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User: | Open Learning Faculty Member:
(03/17/19; 12:00-15:30; 6° Celsius; no precipitation; scattered clouds; light wind from the west)
(03/24/19; 13:00-14:30; 11° Celsius; no precipitation; clear sky; light wind from the west)
(03/31/19; 12:30-14:30; 5° Celsius; light rain; full cloud cover; light wind from the west)
Study Location:
The area I have chosen for my field project is located at the confluence of the Peace and Halfway Rivers in north eastern British Columbia, approximately 46 kilometres (km) southwest of the city of Fort St. John, B.C. (Figure 1A). The field site has a perimeter of 2.33 km, an area of 0.34 km² and an average elevation of approximately 430 metres (m); all topographical measurements were quantified using Google Earth (Figure 1B). An aerial photograph of my field site was provided to me by a friend conducting a flyover survey and was taken on March 31, 2019 (Figure 1C). An unpaved pullout south of the Highway 29 bridge crossing the Halfway River will serve as a staging area and the northern-most boundary of any potential surveys in my field study. The western boundary of the study area extends southwest along the eastern bank of the Halfway River’s main channel, meandering south toward its confluence with the Peace River. The eastern extent of the study area follows southeast from the staging area, extending along the eastern channel of the Halfway River’s boundary with a a riparian area until it connects with the Peace River. These boundaries create a somewhat triangular survey area that includes both the Peace and Halfway Rivers, a floodplain, an historic floodplain and a forested riparian area (Figure 1 B).
Relatively easy access, the confluence of two rivers, diverse substrates and terrain as well as readily apparent gradients of vegetation and evidence of animal life drew me to this study site (Figures 2A – Figure 2D). For example, I observed loose rocky substrates, fines, sand and gravel bars while other substrates remain covered by ice. There is large woody debris distributed across the floodplain and historic floodplain in which a variety of grasses, willows and small poplars dominate, while the riparian vegetation is characterized by large, well entrenched pine and balsam poplar trees. The south bank of the Peace River towers over the Halfway River and the confluence, with an elevation nearing 500 m. The south bank is very steep and is dominated by pine trees with significant erosion occurring, I often observed rock, earth and ice falling to the river below. Over the course of three visits I have directly observed a variety of vertebrates (e.g., Mule Deer, Canada Geese, swans, dabbling ducks, a Bald Eagle, a rabbit, a sharp-tailed grouse), their tracks (e.g., elk, deer, wolf, coyote, rabbit, goose, raven), droppings (e.g., deer and goose) and nests (e.g., Bald Eagle, Bank Swallow) as well as some invertebrates (e.g., spiders, mosquito larvae).
Three questions:
- Outside of the riparian area, several small pine trees have grown in highly localized spots along the east bank of the Halfway River’s main channel. How does vegetation vary across my study area, and what is different about the area in which these pine trees have grown?
- Is there a correlation between river level/discharge and the presence (or signs) of animal species I have observed at the confluence?
- Is there a correlation between river level/discharge and presence of mosquito larvae that I have observed at the confluence?
