Works cited

BIG SAGEBRUSH. 2008. Desert USA and Digital West Media inc.. May 26, 2008.
http://www.desertusa.com/mag00/jul/papr/sage.html

Elk Facts. 1999.Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Inc. May 15, 2008.
http://www.rmef.org/AllAboutElk/

Living with Wildlife. Elk. May 15, 2008
http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm/living/elk.htm



R. Lachowsky. Big Sagebrush. May 26,2008
http://www.scsc.k12.ar.us/1999Outwest/members/LachowskyR/lesson_plan.htm

Observation 7

Date:5/27/08
Time: 5:30 pm
Temperature: 55 degrees F
Weather: little cloudy and some sun
Soil: muddy, wet

Today was really wet do to the rain that we had over the weekend. It has started to become much more greener. What i have notice has been that there has not been any deer or elk at my area for a long time. This might be because of all the people that are there walking with there dogs and they might not like it and the get scared and go to a different place. It seems that the las time that they have been there was during the winter when there is know one there. I know that they haven't been there becasue there are no new animal tracks they are all old. So when the snow started to melt the deer and elk left because they could go find food and water some were els, were it is more peaceful and less dangerouse for them. Know that it is summer you can see some paths that people have made through out the years, this affects nature because with the path more people walk through there and scare off the wild life that used to be there.

Flora Report- Big Sagebrush

Big sagebrush can be found from California north to Canada, and east to Nebraska and south to Mexico. The scientific name of the Big sagebrush is Artemisia tridentata. Big Sagebrush blooms in late summer. A mature sagebrush plant may produce up to one million seeds. Sagebrush prefers drier plains, mesas or rocky areas with deep soils. Sagebrush can be found from 4,000 to 10,000 feet in elevation. Big sagebrush can often grow in habitats such as the cold desert shrub or pinyon-juniper woodlands. Sagebrush can also grow in vast tracts. Sagebrush ecosystems have the largest habitat range in the United States, nearly covering 470,000 square miles across eleven western states. Big Sagebrush grows two different kinds of leaves. A large leaf in the spring witch allows the plant to consume in more water and grow faster. The leaves are then dropped during the summer, and a smaller leaf grows in place of the bigger one. The smaller ones are the year-round set so it exposes less area so it evaporates less water and keeps in more water.

Sage brush is a permanent shrub that can grow from two to seven feet in height. A stout trunk, with many side branches that rise upwards. The young stems of the sagebrush are smooth and silvery, but as the plant becomes more mature, the stems become grayer and the bark starts to grow in longer strips. The evergreen leaves are one quarter inch to two inches long, with a wedge-shaped and with three or five lobes at the end. Nonlobed leaves can grow in the early winter. Flowering stems can grow near the ends of the branches and several side branches. Dense clusters of small yellow or cream-colored flowers are born along a main stalk with many side stems. Sagebrush seeds are tiny and black. The sagebrush has different kinds of roots. They put out a shallow set of roots to absorb rainfall faster. The second set, are deeper roots that take out water that seep into the soil as the winter snow melts. The other type of root is the taproot. This root extends downward six feet or more to drink in ground water.

Observation 6

Date:5/22/08
Time: 5:20 pm
Temperature: 45Degrees F
Weather: rainny and cloudy
Soil: wet and muddy

I have notice a big change in my area everything is much more greener and growing. All most all of the trees have leaves on them and the sage brush if getting bigger to. This might because of the rain we have gotten the last few days because in my area there isnt much water there only when it rains. So the rain has helped a lot the plants, flowers, grass, and the trees to grow.In the area there are many abiotic factors, but there is one that stands out the most and is the rock. There is a lot of rocks in the area, there are small cliffs. By having all this the animals can use them to make homes and shelters, like insects, small animals and such.

Observation 5

Date:5/19/08
Time: 6:25 pm
Temperature: 75 Degrees F
Weather: sunny
Soil: dry dirt

In my area the little snow that was there from the winter is gone do to the high temperatures and sunny weekend. There are more flowers and more green grass. A lot of the trees are starting to have leaves and others are starting to bud. Do to the high temperature the soil is dry this is not good for the flowers that are starting to grow because they need water to grow and become nice and green. In the area there was a lot of foot prints of people and dogs this interfiers with nature because the people and the dog scare some of the wildlife that is found there, so they leave. If the weather keeps been this nice there will be more flowers, plants and green grass.

Founa Report- Elk

5/15/08

This animal can be found almost all over North America, the majority of them live in the Northwestern.This animal can be found almost all over North America, the majority of them live in the Northwestern part of the U.S. and can be found in other parts of the world, this animal is the Elk. The scientific name of the Elk is Cervus elaphus. The elk is related to deer, moose and caribou, they are one of the biggest in the family next to the moose and is one of the largest mammals in North America. Most bull elk can weigh from 700 lbs. Up to over 1,000 lbs., they can be as tall as 5’ to 6’ maybe taller. An elk antler can grow up to 5 feet or more and weigh up to 40 lbs.. The color of an elk can vary from a deep copper brown in the winter and a light tan color in the summer, and the neck and legs are usually a darker color. They have two coats the winter coat with is heavy and used to keep warm and is waterproof and a summer coat that is light and short so that they can stay cool. Bull elk loose there antlers in the winter and in the summer they grow back and they have a fury thing all over there antlers so that they can grow and in the summer they shed the velvet because the antlers have fully grown. Their diet consist of grass, forbs, shrubs, tree bark and twigs. Elk have to eat 10 to 15 lbs of vegetation per day. Their main predators are wolves, mountain lions and bears.

An elks habitat has to have food, water, shelter and space in order for an elk survival. Elk live in a many different habitats, from rain forests to alpine meadows and dry desert valleys to hardwood forests. Today, about one million elk live in the western United States, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina, and from Ontario west in Canada. Elk breeding season is in the fall. Bull elk gather cows and calves into a small group called harems. Bulls roll in mud to coat themselves with perfume to attract female elk. They also bugle and rub trees, shrubs and the ground with their antlers to attract cows and intimidate other bulls. Male elk aggressively guard their harems from other male elk. Sometimes, bull elk wage violent battles for a harem, occasionally even fighting to the death.

Observation 4

Date:5/15/08
Time: 5:25 pm
Temperature: 62 Degrees F
Weather: sunny with a light breeze
Soil: dirt and a little muddy

There are more flowers that are starting to grow and there are flowers that are fully grown. More of the snow patches that were there are almost gone. The trees are starting to bud and there is more grass that is growing. There were more birds in the area do to the nice weather that we had today. I started to see more people around my area this has a big inpact with the suffoundings of my area because the people distrub some of the animals that are in the area and some of the plants. Its starting to look greener and nicer with the days that pass by.