Presque Isle Blog (Journal #9)

The Presque Isle Park is home to many different species that thrive within its rich ecosystem. It is a beautiful are to walk through, but also observe the vast variety of life within it. Within the park there are many examples of symbiotic relationships. 

While I did not get a picture, and could not find one in the public domain, I was able to spot parasitism on a living tree, termites were feeding. The termites were benefiting from the food, and the tree is being harmed.

Commensalism, I found between moss and a tree. In the picture below, you can also see lichen, which is a mutualistic relationship between algea and fungus, but at the base of the tree, there is moss. The moss is benefiting by having a place to live. While the tree is not being harmed, or benefited. 

An example of mutualism can be found between squirrels and trees. The squirrel benefits by getting food, the acorn. The tree benefits from its seed being scattered, and in place to reproduce. 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/suneko/95130114/

An example of interspecific competition can be found nearly everywhere you look in the park. As pictured below, different species of trees are competing with one another for sunlight. The picture shows the smaller oak tree shaded underneath the overbearing pine. 

Intraspecific competition is also prevalent within Presque Isle. Deer compete with one another for food. They also compete for mates.

Photo credit: Sarah Day

Just like all living things, deer have a niche in the Presque Isle ecosystem. Deer live in tall grasses, in order to hide themselves from prey. Deer are herbivores and eat plants, fruits, and nuts. Carnivores, like coyotes prey on deer.


An example of a decomposer is a mushroom! Pictured below are several mushrooms growing on a birch tree. 

Micro-habitats are small areas within a larger vicinity (like Presque Isle Park) that have different characteristics than its surrounding area. A micro-habitat could be found within a long hollowed out fallen tree. This habitat would be home to small mammals like a fox, or a skunk. It would also house insects. Its characteristics would be different from the area around it. It would be dark and damp. A great place for bacteria to thrive. It would receive barely any sunlight, so it may be cooler than the surrounding area. 

The examples that show the biogeochemical cycles at Presque Isle are abundant. The carbon cycle is prevalent in the vast among of plant life in the park. These plants photosynthesize and respire, cycling the carbon in the air. The water cycle can be heard from the roaring waves of Lake Superior that surround the park, or in the dew that forms as droplets in the early morning. The water evaporates, condensates, and precipitates. Also, nitrogen is being passed from decaying trees, and other life into the soil, which enriches it and provides the important chemical for the next user- other plants or animals. This cycle is the nitrogen cycle. Below is a picture of a decaying tree that, as it decomposes into the soil, will pass its nitrogen onward.