March 10, 2019 Willow and Avocet Observations at the Arcata Marsh
Today I went to the Arcata Marsh and observed avocets and willows starting at 11:57am and ending at 1:30pm. The weather was mostly sunny and the temperature was 52 degrees Fahrenheit. I went to the marsh with my partner Chris and several other people. The wind speeds were four miles per hour.
The first place we stopped at was Klopp Lake to see if there were any avocets present. At 12:20 we observed many avocets along the mudbank of Klopp Lake. There were around 40 of them, with about 50-74% with black and white plumage and 0-24% with cinnamon plumage. The tide height based on visual observation seemed medium which seemed to be popular with the outcome of avocets, since this was the highest number of avocets we have observed so far. The weather seemed to play a big factor as well, even with the presence of many humans around.
The second spot we stopped was near Klopp Lake to monitor our willow tree, Mak. We arrived there at 12:47 and the weather was still mostly sunny. We saw lots of new growth and changes happening to our tree. There was a percentage increase of new growth of leaves and breaking buds. We also observed the possibility of flower buds, but we were unsure. The weather seemed to play a huge role in this as well, since the sun was finally coming out it seemed to encourage new growth to Mak.