Sunday, November 18, 2012
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Animal List
Animal List:
- Blue-Bellied Lizard (Sceloporis Occidentalis)- As the name suggests, they have blue bellies and throats and often sunbathe. Abundance: 2 seen
- Blue Jay (Cyanocitta Cristata)- A bird quite commonly seen in Eaton Canyon. Abundance: 1 seen
- Gray Tree Squirrel (Spermophilus Beecheyi)- A common squirrel seen throughout the chaparral Abundance: 1
- Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)- A mammal often as a household pet. Abundance: 1
Plant List
Plant List
- Laurel Sumac (Malosma Laurina)- A small native shrub growing 7 feet tall with taco-like leaves Abundance: 4 seen
- Agave (Agave Americana)- A tall shrub with a fleshy inside like a cactus, branches out immediately from the root. Abundance: 3 seen
- Mule Fat (Baccharis Salicifolia)- A tall shrub eaten by mules by which its name came from. Abundance: Many (30-50 estimated in about 15 square feet)
- Western Sycamore (Platanus Racemosa)- A tall tree growing to about 30-40 feet tall with white bark Abundance: 5 seen
- Coast Live Oak (Quercus Agrifolia)-A tall oak with spiky ovalish leaves and can reach 80 feet high Abundance: 6 seen
- Prickly Pear Cactus (Opuntia Littoralis)- Just a regular cactus with little pink and yellow flowers Abundance: 10-20 seen
- Whipple Yucca (Yucca Whipplei ssp. parishii)- A spiked shrub that is similar to an agave and upside-down palm tree Abundance: 5 seen
- Cliff Aster (Malacothrix Saxatilis)- A tall native perrenial plant with flowers on the end. Abundance: About 100-200
- Poison Oak (Toxicodendron Diversilobum)- A small plant that grows its leaves in clusters of threes and when touched causes extreme irritation to the skin. Abundance: 3 seen
Site Description
Site Description:
Location; 1750 Altadena Dr. Pasadena, CA 91107 (Eaton Canyon Natural Area)
Habitat: Chaparral
Site size: about 20 by 20 meters
The area in which Bradley and I sat at classified to us as a somewhat different area to the chaparral. We were sitting in the shade under lots of oak trees and sat on a twisted, perhaps fallen tree. Just guessing by the whitish bark of the tree, I felt it was a sycamore, but it had peeling bark. The ground was littered with dead, dried leaves. The leaves were the kind of leaves that had a spiky tip. but were small in an oval shape. These leaves were most likely from a coast live oak. So, on the way to our site (about a quarter mile trip), we saw at first lots of prickly pear cacti. The prickly pear cacti were on what seemed like a dried riverbed or more plausible, just an ordinary trail branching out like a river with lots of tributaries. Once it got a little hot, we both went under some shade and noticed some whipple yucas which look like upside-down palm trees. About half-way through, we noticed lots of sycamores which are basically trees with white bark. Finally, when we were about 50 feet from our site, we had to go through a thick amount of cliff aster, a tall perrenial native of the chaparral. Once we got to the site, the only other identifiable plant was poison oak with its red leaves in bunches of three. Along with an abundance of plants, we saw many animals. On the way to our site, we saw no animals. However, when we were there, we heard two different types of birds, but we couldn't identify them. On the way back, we saw some animal tracks, perhaps from a rodent and some dung along with it. A little bit farther up the trail, we saw a small insect that reminds one of a grasshopper. Including that, we saw a gray tree squirrel scurry up a tree Besides that, we saw two blue-bellied lizards doing "push-ups" (a sign to signal off intruders in their territory) in the sun and a rabbit scurry off into the bushes before we got a good look at it. Other animals we saw were two birds seeming to "fight" with each other, but they were probably doing a mating ritual. We could not identify their names. The final animal we saw was a blue jay perching on a tree. Overall, we had a success at Eaton Canyon with the biotics.
Location; 1750 Altadena Dr. Pasadena, CA 91107 (Eaton Canyon Natural Area)
Habitat: Chaparral
Site size: about 20 by 20 meters
The area in which Bradley and I sat at classified to us as a somewhat different area to the chaparral. We were sitting in the shade under lots of oak trees and sat on a twisted, perhaps fallen tree. Just guessing by the whitish bark of the tree, I felt it was a sycamore, but it had peeling bark. The ground was littered with dead, dried leaves. The leaves were the kind of leaves that had a spiky tip. but were small in an oval shape. These leaves were most likely from a coast live oak. So, on the way to our site (about a quarter mile trip), we saw at first lots of prickly pear cacti. The prickly pear cacti were on what seemed like a dried riverbed or more plausible, just an ordinary trail branching out like a river with lots of tributaries. Once it got a little hot, we both went under some shade and noticed some whipple yucas which look like upside-down palm trees. About half-way through, we noticed lots of sycamores which are basically trees with white bark. Finally, when we were about 50 feet from our site, we had to go through a thick amount of cliff aster, a tall perrenial native of the chaparral. Once we got to the site, the only other identifiable plant was poison oak with its red leaves in bunches of three. Along with an abundance of plants, we saw many animals. On the way to our site, we saw no animals. However, when we were there, we heard two different types of birds, but we couldn't identify them. On the way back, we saw some animal tracks, perhaps from a rodent and some dung along with it. A little bit farther up the trail, we saw a small insect that reminds one of a grasshopper. Including that, we saw a gray tree squirrel scurry up a tree Besides that, we saw two blue-bellied lizards doing "push-ups" (a sign to signal off intruders in their territory) in the sun and a rabbit scurry off into the bushes before we got a good look at it. Other animals we saw were two birds seeming to "fight" with each other, but they were probably doing a mating ritual. We could not identify their names. The final animal we saw was a blue jay perching on a tree. Overall, we had a success at Eaton Canyon with the biotics.
Monday, November 5, 2012
Coast Live Oak
 |
| Coast Live Oak Native to Eaton Canyon Have spiky little leaves in ovals Adaptions: Exceptionally Fire Resistant |
Poison Oak
 |
| Poison Oak Area: South Eastern U.S. Have leaves of three Adaptions: Have very dangerous oil on leaf that causes extreme itching. Only 1 Billionth of a gram is needed to start itching |
Observation Log-Horowitz
11:45
-sunny, no clouds, slight breeze
-bird chirping
-rodent running around in leaves
-facing northeast
11:55
-weather is the same
-lizard on a log
-bird chirping
-can hear people in the distance
12:05
-weather the same
-flies in my ears
-crying baby in the distance
12:15
-weather the same
-notice poison oak a few meters from me
-leaf blower in the distance
-I leave the area of oak trees that I was sitting in
-sunny, no clouds, slight breeze
-bird chirping
-rodent running around in leaves
-facing northeast
11:55
-weather is the same
-lizard on a log
-bird chirping
-can hear people in the distance
12:05
-weather the same
-flies in my ears
-crying baby in the distance
12:15
-weather the same
-notice poison oak a few meters from me
-leaf blower in the distance
-I leave the area of oak trees that I was sitting in
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