A group of South Wake Conservationists and guests were treated to a wonderful guided walk through the forested bottom-lands of Swift Creek Bluffs Nature Preserve by naturalist Dr. Eric Pauley on Saturday. The weather was perfect, a multitude of spring ephemerals had emerged, displaying their best flowers, and there was a lot to see and learn about in this rare ecological niche nestled between suburban development in Southwest Raleigh. This 26-acre Triangle Land Conservancy nature preserve has north-facing slopes that reach 100 feet over the floodplain and wetland forest along Swift Creek, receiving little direct sunlight and providing a microclimate and ecosystem more characteristic of the mountain region.
The prize observation was a very rare liverwort not typically found outside of the mountains. Liverworts are among the oldest terrestrial plants on Earth, with fossil records dating back over 470 million years!
And did you know that trout lilly seeds possess a fatty, nutrient-dense outer coating which attracts ants that carry the seeds to their underground nests. After eating this, the ants discard the intact seed in their nutrient-rich refuse piles, providing an ideal, protected spot for the seed to germinate, often in early spring. We saw trout lillies everywhere, so the ants must have been very busy!
To add context to the wetland forest ecosystem we explored, Dr. Pauley gave a fascinating overview of how the ecosystems in North America have evolved over the past 18,000 years, reaching back to the ice age. Bottom line – plants and animals move substantially as geologic and climate conditions change!
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