Ap Bio Lab Report

When relating the information to a wider variety of topics, even though the information was not conclusive, it came to attention that the preference of habitat or food source in sow bugs has a major effect on the areas in which they live and on the organisms survival. Whether it is because of food and/or environmental related issues the fact that the sow bugs preferred to reside in and/or eat the decaying leaves shows that areas with significant quantities of decaying leaves have a chance of being affected by sow bugs. Because decaying matter is a main food source for sow bugs it could be assumed that if sow bugs resided in an area containing decaying leaves, they would also be ingesting them. This would have an impact on that environment. When the sow bugs eat the

Plants are found everywhere on earth, up high on the ridge and down low in caves and caverns. The types of plants that live in these places depends on many factors. These factors are separated into two different categories, the biotic factors and the abiotic factors. Some of the biotic factors include, predation, competition, and habitat destruction. Plants with limited competition and large amounts of resources will be in a higher abundance than plants with limited resources and higher competition rates will be confined to areas and either out competed or will be the dominant species. Certain plants adapt to these factors and thrive and others don’t do as well. Some of the abiotic factors include, sunlight, water, temperature, and wind. These

Biological Issue. (n.d.). Retrieved March 16, 2014, from http://averillbiology.blogspot.com/2011/01/redwood-trees-devastating-deforestation.html CHAPTER FOUR: ECOLOGICAL EFFECTS: THE TERRESTRIAL ENVIRONMENT. (1998). Environmental Management Handbook, 177-192.

The Maryland ecosystem is being ravaged by several invasive species. These species are introduced into the ecosystem in several ways, with several discoveries of invasive species every year. Whether it be Wavyleaf basketgrass or Purple loosestrife, these plants are capable of outcompeting with native plants and causing devastation to the native ecosystem. These invasive species are damaging to the environment and we should work as a community to halt the spread and limit its impact on the ecosystem of Maryland.

My invasive species that I’m investigating is the American mink it is invasive in England. The American mink came from North America, and got brought to England in 1929 for fur farming.

Biodiversity boots ecosystem productivity where every little species plays an important role in maintaining a healthy community. Maintaining a viable habitat requires lots of efforts, determination and frequency. Invasive plants are a major threat to our natural environment. These invasions change the natural diversity and balance of ecological communities. They threaten the survival of many plants and animals. They are excellent at surviving and reproducing which out-compete the native plants. Understanding these huge consequences let us understand why volunteer activities like this are so helpful and needed. They play a huge part in contributing to our environment in many positive ways. Removing these invasive plants are helping a lot in restoring the habitat and giving native plants greater chance for survival. As time went by, these efforts will slowly help cleaning our atmosphere, providing our environment with fresh air and improve health effects in human (Sagoff,

Second, the reading states that park wildlife was affected as well. In contrast, the professor in the lecture averts that the small plants that grow create ideal

The Asian gypsy moth is an extreme defoliator, however there are other disturbances that it causes to threaten biodiversity by affecting native population dynamics and carbon sequestration and nutrient cycling (Jankovic and Petrovskii, 2013). The gypsy moth is one of many invasive species that has assaulted the deciduous trees found in eastern North America (Vitousek et al., 1996). The gypsy moth has a wide plant host range, which can be abundantly found in the American forests (Vitousek et al., 1996). Certain species such as beech, dogwood, and super maple trees are on a severe decline while the American elm and beech trees have been almost completely eliminated from the eastern forests by the gypsy moth (Vitousek et al., 1996). Defoliation

In California today, there are a lot of plants and animals populating the region. The Environmental Protection Agency states “French broom (Genista monspessulana) is an invasive shrub from Europe now abundant in California”(EPA). Though French broom does not sound imposing, the problems it has caused are copious. If French broom is not stopped at an early stage, it can grow rapidly and have drastic effects. Today, the effects are becoming more and more unmanageable because it is deleterious to the environment and other species. All of these reasons can make the issue of French broom quite a pressing one, especially now more than ever.

Earth is home to many diverse and mysterious species. These species thrive within their own ecosystem by adapting to their living habitats and food source. Though when human actions introduce new species to a foreign area where that species never lived before, this is called an exotic species (Phelan, 2013, p.640). Some of these exotic species normally do not cause a threat to the ecosystem to which it is introduced, however some do and these are called invasive species. Invasive species tend to have no predators therefore they can multiply at vastly large numbers and outcompete the native species’ food source and living space. Furthermore these native species have no prior mechanisms to defend themselves from the new invasive species therefore they can fall prey to these new invaders (Phelan, 2013, p.640).

Influence on ecosystems range from human causes like the bulldozing of a forest to natural causes like a fire or a flood.  In recent times, the introduction and spread of invasive species has transformed native communities rapidly and, in some cases, created irreversible damages.  In the Earth’s history, changes have often occurred in the ecosystems.  For example, glaciers and the retreat of glaciers cause wide-spread changes.  However, although change is a constant in ecosystems, animals and habitats often cannot adapt to the rapid alterations of non-natural stresses.  Harm to the environment from the introduction of invasive species occurs through changes in the habitat and declines in the native species.  Invasive species

To test our hypothesis of whether we were correct or not, we came up with a specific experimental procedures. Our group’s experimental procedures included six major steps. First, we evenly distributed clusters of Duckweed into cups, which should be an average of about 20 duckweed fronds. We then got 6 plastic picnic cups and filled them with pond water (50 mL of pond water each) and the duckweed fonds. After that, using graduated cylinders, we added the mixture of Low Nitrate 88 ppm and Low Phosphate 10ppm solution into three of the cups (25 mL added to the 50 mL). We didn't have to cover the cups with clear plastic wrap, seal each with a rubber band, and poke holes in the plastic wrap for air to enter because we chose to have natural light and air flow. We then labeled each cup with a marker with our group table number, and which cups had the solution (experiment) and which had just pond water (control). The final step was to let them sit for one week in natural sunlight and record the results after 7 days. The materials used by our group included, Low Nitrate 88 ppm and Low Phosphate 10ppm solution, duckweed fonds, graduated cylinder, six plastic picnic cups, and a permanent marker. Our group’s experimental design included the treatment, control, independent and dependent variables, and the results. The

The biodiversity effects of non-native invasive species have been described as “immense, insidious and usually irreversible” (Veitch and Clout, 2002). There is significant evidence proving that invasive species can cause severe economic, environmental and ecological damage (Mack et al., 2000). A lot of time and research has been devoted to dividing the world into regions with distinctive habitats and species. Numerous pathways, mostly anthropogenic, are breaking down these realms and facilitating the ecological and biological invasion of non-native species.

Our lab investigated the morphological characteristics of leaves found in the sun and shade on various species of maple and oak trees around campus. Our null hypothesis was Acer and Quercus acclimate similarly with regards to SLW (specific leaf weight), size, and sinuosity. Our hypothesis was Quercus acclimation is greater than Acer SLW, size, and sinuosity. We tested these hypotheses by picking small sections of a branches from both maple and oak trees. A group was assigned either a maple or an oak tree, and needed a total of three different trees per group. Once three different trees were chosen, groups needed three shade leaves and three sun leaves of off each different tree. In total, each group should then end up with 18 leaves for testing. After collecting the leaves, we ran them through the LiCor 3100 leaf area meter to identify the area of each leaf. Major results found by the classes’ mutual data was each one of our p-values were greater than .05. This means that we failed to reject the null hypothesis. Thus, the lab results do not support our hypothesis that Quercus acclimation is greater than Acer SLW, size, and sinuosity.

Biogeochemical cycles are important to the sustainability of all life. Chemical elements necessary for the growth and reproduction of all organisms have a limited quantity on earth at any one time, other than the occasional meteor that brings with it new matter. It is therefore important that the recycling of these chemical elements is efficient. Autotrophs are the basis of almost all ecosystems. The rate that autotrophs produce and transfer energy is vital to the capacity of organisms that can inhabit these ecosystems. To understand the rates in which certain species’ leaves decay and release the energy stored within them can demonstrate how quickly the energy becomes available to organisms in higher trophic levels.