Blog post 7, Katherine, Isa, Michelle, Shannon
It was an extremely cold and snowy
day last Friday when we did an experiment to identify moss and lichen on a Douglas
Fir. The height of the string around the tree trunk at eye level was 1.5
meters. The circumference of the tree was 1.2 meter. The best direction for
moss is Southwest because on the South of the tree is where it is most damp.
Moss needs water to grow. The best direction for lichen was North because North
got the most light. The bark is uneven and bumpy. The North side got the most
light. Lichen can photosynthesize, so it makes sense that it would be on the
North side. The Southwest side receives the most wind and moisture. A person
could measure the wetness by measuring the humidity. You could also measure
precipitation, for example, the rain or snow. Most of the moss was at the
bottom of the tree. Most of the lichen was at waist level. The lichen was
crustose. It looks like a crust that sticks to the side of the tree.
Hypothesis: Lichen grows mostly on the North side of trees.
Questions:
Katherine: Does lichen grow in a certain pattern and if so,
why?
Isa: Why didn’t we see foliose or fruitcose lichen on this
tree?
Shannon: How does pollution affect lichen and/moss?
Michelle: Do lichen and/or moss prefer certain species of trees?
Hello,
ReplyDeleteMany of the questions that you guys had I am also interested to know about, especially how pollution affects the lichen and moss both in that location and in general. Also many of the things that you concluded from your observations I can agree with.
I really like Shannon's question. I often forget to consider the effects of pollution on flora, and with a complex organism like a lichen, my curiosity is skyrocketing.
ReplyDeleteI like Shannon's question about pollution. I actually just wrote a discussion on water pollutants with PPCPs. Pollution is a very real thing and scientists are finding more and more types of pollution in our ecosystems.
ReplyDeleteYour questions are all very thought provoking! I would also like to know how pollution is affecting lichen. I would also like to know why we see different types of lichen depending on the species of tree!
ReplyDelete