Oak-Pine Northern Hardwood Forests of the Watershed Center

Pteridophytes or Pteridophyta, in the broad interpretation of the term (or sensu lato), are vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce and disperse via spores. Because they produce neither flowers nor seeds, they are referred to as cryptogams. The group includes ferns, horsetails, clubmosses, spikemosses and quillworts. These do not form a monophyletic group, because ferns and horsetails are more closely related to seed plants than to lycophytes (clubmosses, spikemosses and quillworts). Therefore, pteridophytes... less ↑

Basic Info
• From the orchid family

• It is a wild flower

• Endangered species because they take a long time to grow

Identification
• Plant has only two leaves
• Green and branch out from center of plant
• Single flower stalk grows from the center
• Flower is pink and people think it looks like a slipper – that is why it is named
lady slipper
• Slipper grows about three inches long
• Flower is closed tightly except for a small opening in the front

Niche
• Grow in shady areas under big trees
• Deer and insects feed off a pink lady slipper
• It needs the help of a fungus to reproduce
• Only the bumble bees can push their way inside the slipper because it smells
sweet and they think it is nectar but it is not
• When the bees get inside they realize there is no nectar and they can’t get out
without pushing the stamen and getting covered in pollen and when they leave
they spread the pollen and it makes new flowers less ↑

Identification
The newts start out about 1 inch long, but can get up to 4 inches long as a full grown adult. Red Efts are born an egg in the water, when they hatch they are bright orange with black dots. As they mature they grow lungs and leave the water to live on land. When the Newts become adults they become light green and go back to live in the water where they came from. Red Efts have 4 toes in the front and 5 in the back.

Niche
The Red Eft is a consumer because it eats other organisms such as insects to get its energy. The salamander is an omnivore; it eats plants and meats. Mainly the Red Eft eats insects, grass, and other small wetland animals such as snails or slugs. Because of the toxins in their skin, the Red Eft doesn’t have too many problems with predators. The most threatening predator for the salamander is us, humans.

Sources:
http://www.exploringnature.org/db/detail.php?dbID=43&detID=725
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omnivore less ↑

Cicadas (/sɪˈkɑːdə/ or /sɪˈkeɪdə/), alternatively spelled as Cicala or Cicale, are insects in the order Hemiptera, suborder Auchenorrhyncha (which was formerly included in the now invalid suborder Homoptera). Cicadas are in the superfamily Cicadoidea. Their eyes are prominent, though not especially large, and set wide apart on the anterior lateral corners of the frons. The wings are well-developed, with conspicuous veins; in some species the wing membranes are wholly transparent, whereas in many others the proximal... less ↑

Quercus prinus (syn. Quercus montana), the chestnut oak, is a species of oak in the white oak group, Quercus sect. Quercus. It is native to the eastern United States, where it is one of the most important ridgetop trees from southern Maine southwest to central Mississippi, with an outlying northwestern population in southern Michigan. It is also sometimes called "rock oak" because of montane and other rocky habitats. As a consequence of its dry habitat and... less ↑

Maianthemum canadense (Canadian May-lily, Canada Mayflower, False Lily-of-the-valley, Canadian Lily-of-the-valley, Wild Lily-of-the-valley,Two-leaved Solomonseal; syn. Maianthemum canadense var. interius Fern., Maianthemum canadense var. pubescens Gates & Ehlers, Unifolium canadense (Desf.) Greene ) is a dominant understory perennial flowering plant, native to the sub-boreal conifer forests in Canada and the northern United States, from Yukon and British Columbia east to Newfoundland and south to Nebraska and Pennsylvania, and also in the Appalachian Mountains to northern Georgia. It can... less ↑

Identification:
It grows up to 59 to 89 feet tall, exceptionally up to 115 feet tall. Leaves are usually about 3.5 inches. The red maple is one of the most abundant trees in the country the tree does very well in many types of soil. The red maple lives for about 150 years. A red maple can produce about 12,000 to 91,000 seeds in a single season.

Niche:
A red maple is a producer; it uses the sun for its energy. It also gives energy to other animals who eat seed that the tree drops.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_rubrum less ↑

Taraxacum officinale, the common dandelion (often simply called "dandelion"), is a flowering herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae (Compositae). It can be found growing in temperate regions of the world, in lawns, on roadsides, on disturbed banks and shores of water ways, and other areas with moist soils. T. officinale is considered a weed, especially in lawns and along roadsides, but it is sometimes used as a medical herb and in food preparation. Common dandelion... less ↑

Identification

The Black Bear can be identified by the size and its color. It has black fur, larger ears, no hump on the back of its neck, and it has a straight face. The length of its body is 4-7 feet from nose to tip of tail. Males weigh an average of 150-300 lbs and the females are smaller than the average male. The average lifespan is around 10 years.

Niche
The Black bear is a consumer, because it eats another organism to get its energy. The American Black Bear is omnivorous, eating plants, fruits, insects, honey, salmon, and small animals. Also they occasionally kill young deer and moose. Also the black bears hibernate in the winter months. less ↑

Identification:

White oak trees grow to 50-80 feet tall with an equal spread. They have dark green leaves in the summer which turn showy red in the fall. They have a slow to moderate growth rate. They prefer moist, well-drained soil and full sunlight.

Niche
White Oak trees are producers because they make their own food using sunlight, carbon dioxide and water.

Sources:
http://www.arborday.org/treeguide/treeDetail.cfm?ID=173
ed to be over 450 years old. less ↑

Identification

Vaccinium corymbosum the northern highbush blueberry, is a species of blueberry that is native to eastern North America .Some other common names include tall huckleberry, blue huckleberry, high blueberry,swamp huckleberry, and swamp blueberry. They have dark green waxy leaves and deep blue, berries.

Niche

Highbush Blueberries are producers because they make their own food using sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water. They are an important food source for organisms such as birds, bear, deer… These animals eat their juicy berries.

Other roles in the ecosystem

Highbush Blueberries are found near many wetlands and open forests. The species does not like shade.

sources

http://www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/highbush_blueberry.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaccinium_corymbosum less ↑

Identification

Sciurus carolinensis or the Eastern Grey Squirrel is native to the eastern and midwest of the United States, and eastern Canada. The range of the gray squirrel coincides with that of the Sciurus niger (fox squirrel), they are often confused, although the fox squirrel's nativity is more to the west of the U.S.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_gray_squirrel

Niche

The Eastern grey squirrel is a consumer. We know this because it can not be producer because it does not produce for the other organisms in the ecosystem, and can not be a decomposer because it does not decompose the dead things that need to be decomposed. Grey squirrels are generally herbivores but will scavenge through our garbage for food.

http://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/46017-Sciurus-carolinensis

There is often the Eastern Grey squirrel in the Oak-Pine-Northern hardwood Forest. However we did not see and photograph this species while at the Watershed Center. Though we suspect it is there. That is why we are including it in the field guide for the Watershed Center. less ↑

Identification:
A white-tailed deer has ovalish scat and a heart-shaped track with a 30 in stride.
The whitetail deer has brownish fur. Fawns have brown fur with white spots. A male weighs about 150 pounds and female weighs about 130 pounds.

Niche:
A whitetail deer is a consumer. It eats plants to get its energy.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-tailed_deer less ↑

Identification

The Northern Red Oak is also known as Quercus rubra. The Northern Red Oak is a tall tree. It has large wide branches with a rounding crown. It can grow up to 90 feet tall. Some of the leaves are 5–9 inches long, with 7–11 bristle-tipped lobes. Generally the leaves are very uniform in shape, dull green to blue-green. It has yellow-green slender, hanging catkins, 2 to 4 inches long. Acorns are 3/4 to 1 inch long and nearly round; acorn top is flat and thick resembling a beret; matures in 2 growing seasons, in late summer and fall. The flowers are quite stout and red-brown; terminal buds are multiple, quite large, conical, and covered with red-brown. Young stems are smooth whereas older bark develops wide, flat-topped ridges. The shallow furrows form a pattern resembling ski tracks.

Niche
Northern Red Oak is a producer, because it produces its own food and food for other animals too. The Red Oak does this by taking in the sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide. All different types of animals eat of off this tree such as bears, deer, or squirrels.

Other Roles in the Ecosystem
The Red Oak is a fairly large tree that can give shelter to many animals. Also, animals come to feed of off the tree's flowers and acorns.

http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/northern-red-oak
http://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=38 less ↑

Identification:
The Eastern white pine is the largest pine tree. All pines are evergreen so they are green all year round. The needles grow in groups of five. They can grow up to five inches long.

Niche:
The white pine gets its energy from the sun. It is a producer because it gets its energy from the sun.

Resources:
www.fcps.edu/.../eastern_white_pine.htm
www.na.fs.fed.us/pubs/silvics_manual/Volume_1/pinus/strobus.htm less ↑