Among the mist of the huge diversity in the riparian area, I found it difficult to differentiate native plants and animals from nonnative plants and animals, simply because of inadequate knowledge on the plant history. Arriving at the Putah Creek reserve site, I was bombarded with hundreds of plants and several animals that I've never encountered in Davis or elsewhere. My exploration of this site began with the endeavor to classify native and nonnative plants. This site was hugely populated by the nonnative grasses from Europe that has taken much of the land in the reserve area. The impact of human modification is obvious for sites of picnic tables, burned logs and storage containers are evident. Dirt trails have also been constructed for visitors so soil erosion and vegetation will not be further damaged. At first site, it seemed that all the species and organisms are harmoniously living in the same environment, but in reality the different organisms are competing to stay alive. The native species must compete with the nonnative species, the most extreme consequence being the distinction of native species due to aggressive competition. .
Small, white cotton balls, flourishing in the sky lead me to the native Fremont Cottonwood. I noticed a great abundance of the cottonwood around Putah Creek. Valley Oaks are also among the many different types of trees around the area. Perched on top of trees and flying are the European Starlings, Black Phoebes and the Yellow-Billed Magpie. Lizards are heard rustling through the grasses in pursuit of catching prey. At the creek, nonnative Tamarisk Bushes dominates the shores, making it difficult for non-native plants to grow. In the waters are small nonnative mosquito fishes used to control mosquito population.
The Speith Reserve is enclosed by a chain linked fence that limits the amount of human interaction. The vegetation in the Speith reserve is more plentiful and compact than the Putah Creek Riparian reserve.
