California Ecosystems & Habitats 6/17

Question 1

Objectives

Answer 1

1. Experience the Garden’s Californian Area using all
the senses (except taste).

2. Explore a variety of plant communities and habitats.
3. Compare the plant adaptations found in different plant communities (e.g., plant size; leaf size, orientation, shape, color, and texture).

Question 2

Concepts

Answer 2

1. Consult the Core Concepts section of the UCBG Docent Handbook for information on the web of life; photosynthesis; pollination & reproduction;
   adaptation & evolution.
2. “California is a large state with a complex topography and a great diversity of climates and habitats, resulting in a very large assemblage of plant species that vary in size and include both the world’s largest trees and some of the smallest and most unique plant species.”1
3. The differences one observes between plant communities are the result of their adaptations to diverse ecosystems (e.g., desert, forest, and freshwater marsh).

Question 3

Tour Materials

Answer 3

1. 3-D map of California for use during the tour introduction.
2. “Agave” carrier: Contains an Agave spine with attached fibers and a Slinky model of a leaf rosette.
3. “Cactus” carrier: Contains a cross section of a tall (columnar) cactus; cactus “wood” (woody support structure in columnar cacti); and an accordion-fold model of a cactus stem.
4. “Chaparral” carrier: Contains a closed pinecone, jojoba oil, and photographs of plant succession after a fire.
5. “Redwoods” carrier: Contains a tree trunk cross section; cones and seeds of the coast redwood and giant sequoia; water in a spray bottle (to demonstrate fog drip); an illustration of an old-growth redwood forest canopy; and an illustration comparing the sizes of a coast redwood and a giant sequoia with the size of a
   person, blue whale, etc.
6. “Vernal Pool” carrier: Contains photographs of vernal pools and plant species found in vernal pools.

Question 4

Tour Introduction by Lead Docent

Answer 4

1. Use the 3-D map of California to highlight the state’s diverse topography from the Channel Islands to coastal cliffs and beaches, mountain ranges, the Central Valley, deserts, etc. California’s diverse plants range from the world’s tallest trees (coast redwoods), the world’s largest trees (giant sequoias), and the world’s oldest trees (western bristlecone pines) that may live for thousands of years to tiny wildflowers whose life span can be counted in weeks!

Question 5

Major Stops

Answer 5

1. alpine fell-field
2. Channel Islands
3. chaparral
4. coastal beach & dune
5. desert (Deserts of the Americas or California desert)
6. freshwater marsh
7. oak woodlands and pines
8. pond (in Mather Redwood Grove)
9. pygmy forest
10. redwood forest (Mather Redwood Grove or the redwood circle in Asian Area)
11. riparian
12. serpentine
13. vernal pool

Question 6

Suggested Activities & Questions for All Plant Communities

Answer 6

1. As your tour begins, ask students what plants need to survive (e.g., water, light, carbon dioxide, minerals, reasonable temperatures).
2. Observe a plant community and have the students share their first impressions. Notice changes in temperature; exposure to sunlight; moisture levels; plant
   shapes, sizes, and colors; the presence or absence of leaves, hairs, spines, thorns, succulence, or smelly oils. “Is it sunny or shady?…wet or dry? What do you notice about the soil? Do these plants get too much or too little of something they need?”
3. Choose a couple of plants in each plant community to highlight. Look closely, perhaps with a Discovery Scope or a hand lens. “How might this trait/adaptation help this plant survive in its habitat?”
4. Compare a plant community to one the group has already visited. “What is different? What is the same? Why?”
5. Consult California Plant Communities in this outline for additional activities and questions that are specific to each habitat.

Question 7

Terminology

Answer 7

1. adaptation: A trait that makes a plant or animal better able to survive in a particular environment. Plant adaptations include a plant’s shape and height; the color, shape, size, texture, and orientation of its leaves; the ability to store water in its leaves or stems (succulence); and the presence or absence of spines and hairs.
2. ecosystem: Includes living things such as plants and animals and their nonliving environment such as sunlight, weather, minerals in the soil, water, etc.
3. endemic: Exists only in one geographic region.
4. habitat: The immediate surroundings or living space of a species; a habitat includes everything necessary for life in a particular location.
5. plant community: Species of plants interacting in the same habitat, usually with one or more dominant species (e.g., redwood forest, oak woodland…).
6. relict: A remnant of a once widespread species that persists in an isolated area.

Question 8

California Plant Communities

Alpine Fell-field: Mountaintop frigid island…

Answer 8

Climate:
1. A frigid high-altitude desert with extreme temperatures, intense sunlight, and a short growing season (about 8 weeks).

Geology or Soil:
2. Rocky gravel on flat or slightly sloped mountaintop sites.

Question 9

Alpine Fell-field: Mountaintop frigid island…

Plant Adaptations

Answer 9

Plant Adaptations

1. Alpine plants are small in size and low growing. The poor alpine soil and short growing season cannot support large plants. Scant water along with temperature extremes are also limiting factors. The plants grow low to avoid the wind and to capture warmer temperatures near the soil. Because of the harsh environmental conditions, pollinators are more likely to stay low to the ground, too.
2. Although they are small, alpine plants are tough. Most are long-lived perennials (20–50 years) with a deep taproot that stores carbohydrates over the long winter, reaches down for water, and anchors the plant in rocks that reflect heat at night and protect the plant from wind.
3. Alpine plants have gray-green or brownish leaves. The gray-green leaf color reflects intense sunlight and ultraviolet radiation. Some plant leaves contain a red
   pigment called anthocyanin, which absorbs UV rays before they can destroy chlorophyll and the plant’s photosynthetic system. The combination of chlorophyll
   and anthocyanin gives the leaves a brown color.
4. Hairy leaves help to reflect intense sunlight, trap air for insulation, and lift the leaf surface off the soil. Tightly
   packed leaves help to trap warmth and provide shade, and a needlelike shape reduces moisture loss.
5. The soil is so rocky and nutrient poor that droppings from animals (e.g., pikas, jackrabbits, bighorn sheep, ground squirrels, chipmunks, marmots) are useful for
   building up the soil and are an important source of nutrients for alpine plants.
6. Alpine flowers are exceptionally brightly colored to attract pollinators during the short summer.
7. The seeds of alpine plants are dispersed by wind.

Question 10

Suggested Activities & Questions

“What type of plant is missing?” (trees) “Why?”

Answer 10

(Alpine temperatures are too low for plants to make much woody tissue.)

Question 11

“Who has been on a mountaintop above tree line (e.g. Mt Lassen, Mt. Shasta)?

Answer 11

What was that experience like?”