gpkadifa's Journal

These 5 different observations cover 5 iconic taxa. The Fox squirrel falls within the mammal taxa. The Flower falls within the plant taxa. The Beetle falls within the insect taxa. The Salamander falls within the Amphibian taxa and finally the Lichen falls within the Fungi taxa. This covers 5 branches of the tree of life.

I revisited the Evergreen area near campus for Homework #8. I had previously visited this area for Homework #3. The Evergreen forest had significantly blossomed from Winter to Spring. There was many more flowers blooming then previously observed and many of them are found in the pictures linked to this journal. The tree foliage remains remarkably similar from Winter to Spring however. This should be expected as the photos were taken in the Evergreen forest and Evergreen means literally ever green. These trees are likely to stay green regardless of the season.

I was successfully able to locate all the plants specified in the treasure hunt, although not always at the act locations these plants were originally observed. The plants had been originally observed in the winter and when they were observed in the spring may of them especially the Claytonia perfoliata were browner and wilting.

Enclosed in the pictures is 10 respective plants requested for this Journal

One of the things that I have most enjoyed about this class is that it gives me the opportunity to explore the Berkeley campus in a way I might not otherwise do. The observations of these flowers definitely illustrate the coming of spring. All the flowers are blossoming indicating a warming of temperature and a coming of spring. In some of these pictures we can see bees pollinating the flowers also a sign of spring. The Sea gull perched on top of the building however tells us nothing about the changing seasons. They hover the Berkeley campus year round picking up garbage regardless of the season. :)

In the first picture there is an example of a symbiotic relationship with tree lichen growing on a tree
In the second there is also an example of a symbiotic relationship with ants and aphids. The ants protect the aphids and the aphids provide the ants with a sweet honeydew.

In the final picture a bumblebee is pollinating flowers
These three species interactions all show various symbiotic relationships between different organisms.

What these observations indicated is the variation in periodic plant cycles for different plants. In mid-February we observe some plants flowering and leaving and others remaining bare and dormant. This simply suggests the phenology of the plant is different even if the plants are in identical climates and identical locations. The periodic plant cycle is not only determined by the plants surroundings but is also a product of a plants innate genetic makeup.