Salmo RNA

Salmo Research Natural Area (RNA) was established to represent mixed interior conifer forests. The RNA is located on a steep, dissected, north-facing slope. The subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa)/Cascades azalea (Rhododendron albiflorum)-fool's huckleberry (Menziesia ferruginea) plant community predominates the upper slope of the RNA. Shrub cover is dense and includes Cascades azalea, fool's huckleberry, Sitka alder (Alnus viridis ssp. sinuata), big huckleberry (Vaccinium membranaceum), Sitka mountain ash (Sorbus sitchensis var. sitchensis), and Cascade mountain ash (Sorbus scopulina var. cascadensis). Mixed forests of western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla), western redcedar (Thuja plicata), western white pine (Pinus monticola), Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), grand fir (Abies grandis), mountain larch (Larix occidentalis), and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) dominate the lower slopes. Western hemlock, lady-fern (Athyrium), and devil's club (Oplopanax horridus) are common along streams and in very moist areas. Fireleaf leptarrhena (Leptarrhena pyrolifolia), bigflower tellima (Tellima grandiflora), fringed grass of Parnassus (Parnassia fimbriata), and brook saxifrage (Saxifraga arguta) are common saxifrages present in the area. Arboreal lichens are abundant in older trees.