I volunteered for Pika Watch in the Takh-Takh Lava Flow next to Takh-Takh Meadow, so we drove to the meadow and parked in a pullout along FR 2329.
We took the short trail access from the road to the base of the lava flow, encountering several fallen trees across the trail that also damaged the creek crossing for the outlet from Takh-Takh Meadow.
From there, we walked slowly along the trail along the base of the lava flow, looking and listening for pikas and watching for their hay piles. At the end of 4:30 hours, I had data on 12 pika occurrences and we had seen 3 pikas and one marmot.
It was a warm, buggy day and since pikas have an upper thermal limit of about 75-78 degrees, we did not see many about. They were staying cool in their dens in the boulder fields of the lava flow.
We saw a lot more hay piles. Since pikas don't hibernate, they spend the summer harvesting green vegetation and drying it into hay that they can consume during the winter in their dens.
We hiked 2.5 miles.
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