In this experiment, students went into the nature preserve, on the University of the Ozarks campus, to determine the amount of tree species diversity that the preserve had to offer. To calculate the diversity of a species, one should use the Shannon Diversity Index. Through use of the Shannon Diversity Index, students are able to calculate an areas diversity (plants, people, etc.) by considering the relative abundance and species richness of multiple trials in an area.
The nature preserve is a temperate broadleaf forest, which is typically a diverse area. This terrestrial biome is found mainly at midlatitudes in the Northern Hemisphere. Temperate Broadleaf forests happen to have a distinct set of vertical layers, including a closed canopy,
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It tolerates shade and is frequently found growing with or under oaks and pines” ( ). This information is helpful to understand why the forest is so diverse. Another tree found in the forest was the Cedar tree. “Occurs on glades and bluffs; in open, rocky woods, pastures and old fields; and along roadsides and fencerows. Some gnarled cedars on Ozark bluffs are over 1,000 years old. This species invades glades and prairies that are not burned periodically, damaging prairie plants’ ability to survive, and ultimately turning a grassland into a forest; prescribed burning and cutting of woody plants like cedars helps prairies and glades to survive” ( ). This information is a way of viewing this tree amongst the others. Also found in the preserve were Dogwood trees. “Grows on wooded, north-facing slopes and along wooded banks of streams. A popular ornamental for its fleshy fruits, which attract birds, and for the yellow to red fall foliage. In cultivation, it prefers naturalized plantings in partial shade. These are found naturally in central and northeast Missouri, and south through the central Ozarks” ( ). The next tree studied was the Elm tree. These trees were one of the most popular trees in this nature preserve as well, and “elm is a large tree widely known for its vase-like shape and rounded, multi-branched crown atop a thick, powerful trunk. It usually grows from 60 to 80 feet tall with a crown two-thirds as great” ( ). This information is important because this is vital information for studying the broad temperate forest. Another tree found was the Sweet Gum tree. Some information found about
Shortleaf pine tends to grow rather slowly in the early stages of its life when compared to its closest competitor, loblolly pine. Therefore it cannot compete for the best sites under natural regeneration, but, because of it's tolerance of a wide range of site conditions, shortleaf pine is found naturally in areas where loblolly pine will not grow effectively. It is for this reason that shortleaf pine was chosen for this site instead of loblolly. When planted artificially, it was found that after the first few years of development, shortleaf pine will match loblolly in height growth on the better sites and will surpass loblolly on the poorer sites (Harrington, 1987). Because of this, shortleaf pine is the most commonly regenerated pine in the northern and western parts of its range where the site conditions are not as ideal as in the southern part of its range.
Poulson, T. L., & Platt, W. J. (1996). Replacement patterns of beech and sugar maple in Warren Woods, Michigan. Ecology, 1234-1253.
These are very difficult questions for me personally to answer because I live in the Pacific Northwest, and I have seen the beauty of the old growth forests first-hand.
The area extends into Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. “The terrain is rolling with lower, wetter bottomlands that grow hardwood trees such as elm, mesquite and ash. This region is home to a variety of plants and animals that like woodlands and shorelines.” (Texas Parks and wildlife, n.d.) The major rivers in this area are the Sabine, Cypress, Sulpher, and Red. The major aquifer is the Carrizo-Wilcox. And the land area of the Pineywoods is 23,500 square miles. “Regional average rainfall for the area is 40-52 in./yr. and the reagional average net evaporation rate is 16-32 inches.” (Texas Parks and wildlife, n.d.) “The average temperature in the Pineywood’s region can range beteween 36(F) in the winter to upwards of 94(F0 in the summer.” (unknown,
The purpose of this lab was to discover how diverse the parking lot at Bunker Hill High School could be, by finding out the Shannon Wiener biodiversity index of the parking lot. The parking lot was used because it does not have much immigration and emigration of the cars. Using an actual ecosystem in the wild would be hard to control, what is immigrating and emigrating out of the experiment. The experiment shows how diverse the cars were, and this can show how diverse an actual ecosystem was during that time of the experiment. This then tells that diversity does matters because if everyone had the same kind of car, then no one would be different. However, if the students, faculty, and guests had a variety of cars in the parking lot, which made the experiment more diverse in the parking lot or the community of cars.
The American chestnut was not only an important food source for almost all living organisms of the Eastern, North America, but it was very important in providing housing and furniture and numerous other wooden necessities. The tree possessed rot resistant properties and strait grained wood which were valuable in buildings and many other applications. Its enormous trunk rose one-hundred feet into the canopy of the forest. Diameters of five feet have been recorded and many photos of the tree show greater trunk girths. The tree was able to produce its eatable fruit within seven years of germination. It was said to be truly treasured by early Americans.
Many old-growth forests across the landscape of northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan contain a mixture of tree species rather than a monoculture. Many researchers have put forward ideas to explain the competition and co-existence of tree species in such communities. A theory explaining competition and co-existence between two species is gap regeneration. Gap regeneration is when a gap is created upon death of a plant individual and a new individual, sometimes of the same species as died and sometimes not dependent on environmental heterogeneity, takes its place (Kenneth Lertzman). Canopy gaps during gap regeneration can be explained by either reciprocal replacement or habitat preference . In a reciprocal replacement, seedlings of one species would be found predominately under large trees ...
Another biome in the park is their temperate forest. Temperate forests have high humidity, high levels of precipitation, and variety of trees are also included. Freshwater biomes surround the park as well.
Landscape fragmentation contributes to loss of migratory corridors, loss of connectivity and natural communities, which all lead to a loss of biodiversity for a region. Conservation of biodiversity must include all levels of diversity: genetic, species, community, and landscape (CNHP 1995). Each complex level is dependent upon and linked to the other levels. In addition, humans are linked to all levels of this hierarchy. A healthy natural and human environment go hand in hand (CNHP 1995). An important step in conservation planning, in order to guarantee both a healthy natural environment as well as a healthy human environment, is recognizing the most endangered elements.
“Commitment to diversity is at best a distraction and at worst an essentially reactionary position that prevents us from putting equality at the center of the national agenda,” ()according to Walter Benn Michaels, in his 2004 essay, “The Trouble with Diversity.” Upon hearing the word 'diversity,' members of society may immediately think of race. and political correctness urges society to support racial diversity. According to many, celebrating diversity is the best way to combat societal inequality. This is because people are convinced that the differences that divide society are the results of racial prejudices. Michaels, however, feels that the biggest problem in America is not that of sexism or racism, but instead the increasing gap between the rich and the poor. So if the problem is actually in the economy... The fact that people re-describe economic inequality as racial inequality is counterproductive to equality because people are simply trying to solve a different problem. But how did the notion that what separates us is race even start?
Most of the trees have straight trunks with thin smooth bark with branches that don’t branch out until around 100feet
There have always been many different trees are found in the forest. Tall ones, round of leaf and with broad branches spread open in welcome. Short ones are found here as well, with thin trunks and wiry limbs they sway in the breeze. A wide variety of foliage in the emerald grove dancing merrily to the whispers of the wind. In this quiet thicket, a different type of tree grows, too. They stand resolute, patient, and ever growing.
The Yasuni National Park possesses very diverse rainforest which significantly impact how the ecosystem functions; yet the the processes of disturbance and succession greatly affect them ("Yasuni National Park, Ecuador", "Ecuador Yasuni ITT Trust Fund" ). Just one hectare of the park contains more species of trees and bushes than all of North America ("Foreseeable Impacts of Oil Industry Activity in Yasuní")! There are a staggering 1762 species of trees and shrubs that have been identified in Yasuni, and approximately 400 of them are inherent to the region (“Foreseeable”). Hundreds of the plants in the previously untouchable zones have not even been classified or studied in depth (“Foreseeable”). The park is also paradise to a multitude of animal...
This dense and luxuriant rainforest has the greatest diversity than any other in Australia and many in the world. The Daintree is also the home of rare and threatened extinct plant and animal species. The importance of this ecosystem is the very high. This ecosystem contributes to the overall health of this plant in many ways. Diversity contributes to the breakdown of pollution and helps to control the climate to name a few.
The United Nations designated 2011-2020 as the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity. In biodiversity, each species, no matter how big or small has an important role to play in ecosystem. Various plant and animal species depend on each other what each offers and these diverse species ensures natural sustainability for all life forms. A healthy and solid biodiversity can recover itself from variety of disasters. It is estimated that the current species extinction rate is between 1,000 and 10,000