- Selah Cliffs Natural Area Preserve (dnr.wa.gov)
Selah Cliffs Natural Area Preserve (NAP) was established in 1993 to protect the largest known population of basalt daisy (Erigeron basalticus), a state-listed threatened species known from only a 10-mile stretch of the Yakima River Canyon. The basalt daisy makes its home on the basalt cliffs of the site where few other plants can grow, rooting into cracks and fissures on the rock faces. The daisies are typically in bloom May through October, with a peak in June. The cliffs, much of which are covered by colorful lichens, also provide nesting and roosting habitat for raptors including prairie falcons (Falco mexicanus), red-tailed hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) and kestrels (Falco sparverius).
- Glacial erratic boulders of Island County, Washington (Wikipedia)
Glacial erratic boulders in Island County are a remnant of the Pleistocene glaciation that created Puget Sound and transformed the surfaces of what are now Island County’s main landmasses: Whidbey Island and Camano Island. South of Deception Pass, the two islands’ surfaces and beaches are completely composed of glacial till. Abundant glacial erratic boulders lie on the islands, their beaches, and under the near-shore waters.