Saturday, December 4, 2010

Hitchiti Experiment forest

Wild Ginger 
 Grows in shady areas and has a real strong aroma. The ginger plant grows low to the ground. An interesting fact about the ginger plant is that it is pollinated by ants.



Leaf Litter
Are dead leaves, twigs, bark, and pine cones..etc fall to the ground and decompose. It provides nutrients for the environment. It also provides a place for fungus to grow and a place for small animals to live.

Southern Pine Beetle
The southern pine beetle can be found in Southern United states, Mexico and Central America. The southern pine beetle attacks all different types of pines. First evidence that the southern pine beetle has taken over a tree is when the needles become a yellowish color then in a few months they turn brown. The southern pine beetle is the most destructive insect in southern forests.
The area that is circled is where the southern pine beetle has  been present.


Thursday, November 11, 2010

Aquatic Critters

Phytoplankton: Diatom- Diatoms are a type of algae. They are unicellular and are producers in the food chain. Diatoms have an interesting characteristic, they're cell wall is made of silica.


Zooplankton: Jellyfish-Jellyfish are free floating organisms that use tentacles to propel themselves through the water. Jellyfish can be found in bodies of water all around the world.

Aquatic Macrophyte: Water lily-Water lilies live in fresh water in different temperate and tropical climates around the world. Water lilies are rooted in soil and with leaves floating in the water.

Fish:Rainbow trout- You can find the rainbow trout in tributaries of the Pacific ocean, Asia, and North America. Rainbow trout is a very popular to fish for and is also very good to eat.

Crustacean:Lobster- Lobsters are invertibrates with an exoskeleton. Lobsters can size range from 25cm-50cm long and walk very slowly on the sea floor. One interesting fact about the lobster is that when it is attacked it swims backwards.

Mammal:Killer Whale- You can find killer whales all over, from Antartica to tropical areas.  Killer whales are known for their hunting techniques and vocal behaviors. They feed just on fish while others feed on other mammals in the ocean.




Sunday, October 31, 2010

Ecological Niche- Wood Duck

The wood duck is found in north america and I believe it is best looking duck in North America. Wood ducks nest in wetlands such as rivers, swamps, lakes, and flooded timbers. Wood ducks diet consist of insects, small fish, nuts, berries and seeds

Favorite Biome

My favorite biome is the wetlands, which consist of marshes, bogs, and swamps. I think wetlands are very interesting and unique because of the different animals that live there such as reptiles, birds, insects and mammals. oil-spill-marshland-louisiana-061710.jpg

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Mitochondrial Eve

All living humans are descendents of mitochondrial Eve. Mitochondrial eve DNA is passed down from mother to off spring. Mitochondrial Eve is estimated to have lived around 200,000 years ago in East Africa.
mitochondrial Eve


women from africa
woman from india

spanish woman

american family

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Woods Hole Marine Biological Lab

Woods Hole Marine Biological Lab was founded in 1888 and is the oldest independent marine laboratory in America. It is an international research and education center for research, biomedicine and ecology, it is located on the coast of Cape Cod in Woods Hole, Massachusetts.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

The Butterfly Effect

The Butterfly Effect is a term used to describe how tiny actions can affect giant and complex systems such as weather patterns. The butterfly effect was used in the Chaos Theory which stated that the tiny movements of a Butterfly's wings could affect the weather systems and cause changes in the weather.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-butterfly-effect.htm