Arches to Rocky NP
Total Miles Hiked: 0 (48.06 overall)
We knew leaving Arches NP and Moab that our destination would be vastly different than our origin. I was more than happy to finally be trading the sand, sun, and rock formations in for the soul refreshing mountains, trees, and streams. Such an eventful day of driving deserves to have its own road trip mix. We've jammed to all of these songs on our drives.
I was a bad invasive species ecologist for the first few stops on our trip. Meridith and I had discussed out travels before leaving and both agreed we wanted to minimize our impact on the parks we visited. One of the major challenges facing many ecosystems on the planet are invasive species. If any of you have been with Meridith's blog for the long haul, you know over her spring break she came and profiled my (and my lab's) work on wetlands in California. If you're just now following her, the short version is this: I study the impacts of invasive species on ecosystem processes, usually applying potential impacts of invasive to food web structure within a certain community. Invasive species are, by definition, any organisms non-native to an area which cause some sort of harm by their presence. Thus, I'm uniquely concerned about my own ability to spread the species I study around the different areas I work. To keep this from happening, because, really, how embarrassing would that be, I take some pretty simple precautions.
So, why do I feel I was bad for the first few stops on our trip? You see, Meridith and I had developed a plan for avoiding spreading seeds, spores, or small critters between parks, but we failed to implement it until we were traveling from Arches NP to Rocky Mountain NP. I justified it because Carlsbad, Zion, and Arches were all pretty similar ecosystems with lots of species overlap. That aside, we didn't follow the plan, and we should have, but now we are, and you can too! I'd like to point out before going on, that this method is really more my opinion and based on conversations I've had with other scientists. I haven't looked up these things in the scientific literature (though I know the literature exists, and I would love it if you sent me some!). However, I think these steps are practical and that they do help, or at least they certainly don't hurt. I would encourage everyone traveling between ecosystems, especially those known to have invasive species, to take similar steps or do their own research on the topic.
A Few Simple Tips to Avoid Being a Vector for Invasion:
- Clean your shoes between locations. Seeds, small mollusks, fungal spores, and lots of other things can cling to the bottom of your shoes, or get stuck in the tread of your boots. If you can, make a bleach solution and soak the soles of your shoes. If you don't have access to bleach (like we don't) give the soles a good scrubbing, then spray them down with 409 and let it sit for a little while (remember this is what the ranger did to our boots at Carlsbad Caverns NP).
- Wash and dry (preferably on high) clothes worn in one area before wearing them in another area. You know how plant parts love to stick to your socks and pants and everywhere while you are hiking in the woods? Plants are clever, but you can outwit them.
- It's the whole "take only pictures, leave only footprints" thing, this is just one more application of this really important advice. This goes a little without saying, but we have heard the Junior Rangers at each park promising to leave the pretty flowers they see so that other can enjoy them (so cute!). Another good reason to not pick flowers, buy seed packs from areas outside your home region, or otherwise transport wild plants or animals is to avoid the spread of invasive species.
Question of the Day:
Will you adapt any of Rachel's tips to help stop the spread of invasive organisms?
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