National Park Service

Between 2001 and 2006, 54 plots (14 riparian, 40 prairie) were visited during annual surveys to characterize the breeding bird population at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument. Thirty-nine species occurred in riparian habitat, 43 in prairie habitat. Accounting for species overlap between habitats, 60 different species occurred on the monument. Only nine species breed on the monument annually, however: Common Yellowthroat, Mourning Dove, Marsh Wren, Common Snipe, and Mallard in the riparian zone; Grasshopper Sparrow and Lark Sparrow in the prairie; and Red-winged Blackbird and Western Meadowlark in both habitats. Seven grassland obligates were observed: Dickcissel, Grasshopper Sparrow, Horned Lark, Northern Harrier, Upland Sandpiper, Vesper Sparrow and Western Meadowlark. Partners in Flight, a consortium of bird conservation agencies and interested individuals, lists seven of the species observed as "species of continental importance": Brown Thrasher, Dickcissel, Grasshopper Sparrow, Lark Bunting, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Swainson's Hawk, and White-crowned Sparrow. Four of these species (Grasshopper Sparrow, Lark Bunting, Sharp-tailed Grouse, and Swainson's Hawk), along with Upland Sandpiper, are species of conservation importance for the shortgrass prairie ecotype. The most commonly recorded species on the Monument across habitats was the Redwinged Blackbird. Management decisions aimed at influencing bird populations should center on those species identified as being of local or continental importance. Yet even species common at the site, such as the Red-winged Blackbird, face regional population declines.

A vascular plant inventory was conducted within Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve (EBLA) between 2002 and 2005. Inventory methods included data mining and field surveys. The data mining component consisted of bibliographic searches for reports documenting plant species presence and herbarium searches for specimens collected within EBLA. Field surveys, called "Botany Forays", were conducted by experienced volunteers organized by the University of Washington to find and collect new plant specimens from EBLA. Initially, the reserve had a species list of 182 species, all of which had been verified by observation or field study. During the course of the inventory, data mining located 8 herbarium specimens verifying 7 species. During the four Botany Forays 305 specimens were collected, documenting 221 species. The vascular plant species list at the conclusion of the EBLA inventory included 374 species with 61% verified by voucher specimen and the remaining 39% verified by observation or scientific study.