
Common woolly sunflower
Oregon sunshine
AsteralesAsteraceaeMicroseris laciniata

English translation:
Small lettuce like plant - narrow lobes
Cutleaf silverpuffs
Cut leaf microseris
AsteralesAsteraceaeSericocarpus rigidusColumbian whitetop aster
AsteralesAsteraceaeHieracium albertinumHoundstongue hawkweed
Western hawkweed
CaryophyllalesCaryophyllaceaeCerastium arvense

English translation:
Horn - farmland
Field chickweed
DipsacalesCaprifoliaceaeSymphoricarpos albus

English translation:
Fruit clusters - white
Common snowberry
EricalesEricaceaeArctostaphylos uva-ursi

English translation:
Bear, bunch of grapes - bear's grape
Kinnikinnick
Pinemat manzanita
EricalesPrimulaceaeDodecatheon hendersonii

English translation:
Twelve gods - Louis Forniquet Henderson
Broad-leaved shooting star
Henderson's shooting star
Mosquito bills
Sailor caps
FabalesFabaceaeLupinus albicaulis

English translation:
Wolf - white stems
Sicklekeel lupine
FabalesFabaceaeLupinus lepidus

English translation:
Wolf - elegant
Dwarf lupine
Pacific lupine
Prairie lupine
FagalesFagaceaeQuercus garryana

English translation:
Oak - Nicholas Garry
Garry oak
Oregon oak
Oregon white oak
LamialesLamiaceaePrunella vulgaris

English translation:
Quinsey - common
Blue curls
Brownwort
Carpenter's herb
Common self-heal
Heal-all
Heart-of-the-earth
Woundwort
LamialesOrobanchaceaeCastilleja levisectaGolden Indian paintbrush
Golden paintbrush
LilialesMelanthiaceaeToxicoscordion venenosum

English translation:
Toxic garlic - venomous
Death camas
Meadow death camas
LilialesLiliaceaeFritillaria affinis

English translation:
Dice box - similar
Checker lily
Chocolate lily
MalpighialesViolaceaeViola adunca

English translation:
Violet - hooked
Early blue violet
Hookedspur violet
Sand violet
Western dog violet
PoalesJuncaceaeLuzula campestris

English translation:
Lucciola - plains
Field wood-rush
Good Friday grass
Sweep's brush
PoalesPoaceaeFestuca idahoensis

English translation:
Straw - Idaho
Blue hunchgrass
Idaho fescue
PoalesPoaceaeDanthonia californica

English translation:
Étienne Danthoine - California
California oatgrass
RanunculalesRanunculaceaeAquilegia formosa

English translation:
Eagles' claw - beautiful
Crimson columbine
Red columbine
Western columbine
RanunculalesRanunculaceaeDelphinium nuttallii

English translation:
Dolphin - Thomas Nuttall
Nuttall's larkspur
RanunculalesRanunculaceaeRanunculus occidentalis

English translation:
Little frog - western
Western buttercup
RosalesRosaceaeMalus fusca[7]

English translation:
Apple - dusky
Oregon crabapple
Pacific crabapple
RosalesRosaceaePotentilla gracilis

English translation:
Potent, small - graceful
Graceful cinquefoil
Slender cinquefoil
RosalesRosaceaeRosa pisocarpa

English translation:
Rose - pea-like fruit
Cluster rose
Swamp rose
Photographs shown were not necessarily taken at Rocky Prairie, and most likely were not taken there. Photographs of similar types of plants may be substituted if that species/subspecies photo is not available.

Animal species

Rocky Prairie animal species
(Click "show" to display table)
PhylumClassOrderFamilyGenus and speciesCommon name(s)
ArthropodaInsectaHymenopteraApidaeBombus californicus[8] California bumble bee
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraHesperiidaeEuphyes propertiusPropertius duskywing
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraHesperiidaeEuphyes vestrisDun sedge skipper
Dun skipper
Sedge witch
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraHesperiidaeHesperia commaCommon branded skipper
Holarctic grass skipper
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraHesperiidaeHesperia jubaJagged-border skipper
Juba skipper
Yuba skipper
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraHesperiidaeOchlodes sylvanoides ssp. orecoastusCoastal woodland skipper
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraHesperiidaePolites mardonMardon skipper
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraHesperiidaePolites sonoraSonoran skipper
Western long dash
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraLycaenidaeIcaricia icarioides ssp. blackmoreiPuget blue
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraNymphalidaeEuphydryas editha ssp. tayloriTaylor's checkerspot
Whulge checkerspot
ArthropodaInsectaLepidopteraNymphalidaeSpeyeria zerene ssp. bremneriiValley silverspot
ChordataAmphibiaAnuraRanidaeRana pretiosaOregon spotted frog
ChordataAvesAnseriformesAnatidaeBranta canadensisCanada goose
ChordataAvesAccipitriformesAccipitridaeHaliaeetus leucocephalusBald eagle
ChordataAvesPasseriformesTurdidaeTurdus migratoriusAmerican robin
ChordataMammaliaArtiodactylaCervidaeOdocoileus hemionus ssp. columbianusColumbian black-tailed deer
ChordataMammaliaRodentiaGeomyidaeThomomys mazama ssp. tumuli[9] Tenino pocket gopher
ChordataMammaliaRodentiaSciuridaeTamiasciurus douglasiiDouglas squirrel
Photographs shown in animal species chart were not necessarily taken at Rocky Prairie, and most likely were not taken there. Photographs of similar types of animals may be substituted if that species/subspecies photo is not available.

Climate

The closest weather station to Rocky Prairie with a long period of record collection is at the Olympia Regional Airport in the city of Tumwater. Under the Köppen climate classification system, the climate of the Olympia area is classified as Csb.[10] The C means that it is a temperate climate, meaning that the winters are chilly to mild. The s means that it is a Mediterranean climate, meaning that the summers are dry. The b means that the summers are warm but not hot. This type of climate is also called a warm-summer Mediterranean climate. In this type of climate, the winters are rainy. The area south of Olympia is in hardiness zone 8A.

Climate data for the Olympia Regional Airport (metric units)
Averages are for the most recent 50-year period as of 2019, 1969-2018
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Average high °C7.49.612.215.018.821.725.225.422.115.910.27.015.9
Average mean °C3.84.96.88.812.215.017.617.714.810.16.13.510.1
Average low °C0.10.21.32.75.68.310.010.07.54.32.00.14.4
Precipitation (cm)19.5113.7913.808.985.754.071.572.755.5411.8221.3719.39128.34
Source for data to create chart: NOAA - National Centers for Environmental Information
Climate data for the Olympia Regional Airport (standard units)
Averages are for the most recent 50-year period as of 2019, 1969-2018
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Average high °F45.349.354.059.065.971.077.377.871.860.550.444.660.6
Average mean °F38.840.844.247.954.059.063.763.958.750.243.038.450.2
Average low °F32.232.434.436.842.047.050.050.045.639.835.532.139.9
Precipitation (inches)7.685.435.433.542.261.600.621.082.184.668.417.6350.53
Source for data to create chart: NOAA - National Centers for Environmental Information

Early history

Rocky Prairie and the other local prairies were formed around 17,000 BP (before present) during the Vashon Glaciation. The Vashon Glaciation was the time period in which the Cordilleran Ice Sheet extended south of the present-day US–Canadian border into Western Washington. The Vashon Glaciation was part of the Fraser Glaciation (the ice that had pushed through the Fraser River basin in British Columbia). This occurred during the Wisconsin Glaciation, the time period when ice sheets covered much of Canada and the northern United States. The Wisconsin Glaciation occurred during the last glacial period, a time when the Earth was more glaciated. This was the most recent glaciation of the Pleistocene Ice Age (the current ice age). The Pleistocene Ice Age is part of an even longer ice age called the Late Cenozoic Ice Age, which began 33.9 million BP with the formation of the Antarctic Ice Cap and continues to present day.

During the Vashon Glaciation, the Cordilleran Ice Sheet covered parts of Alaska and Canada. The portion that extended south of the Canadian border is called the Puget Lobe. Rocky Prairie was almost at the edge of where the glacier stopped, and was only under ice for a short period of time.

Pollen data collected from Battleground Lake (a lake about 123abbr=offNaNabbr=offto the southeast of Rocky Prairie) show that from 20,000 - 16,000 BP, annual temperatures in the area were about 6 ± 1 °C (10.8 ± 1.8 °F) colder than in present times (present times as of 1990).[11] Annual precipitation was around 1m (03feet) less,[11] meaning that precipitation was only about 24.5% of what it is in present times (present times as of 1990). At the glacier's edge, the wall of ice was around 200abbr=offNaNabbr=off high.[12]

As the glaciers melted, they left behind sand and gravel. The sand and gravel drains water making the soils dry, particularly in the summer. Many of the plants that grew on these prairies were used as food or medicine by the early inhabitants. With the eventual encroachment of forest, the early inhabitants had to burn the prairies in order to maintain them. The practice went on for millennia, and is still continued today by conservation organizations. In current times, burning is also a way of controlling invasive non-native species.

Recent history

With the arrival of European settlers in the mid-1800s, new immigrants introduced plant species from where they came from so they could feel more at home. Many of these plants reproduced quickly, took over, and began replacing native species. A very problematic species on prairie lands in Thurston County is Cytisus scoparius (Scotch broom). Non-native grasses have also been a problem. Most of the grass on the prairies is non-native.

Thurston County has seen explosive growth since the 1970s, and the trend is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. Between 1970 and 2010, the population density of Thurston County grew from just 41.1 persons/km2 (106.5 persons/mi2) to 134.9 persons/km2 (349.4 persons/mi2). The average rate of growth during those years was 2.3 person/km2 (6.1 persons/mi2) per year, which is 4.3 times the global average on land.

The explosive growth is causing prairie and other natural lands to quickly shrink.

Proposed development

The Port of Tacoma owns a property on West Rocky Prairie that borders on the West Rocky Prairie Unit (the state owned property). The size of the property is 746.56acres.[13]

On July 17, 2006, the Port of Olympia and the Port of Tacoma made an agreement to build a railway logistics center.[14] The next day, the Port of Tacoma purchased the property at Rocky Prairie from Citifor, Inc. for a price of over US$21 million (about $70,000 per hectare or $28,000 per acre).[14] Later that year, local groups got together to block the proposal.[14]

In 2008, there were several meetings with the public in which the Thurston County commissioners and representatives from the ports were present. Many citizens had the opportunity to speak in front of the public and voice their opinion about the proposal. Almost everyone that spoke was opposed to the proposal. On June 30, 2008, the Port of Tacoma and the Port of Olympia dropped the proposal to put in the logistics center.[14]

The Port of Tacoma decided to sell the property.[14] In April 2010, a developer from southern California made a down payment on the property.[14] They formed a company called Maytown Sand and Gravel, LLC.[14] After about a year, the property went back to the Port of Tacoma.[14] The company had defaulted on their loan.[14]

In 2019, the Port of Tacoma is selling the property to NorthPoint Development, LLC, a development company centered in Riverside, Missouri for a price of $24 million (about $79,000 per hectare or $32,000 per acre).[15] The company is trying to get Thurston County to change the zoning of the property to industrial.[16]

The current proposal is to have a logistics center on West Rocky Prairie. There would be six million square feet of warehouses (which is about 56 hectares or 138 acres).[16] There would be a massive increase in truck and freight train traffic,[17] and numerous negative secondary environmental impacts.

References

  1. Web site: Wildlife Areas Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife . wdfw.wa.gov . 5 September 2023.
  2. Web site: Black Hills Audubon Society . West Rocky Prairie 2016 . Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife . 5 September 2023 . 2016.
  3. Web site: West Rocky Prairie . capitollandtrust.org . Capitol Land Trust . 5 September 2023.
  4. Web site: Welcome to Botanary, the Botanical Dictionary. davesgarden.com. 2019-09-06.
  5. Web site: Rocky Prairie Restoration and Native Plant Propagation Project. Davenport. Roberta. cascadiaprairieoak.org. 2019-09-06.
  6. Washington Wildlife & Recreation Coalition - West Rocky Prairie https://wildliferecreation.org/projects/west-rocky-prairie/
  7. Web site: Geocaching - The Official Global GPS Cache Hunt Site . www.geocaching.com . 5 September 2023 . en . 2012.
  8. Web site: Recovery Plan for Castilleja levisecta . Westside Prairie . 5 September 2023 . en . 28 May 2015.
  9. Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Designation of Critical Habitat for Mazama Pocket Gophers . National Archives Federal Register . 9 April 2014 . 19711-19757 . 5 September 2023 . PDF . Docket #: FWS-R1-ES-2013-0021.
  10. Web site: Henderson . Martha L. . Agricultural Spaces and Places Across America . . 5 September 2023 . 19 . 14 April 2005.
  11. Whitlock . Cathy . Vegetational and Climatic History of the Pacific Northwest during the Last 20,000 Years: Implications for Understanding Present-day Biodiversity . The Northwest Environmental Journal . 1992 . 8 . 5 . 18 November 2016 . 11193852.
  12. Porter . Stephen C. . Swanson . Terry W. . 20 April 1998 . Radiocarbon Age Constraints on Rates of Advance and Retreat of the Puget Lobe of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet during the Last Glaciation . . 50 . 3 . 205 . 18 November 2016 . 960783893. 1998QuRes..50..205P . 10.1006/qres.1998.2004 . 10.1.1.588.6032 . 53075285 .
  13. Thurston County Assessor's Office - A+ Parcel Look-Up System https://tcproperty.co.thurston.wa.us/propsql/basic.asp?pn=12602340100
  14. Web site: A History of Efforts to Protect West Rocky Prairie . Friends of Rocky Prairie . 5 September 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190518030529/http://friendsofrockyprairie.org/history.htm . 18 May 2019.
  15. Web site: History . Friends of Rocky Prairie . 5 September 2023.
  16. Web site: South Thurston County Threatened by Huge Industrial Development – Black Hills Audubon Society . 5 September 2023 . 17 April 2019.
  17. Web site: Traffic . Friends of Rocky Prairie . 5 September 2023.