By Risti Lesperance • Regional Parks Services
We acknowledge our presence on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded tm̓xʷúlaʔxʷ (land) of the syilx/ Okanagan people who have resided here since time immemorial. The Regional Parks system encompasses the area from Peachland to West Kelowna, Kelowna and Lake Country and no matter where you live within the Central Okanagan, you’re within reach of a fantastic park experience!
There are adventures to discover each season in Regional Parks and a chance to learn more about some of the species that call the Okanagan home. Let’s take a look at sntsk‘il’ntən – Black Mountain Regional Park and some of the wild inhabitants you might encounter along the trail!
sntsk‘il’ntən – Black Mountain Regional Park is a vast and varied park. We suggest that you start at the trailhead at Swainson Road, which can be accessed by turning off Highway 33 at Muir Road and then immediately turning onto McKenzie Road and following to Swainson and the parking lot and trailhead for the park. This trailhead has outhouse washroom facilities and a water fountain. From here, you’ll enjoy a moderate hike, gradually ascending the trail into protected grasslands. There are several trail options, and you can enjoy the shorter Ephemeral Pond Trail or hop onto the Hoodoo Trail and over to the Coyote Trail. No matter what path you choose, you’ll be rewarded with undulating views of the grasslands and blue skies, interspersed with glimpses of Okanagan Lake and the city in the distance. Watch for curious coyotes (sənk’l’íp) keeping an eye on the trail and listen for the song of the Meadowlark. sntsk’il’ntən is a nsyilxcən word that means the place where arrowheads/ flint is found. What will you find along the trail?
Where possible, we’ve included the nsyilxcən word for the species names. For pronunciation of many common plant and animal names, please visit the syilx/ Okanagan Partnership page at rdco.com.
In May, the blueish blooms of Silky lupine (q ʷiq ʷiqniɬml’x) start to cover the hillside. Silky lupine is found in grasslands and sagebrush plant communities and in aspen and coniferous forests. The flowers are pea-like, deep blue to lavender in colour with whiteish or yellow markings at the base of the petals. Deemed the favourite food of the marmot (skʷúykʷi), the lupine is an indicator plant- when in bloom it signifies that marmots are fat enough to eat!
Also to watch out for in May are the golden yellow flowers of Arrowleaf balsamroot (smúkʷaʔxn). Sometimes referred to as the Okanagan sunflower, this wildflower gets its name from its large, arrowhead-shaped leaves and the balsam pitch aroma of its woody taproot. Deer and elk commonly graze Arrowleaf balsamroot throughout the year and especially in the spring when the tender plant shoots are first budding up. All parts of the plant are edible raw or cooked. The young leaves can be eaten raw or steamed, the taproots can be roasted or steamed, and the seeds are like small sunflower seeds which can be dried and pounded into a flour. Arrowleaf balsamroot favours dry, sun-exposed slopes which makes sntsk‘il’ntən – Black Mountain Regional Park an ideal location to observe this native wildflower.
While exploring the grassland trails, watch for the Meadowlark (aʕickʷəla), an early spring migratory bird. This robin-sized songbird has a yellow breast with a v-shaped black bib. Meadowlarks inhabit open grasslands without trees encroaching because these provide a perch for predator birds. Meadowlarks feed on insects and seeds and they forage on the ground in the brush, scanning the horizon for danger. These birds are very territorial during the breeding season, using their songs to woo a female, as well as ward off intruders. Females build a hidden nest on the ground often near a bunch of grasses or placed within a depression. With grasses tucked over the top, Meadowlark nests are well camouflaged and nearly impossible to see. Their distinctive, remarkably loud song makes Meadowlarks unmistakable. Males like a post to sit on to sing for a mate and they can have 100 different variations. Meadowlark songs vary with whistles, gurgles and warbling sounds. Meadowlarks are part of the blackbird family, and their song sounds similar to that of the Red-winged blackbird.
Volunteers with the Friends of Black Mountain maintain bird nesting boxes along the bluebird trail with the goal of encouraging both Western and Mountains bluebirds (nqʷʕaymíls) to raise their young in the park. As you follow the Ephemeral Pond trail, you’ll notice the bird boxes installed on some of the fence posts. It’s critically important that these bird boxes not be disturbed, so please do not approach any of the nesting boxes and always keep your dogs on leashes. Bluebirds, like many other species, build their nest inside a cavity. This is usually an old woodpecker hole, but it’s sometimes a rotted hollow branch, a crevice in a building or similar location. Fortunately, bluebirds are happy to accept birdhouses and bluebird populations have increased greatly in the last fifty years, probably helped by nesting boxes. Bluebirds belong to the thrush family, whose members are found throughout much of the world. Another of North America’s well-loved birds, the American robin, is also a thrush. The Mountain bluebird is a little larger than a House sparrow but smaller than an American robin. The back, wings, and tail of the male are a bright azure-blue, and the throat and breast are a lighter blue, which fades to white on the abdomen. On the female, the flight feathers and tail are pale blue, and the head and back are a mixed wash of blue and grey. The throat is brownish ash, blending to white on the lower breast. Western bluebirds are the same bright azure-blue as Mountain bluebirds but are distinguished by a vest of rust-orange extending from their breast to the upper back.
The Great basin spadefoot toad is an interesting species that may call the park home. In Canada, spadefoot toads are only found in British Columbia mainly in the Okanagan Valley, also in the Kettle, Nicola, Thompson and Similkameen Valleys. Adults typically breed in small ponds that may dry up by summer, which makes the park’s Ephemeral Pond ideal habitat for this species. Ephemeral ponds are temporary ponds, fed by spring run-off and drying up by summer. The spring pond water is where the females lay their eggs which hatch in 2 to 3 days. In 6 to 8 weeks, the tadpoles mature and then leave the breeding area. Spadefoot toads require deep, loose soil for burrowing into during daylight hours and during winter hibernation; they will also use rodent burrows or burrow under rocks or logs. Adult spadefoot toads eat ants, grasshoppers, beetles and crickets. They forage at night, especially on rainy nights. “Spades” on their hind feet allow these toads to disappear in minutes by quickly digging into the soil. Spadefoots are one of the few desert adapted amphibians, surviving drought by burying themselves and secreting a protective gelatinous coat. The Great basin spadefoot toad is at risk in British Columbia because of its restricted distribution, its dependence on specialized habitats of temporary pools of water in dry regions, and loss of wetland breeding habitat and grassland foraging habitat to urbanization and intensive agriculture. You’ll notice that the Ephemeral Pond is fenced off, protecting the sensitive spadefoot toad breeding habitat.
You may see elk scat as you explore the trails or maybe even an elk herd passing through the park in the winter months. There are two main herds of elk (snik̓łc̓áʔ) in the Central Okanagan area. One herd is in the Okanagan Mountain Park/ Myra Canyon area while the other, called the Black Mountain herd, ranges from the Joe Rich area all the way up to Oyama, Kalamalka Lake and some even go as far as Falkland. Elk are grazers, they like clearcuts and grasslands that have been opened up through forest fires or habitat restoration works. In the winter, elk are driven down into the Okanagan because of the snowpack in higher elevations. They don’t deal well with deep snow and so they move to lower elevation grazing areas when necessary. They then move higher up and further east in the warmer months. Elk are more commonly found in mountainous areas; they are adaptable and can tolerate sporadic tree cover and the dry Okanagan climate. In recent years, the Black Mountain elk herd has been spotted in the fields near the Kelowna Airport!
Park Interpreters with Regional Parks Services offer guided hikes and public programs at sntsk‘il’ntən – Black Mountain Regional Park year round such as Winter tracks and trails, Moonlight hikes and Wildflower wonderland. To learn more about guided programs at this park or at other Regional Parks in the Central Okanagan, please visit rdco.com/parks.
Risti Lesperance, Certified Interpretive Guide, is an educator and park interpreter who has been leading guided hikes, facilitating school programs, encountering local wildlife, and creating meaningful park experiences for 15 years with Parks Services at the Regional District of Central Okanagan. You can reach her at risti.lesperance@rdco.com.