The LBA Woods are classified as an upland forest. It is the largest intact parcel of upland native forest within the City of Olympia.
Today, the forest is dominated by Douglas-fir, Red Alder, Western Red-cedar and Big-Leaf Maple. The canopy is mostly a single layer with trees of uniform height. The oldest trees, Douglas-firs, are just shy of 100 years old, young for a tree that can live more than 1,000 years. There are a few older legacy trees.
The understory of the woods is lush with native shrubs such as salmonberry, snowberry, osoberry, elderberry, rose, hazel, blackberry, huckleberry, oregon grape, ocean spray, spirea, vine maple, and willow. The forest floor and tree trunks are lush with a myriad species of ferns, herbaceous plants, wildflowers, mosses, lichens, and fungi. Download the list of trees and plants found in the LBA Woods here (PDF).
The LBA Woods provides habitat, food, and nesting opportunities for a great variety of birds, amphibians, and mammals. To date, more than 80 species of birds, including the Pileated Woodpecker (North America’s largest woodpecker), have been documented in the woods by expert local birders. Download the list of bird species found in the LBA Woods here (PDF).
The LBA Woods is also home to small to medium sized mammals such as chipmunks, Douglas squirrels, porcupine, mountain beaver, skunk, weasels, and bats. Large mammals browsing or denning in the woods include coyotes and deer. Smaller creatures such as salamanders, toads, beetles, spiders, and other insects are abundant throughout the woods but not yet well documented.
As the City of Olympia and its Urban Growth Area undergo rapid population growth and development, the LBA Woods has become an increasingly important urban forest refugia for a diverse assemblage of native wildlife species.
