My Quote

I would very much like to have my own quote.  It will be cool if anyone ever used it. Being a teacher, this is the quote I have chosen...I googled it and it seems not to be on the internet.  It would be especially ironic if this quote was already taken...but, I've heard there are very few original thoughts (which I am not claiming this is).

"A great mistake human beings make is believing they already know everything they need to know about something.  My goal is to make sure I avoid this grave error."

Feel free to respond with examples  :  )

Some possible examples:
DDT
radioactivity
CT scans (damaging radiation from these)
Canals in the Everglades
Space Shuttles
Kudzu

Landsford Canal, A Whole New World!

Monday, I had the privilege to meet the YTC BIO 102 class at Landsford Canal.  Not surprisingly, we noticed many different species than on recent trips.  One of the students summed it up very well, "This is like a completely new world out here!"  I could not agree more.


Some history of the canal:
The Catawba Riverkeeper:
http://www.catawbariverkeeper.org/about-the-catawba/lansford-canal-where-rocks-and-history-intertwine
Local Newspaper in 1972
http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1821&dat=19720424&id=NkMtAAAAIBAJ&sjid=-J4FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1512,7004880

As we made our way down the nature trail to the observation deck, we saw:

River Cane Angiosperm-monocot

Wild Grapes Angiosperm-dicot

Adventitious roots of vine (probably Poison Ivey) -Angiosperm -dicot (has berries)

White Oak Angiosperm - dicot, with Bryophyte growing near bottom right of picture (gametophyte of  moss)

American Holly - Angiosperm - dicot

Turkey Tail Shelf Fungus - Basidiomycete

Not sure...

Mushroom - Basidiomycete

Dog Hobble - Angiosperm - dicot

American Beech - Angiosperm- dicot

American Beech - Simple leaf

Fern Sporophyte - Brown area is out of focus sori (spore cases)

Poke Salat - Angiosperm - dicot

Slime mold on stump?

Loblolly Pine - Gymnosperm, confer

American Beautyberry - Angiosperm - dicot

Shrooms affect your personality, permanently?

From Dr. Sigmon's blog....there may be a lot more to these basidiomycetes than we realize...
http://jsbiology.wordpress.com/2011/10/06/shrooms-may-be-the-answer/

Ready, Set, Go! To Landsford Canal!

Spider Lilies at Landsford goto Landsford Website

American Beauty Berry

An option for the BIO 102 classes this coming Monday, is to travel to Landsford to discuss fungi, bryophytes, ferns, gymnosperms, and angiosperms.  Ms. James went for a "pre-visit."  Her photos are included, to help you prepare for your visit.

Be sure to bring your journals!!

Asiatic Day Flower

Hedgehog Mushroom

Turkey Tail Shelf Fungi

Rustic Shelf Fungi

 

YTC Leaves in August C Parking Lot

A few weeks ago, just before class, I was amazed at the diversity of trees in the "green space" between C parking lot and the Baxter Hood Center.

Here they are...

C lot #1

C lot #2

C lot #3

C lot #4

C lot #5

C lot #6

C lot #7

River Park, Rock Hill, SC and BIO102

http://www.sctrails.net/trails/MAPS/RiverPark%20map.html

My new BIO 102 students are allowing me to spend more time with them outside...they are listening to lectures outside of class time and we are using class time to do more stuff in lab, outside, and to review.

We recently reviewed Campbell's Biology's Chapter 1, Themes of life Part 1  and Part 2 at River Park, Rock Hill SC.

#RP1

We spent some time on the trails Not only did we see interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment, we also learned the names of some particular species.

#RP1 also

Now, I am going to see what they remember....the first picture, is of a plant we did not ID.  But, I thought I'd give them a little challenge. Here are the ones we did id.  I welcome students to post their guesses below (i.e. I want more followers : )

#RP2

#RP3

#RP4

#RP5

This is the outline of the notes the students should have in their "Journals."
-Eagles In Every Store Camp Continually Every Night
-Emergent Properties, low temp in forest due to all the trees
-Interactions, herbivory, how poison ivey defends against this
-Energy flow, sunlight -> minnows-> Bream -> Great Blue Heron
-Structure Suits Function, large root system in Kudzu, prevents erosion of the soil it needs, it is also a legume, has nodules that provide suitable housing to nitrogen fixing bacteria,
-juniper leaves small to prevent water loss, enables it to be evergreen, broad oak leaves to capture light in the forest shade
-Great Blue Heron eye accommodation to light refraction in water
-Cells
-Continuity of Life
-Evolution


Birds that we saw and/or heard:

RP2

RP1

RP3

RP4

RP5

Where Was the Catawba 14,000 Years Ago?

McColl Property:  Yellow line represents where I understand the Pleistocene Catawba  River Path was.
The Red line represents I-77

Pleistocene Catawba Riverbed

The Master Naturalist group walked along a gravel road towards the Catawba River.  The road sloped up, headed South, perpendicular to the existing river.  We stopped to view the ancient riverbed (yellow line on McColl property map above), some 100 feet above and a quarter mile North of the current path of the river.  We stood there looking at rounded stones, polished smooth by the river's flow during the Pleistocene, greater than 10 Ka, according to USC geologists.

Site on Catawba River for the new York County Nature Museum

Coyote Scat

 As we looked around the ancient riverbed, we noticed blackberry bushes and coyote scat.  Animals had created a trail.  Steve Fields, MYCO Curator of Natural History, told us coyotes and domestic dogs have an anal gland that secretes a fluid used to mark territory.  Perhaps the coyote had marked territory along the trail.  We also noticed bleached white animal hair in the coyote scat.

Anyway, back to the past...the basement rock/bedrock is uplifted granite, felsic (Fe = iron) rock in an uplifted pluton (chamber of cooled, molten rock).  The characteristic red clay is weathered granite.  The red color,  iron oxide (felsic, Fe = iron).

Red eyed vireo

As we moved towards the bluff, and parallel to the electric transmission lines, we heard a Red eyed vireo in the nearby woods http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-eyed_Vireo/id .

Scarlett Tanager

According to Steve, the vireo's call is "Here am I, Where are you?

We then heard a Scarlett Tanager http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Scarlet_Tanager/id

Also in the power line right of way, we saw an Eastern fence lizard http://www.wildherps.com/species/S.undulatus.html

We also saw a Fowler's toad under a discarded board.

Fowler's Toad

Bracken Fern

We made our way down the bluff, to the man-made deck/overlook, about 20 feet above the river.  There, we enjoyed lunch and the excitement of our fortunate observations.  We also got to practice keying out ferns.  The Bracken fern is one we've seen at several of the sites.




While at the overlook, we saw Squaw root and American Hornbeam http://www.duke.edu/~cwcook/trees/caca.html
c

Squaw Root by J. McGill

American Hornbeam 

Something that has always fascinated me, because it is clever, is a fish weir constructed by Native Americans, in the river using rocks.  They placed the rocks at an angle, diverting the fish coming down the river into a narrow opening, making it easy to spear them.

The picture on the right, came from another blog:  http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2008/05/new-nonnewaug-road.html

There were numerous weirs along the Catawba.  Here is one near Lake James.

Tip of Yellow Arrow Marks Tip of Weir

The next picture was taken at the new York County Museum/McColl site on the day of the trip.

Catawba River, McColl Site, Fort Mill, SC
by J. McGill

On the way back up the bluff, we saw a Fiery Searcher beetle, along with Box elder, Slippery elm, May Apples, Adamascar lily, and Crossvine.

May Apple

Adamasco Lily Zephranthes atamasco