Today we hiked Mount Tabletop of the Adirondack's. Along our hike, we came across what was left of a hundred year old dam, destroyed by Hurricane Irene. Dams are generally not a good idea for multiple reasons. One, they block movement of fish and other species. Some fish migrate from rivers to oceans, and vis versa, to reproduce. With a dam in the way of their travels this cannot happen. Also, dams block fish and other aquatic species from interacting with one another. This can cause genetic malfunctions because fish will start becoming inbred. Dams are also known to cause floods and block sediment from flowing. A change in water temperature can also be caused by a dam. The water at the top of the dam is easily reached by sunlight, while the water flowing down stream is not as easily reached. Therefore the water at the top of the dam has higher water temperatures and can support more bacteria and phytoplankton. Dams also disrupt the native habitat of an area, especially wetlands.
As we continued our hike, we came across a massive rock with a tree growing out of it.
Tree growing out of rock, similar to what we saw in the Adirondacks.
At this point, we stopped to talk about soil formation. There are five factors to soil formation....
1) Types of soil vary depending on the type of climate. Wind redistributes sand and other particles especially in arid regions, temperature and moisture amounts cause different patterns of weathering and leaching. The timing, amount, intensity and kind of precipitation influences soil formation. The changes in seasonal and daily temperature affects rates of chemical reactions, moisture effectiveness, kinds of vegetation, and biological activity.
2) The topography of an area, which is the physical layout of the land,
affects the temperature and moisture levels of soil. If soils are on steep slopes, facing the sun, they are going to experience warmer temperatures. Steep soils may be eroded and lose their topsoil as they form. This may then cause them to be thinner then soil on a level area. Soils on the bottom portion of the land can be expected to be of darker color.
3) The material in which soil forms is known as parent material. The parent material of soil may be rock that it decomposes from, or material that has been deposited by wind, water, or ice. If formed from a decomposed rocks, these “residual” soils will have the same general chemistry as the original rocks. Most commonly, soils form in materials that have moved in from elsewhere. The character and chemical composition of the parent material plays a crucial role in determining soil properties, especially during the early stages of development.
4) Biological factors, such as plants, animals, micro-organisms, and humans, also play a role in the formation of soil. Leaves that fall from plants to the surface are decompose into the soil with help from certain organisms. The organisms decompose these leaves and mix them with the upper part of the soil. Different types of roots have different effects on soils. Trees and shrubs have large roots that may grow to considerable depths and open pathways in the soil. Grass roots contain many fibers near the soil surface and easily decompose, which adds to organic matter. Taproots are straight tapering roots that grow vertically downward and form a center from which subsidiary rootlets grow and open pathways through dense layers. Micro-organisms in the soil can also affect chemical exchanges between roots and soil. The feces of animals, and also their bodies when they die, are decomposed into the soil. Humans are capable of mixing the soil so extensively that the soil material can again be considered parent material.
5) Lastly, time for all of these factors to interact with one another is a factor. Soil is constantly being blown or washed away. If a flood washes in a new layer of soil, the soil formation process starts over again. Say an area lacks biological activity, then it is going to take a longer amount of time for the soil formation process to complete there. The topography of an area is also constantly changing which delays the soil formation process. Time, for nature to take its course, is necessary for healthy soil to form.
The fact that a tree is capable of growing out of a rock is incredible. They are able to do so because they create their own food through the process of photosynthesis, explained in the diagram below.
(http://soils.usda.gov/education/facts/formation.html)
At this point, we stopped to talk about soil formation. There are five factors to soil formation....
1) Types of soil vary depending on the type of climate. Wind redistributes sand and other particles especially in arid regions, temperature and moisture amounts cause different patterns of weathering and leaching. The timing, amount, intensity and kind of precipitation influences soil formation. The changes in seasonal and daily temperature affects rates of chemical reactions, moisture effectiveness, kinds of vegetation, and biological activity.
2) The topography of an area, which is the physical layout of the land,
affects the temperature and moisture levels of soil. If soils are on steep slopes, facing the sun, they are going to experience warmer temperatures. Steep soils may be eroded and lose their topsoil as they form. This may then cause them to be thinner then soil on a level area. Soils on the bottom portion of the land can be expected to be of darker color.
3) The material in which soil forms is known as parent material. The parent material of soil may be rock that it decomposes from, or material that has been deposited by wind, water, or ice. If formed from a decomposed rocks, these “residual” soils will have the same general chemistry as the original rocks. Most commonly, soils form in materials that have moved in from elsewhere. The character and chemical composition of the parent material plays a crucial role in determining soil properties, especially during the early stages of development.
4) Biological factors, such as plants, animals, micro-organisms, and humans, also play a role in the formation of soil. Leaves that fall from plants to the surface are decompose into the soil with help from certain organisms. The organisms decompose these leaves and mix them with the upper part of the soil. Different types of roots have different effects on soils. Trees and shrubs have large roots that may grow to considerable depths and open pathways in the soil. Grass roots contain many fibers near the soil surface and easily decompose, which adds to organic matter. Taproots are straight tapering roots that grow vertically downward and form a center from which subsidiary rootlets grow and open pathways through dense layers. Micro-organisms in the soil can also affect chemical exchanges between roots and soil. The feces of animals, and also their bodies when they die, are decomposed into the soil. Humans are capable of mixing the soil so extensively that the soil material can again be considered parent material.
5) Lastly, time for all of these factors to interact with one another is a factor. Soil is constantly being blown or washed away. If a flood washes in a new layer of soil, the soil formation process starts over again. Say an area lacks biological activity, then it is going to take a longer amount of time for the soil formation process to complete there. The topography of an area is also constantly changing which delays the soil formation process. Time, for nature to take its course, is necessary for healthy soil to form.
The fact that a tree is capable of growing out of a rock is incredible. They are able to do so because they create their own food through the process of photosynthesis, explained in the diagram below.
The rock that the tree had sprouted from also had lichen on it. When algae and fungus physically intertwine, an entirely new growth called lichen is formed. Lichen is simply strands of algae that are connected with roots and branches of a fungus. The algae portions of lichen contain chlorophyll (similar to the plant pictured above), which makes it able to photosynthesize and feed the fungus aspects of the lichen. The fungal roots in the lichen leech water and minerals from the rock, which in turn feeds to algae. The algae and fungus could not survive independently in this environment, so they work together to survive. Lichen slowly erodes the rock, or other surface, it thrives on. Lichen is referred to as the initial colonizer of the environment. It provides the tree growing out of this rock with a basis for life.
Lichen, similar to what we saw in the Adirondacks.
Our original plan was to hike the tallest mountain in the Adirondack's, Mount Marcy. However, we ended up hiking one of the smaller mountains, Mount Tabletop. The trail on Mount Tabletop was unlike any trail I had hiked before. It was a real trail; narrow, windy, with lots of mud and wetness. Along the hike we saw some cool wildlife such as a leopard frog, a salamander, and even some bear tracks in the mud.
After our hike, we went into the town of Lake Placid. This town seemed very active and alive. People were walking the streets, entering the stores and restaurants. Lake Placid, and the people in it, seemed to have a strong interest in fitness. The 1980 winter Olympics were held in Lake Placid which I think is the root of their interest in fitness. While we were there, a local bike shop was welcoming the contestants of a bike race they had planned for that weekend. Bicycling seemed to be of common interest in Lake Placid, whether that be for transportation or sport. We left Lake Placid and returned to our camp site in the Adirondack's. While hanging around our site, we actually heard coyotes howling in the distance. This was our last night in the Adirondack's, and thankfully, we made it through with no visit from the coyotes.
Citations used in this post:
(http://www.americanrivers.org/newsroom/blog/lbatt-20110906-whats-so-bad-about-dams-anyway.html)
(http://soils.usda.gov/education/facts/formation.html)
(http://www4.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/ritter/geog101/textbook/soil_systems/soil__development_soil_forming_factors.html)
(http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-lichen.htm)
(http://soils.usda.gov/education/facts/formation.html)
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