Nature

Pacific Silver Fir Abies amabilis May – Oct A shade-loving fir of snowy middle slopes, with smooth gray bark, upright purple cones and needles that are silvery white underneath. Pacific Trillium Trillium ovatum Mar – Aug A spring wildflower of damp woods with three broad leaves and one white, three-petaled flower that turns pink to purple as it… Partridgefoot Luetkea pectinata Jul – Oct A mat-forming high-country plant with finely cut leaves and fluffy spikes of small white flowers where snow lingers late. Pearly Everlasting Anaphalis margaritacea Jul – Oct A woolly white wildflower whose papery, pearl-white flower heads stay fresh-looking for weeks. Common in sunny openings through summer. Pinesap Monotropa hypopitys Jun – Sep A leafless yellow, pink or red wildflower with no chlorophyll that draws its food from fungi linked to forest trees. Pipsissewa Chimaphila umbellata May – Sep A small evergreen of shady conifer forests, with leathery, toothed leaves in whorls and small clusters of rose-pink flowers in summer. Rainbow Trout Oncorhynchus mykiss Jun – Oct Oregon's most widely stocked trout and a native of the rivers draining Mt. Hood. The sea-run form, called steelhead, returns from the… Red-flowering Currant Ribes sanguineum Mar – Jun, Aug A native shrub that hangs out clusters of pink to deep rose flowers very early in spring, visited by bees and hummingbirds. Red-tailed Hawk Buteo jamaicensis Feb – Dec A big, broad-winged hawk often seen soaring over clearings or perched on poles and snags. Adults have a rusty orange-red tail. Rose Spirea Spiraea douglasii Jun – Sep A thicket-forming shrub of wet meadows and lake edges, topped in summer by fuzzy, upright spires of tiny pink flowers. Salal Gaultheria shallon Mar – Nov A leathery-leaved evergreen shrub of west-side forests, with urn-shaped white to pink flowers and dark blue-black fruit eaten by wildlife. Salmonberry Rubus spectabilis Mar – Aug A tall streamside shrub with magenta spring flowers and soft yellow to red berries, often blooming as rufous hummingbirds arrive. Scouler’s Corydalis Corydalis scouleri Apr – Jul A tall, lush wildflower of shady creeks and moist woods, with lacy leaves and spikes of long-spurred pink flowers. Seven-spotted Lady Beetle Coccinella septempunctata Mar – Oct A large red-orange lady beetle with seven black spots and a pale spot on each side of the head, brought from Europe… Sickletop Lousewort Pedicularis racemosa Jul – Sep A mountain forest wildflower with narrow toothed leaves and white to pink flowers shaped like curved beaks. Its roots tap into neighboring… Sitka Mountain-Ash Sorbus sitchensis Jun – Sep A mountain shrub with feathery compound leaves, flat clusters of white flowers in summer and red fruit that feeds birds and bears… Sitka Valerian Valeriana sitchensis Apr – Aug A tall subalpine wildflower with rounded clusters of sweet-scented white to pinkish flowers, common in moist mountain meadows in summer. Snowberry Checkerspot Euphydryas colon Jun – Jul A black butterfly checkered with ivory and red spots, seen in mountain meadows and open woods where its caterpillars feed on snowberry. Snowshoe Hare Lepus americanus May – Dec A forest hare with oversized furry hind feet that turns white in winter in many places and hides in dense young conifers… Solomon’s Plume Maianthemum racemosum Apr – Sep A leafy, arching woodland plant topped in spring by a fluffy plume of tiny cream flowers that turn into speckled, then deep… Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia Year-round A dark, heavily streaked sparrow of brushy streamsides and thickets that sings a bright, varied song for much of the year. Sooty Grouse Dendragapus fuliginosus Apr – Nov A large, dark forest grouse best known for the deep, hooting song males give from high in conifers each spring. Often surprisingly… Spotted Towhee Pipilo maculatus Feb – Dec A big, boldly patterned sparrow with a black hood, red eyes and rusty sides that scratches noisily through leaf litter under shrubs. Spring Orange Peel Fungus Caloscypha fulgens Apr – Jul A bright orange cup fungus that appears in spring as snowbanks melt under conifers. Its cups stain blue-green as they age or…