Field study site introduction
Week 3, 5 update pictures
Field Study Focus Questions
Week 1
1.The area I have selected for my field study has a biome of temperate woodland and shrubland. I have come to this conclusion because in Novato we have hot and dry summers as well as cold and wet winters. My area also has some evergreens and low plants.
2.I see many different relationships between organisms in my area. First is between the mosquitoes and other bugs which feed on the plants. The plants provide food and nutrients in order for the insects to thrive. The net relationship is between the birds and insects. The birds feed on the insects. The last relationship is between the trees and animals. The trees provide shelter and homes for the birds as well as insects such as mosquitoes and dragonflies.
3. The site I have selected has a simple food chain. First the plants grow in the ground which contains animal waste which provides nutrients. Next, the mosquitoes dragonflies and other insects feed on the plants. Lastly the birds feed on the insects as well as seeds from plants and trees. So far I have not found anything that eats the birds.
Week 2
1. My area is interesting because it is largely sculpted and made by man made structures. Theres in a large concrete slab that has partially fallen, resulting in a steep cliff. The concrete has pipes coming out of it and t6he pipe goes all the way down into the water, creating rust.
2. Limiting factors for plants in my area include lack of nutrients in the sandy soil, and lack of room to grow for plants because of the rising creek levels in the winter. Limiting factors for animals include predators, and a steady current that pulls animals in the water downstream.
Week 3
1. Bacteria are important for plants because plants cannot extract the necessary nitrogen from soil, so they form symbiotic relationships with rhizobia that can fix it as ammonia. Bacteria is important for animals because they benefit the plants that the animals eventually eat. Bacteria are important to the soil because they help in nitrification and nitrogen fixating in the soil. They also help break down any organic matter and migrate the nutrients back into the soil.
2. Fungi are found in environments that are slightly acidic. They can grow on substances with very low moisture, and live in soil, on the bodies of larger organisms, in houses, and on plants and animals. Fungi are essential to the recycling of nutrients because they are decomposers of plant debris.
3. I don't think I have any fungi in my area, because my area is mostly water and the bank that isn't water is mostly sandy and has few plants.
Week 4:
1. The invertebrates in my area are mostly mosquitoes and water skeeters. I also have seen two or three crawdads, which are also invertebrates. There are many mosquitos, and not as many water skeeters or crawdads. I researched these invertebrates and didn't find much worth sharing besides that mosquitoes probably live near my area because they reproduce in water. I also have spiders.
2. The spiders’ role in my area is to eat other smaller insects, and limit the growth of populations of other insects. While they do consume a large number of prey, spiders do not damage any plants. Mosquitoes are a quite important part of the ecosystem because they can feed other animals or birds.
3. In my area, mosquitoes can be found all through he air above the water. Water skeeters live on the surface of the water and crawdads live under the log in the creek in my creek. These organisms all live where they do becaause it is where they are best fitted to survive.
Week 5
1&2. Plant 1 is a vascular seedless because it is a fern and has spores instead of seeds. Plant 2 is a dicot because the plant’s veins are going in different directions. Plant 3 is an angiosperm because it is a flower. It is a dicot because it is not a grass or a lily.
Week 6
1. the main difference is there functions. The vascular system is used for food. The ground tissue system is used for photosynthesis, secretion, and storage, the dermal system is used to protect the plants.
2. The essential nutrients needed in soil are Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium, Sulfur, Magnesium, Calcium, Iron, and Boron. They are all important in there own way to make the soil rich.
3. There are three main methods to pollination. The three methods are Wind pollination, Bee pollination, and bird pollination. 1`
4. an adaptation our plants have are that they don't grow on the side of the hills only on flat ground where the better soil is.