Journal+for+Visit+1

 Free Journal The area that our group has decided to focus on for our semester project is the part of Manoa Stream just outside of Manoa Park. There is a significant amount of plant life in and out of the stream, and there are also several different species of animals that reside in the area. There are trees that grow fruits, and some of the fruits have fallen into the stream and lay there since the current isn't strong enough to push them down. The only animals that live around this area are ducks, fish, tadpoles, and some bugs. Several abiotic factors around this part of the stream would be sunlight, rain, and shade, which are all important needs for a plant if it wants to flourish and grow. Since the stream is very long, each animal will probably have a different niche, and several animals might have similar niches. Every so often, people walking by the stream will stop and throw food into the stream to feed the ducks, which would be a source of food for them. Rain can greatly affect this area, because if it rains too much, then the stream can flood and can end up leaving some of the mammals dying without water after the stream clears up. I think that Manoa Stream will be a good place for our group to study for our semester project because each group member lives fairly close to the stream, so whenever a group member has to take notes, it won't be so difficult to get to the stream since we all live close by. There are a variety of both plants and animals in and out of the stream, which will allow each of us to get plenty of notes on different species. Since there are multiple species of animals, we will be able to observe each animal's niche very carefully, as there is a primary place that we see each set of species living. There are also rocks that lay throughout the stream, which will allow us to view the stream from different perspectives by walking over them to another part of the stream. The impeding factor about this area is that the water that flows through the entire stream contains leptospirosis, so we have to be extra careful when around the stream. If we have any cuts, then we will only be able to observe and take notes from the side.

 Assigned Journal When I went to the stream, I saw plenty of plants growing on each side of the stream. There were plenty of bushes, and daisies also grew around the stream. In some bushes, a certain species of plant and several dasies would exist, but other bushes were the same species of plant. When we touched part of a sleeping plant, the entire plant responded to the touch applied to one leaf. There were some plants that were growing in the stream as well, but relatively grew around the rocks rather than in random areas of the stream. Those plants probably live off and use the water flowing from the stream to grow, while the plants growing on land would probably depend on the rain, since Manoa rains quite often. That allows them to continue growing with ease. Manoa is also a place which provides some sunlight, but an impeding factor of sunlight would be the trees if they got too tall and blocked off the sunlight, which would prevent the plants from growing, since photosynthesis requires both sunlight and water. There is also plenty of land and soil throughout the entire stream and the outside of the stream, which is Manoa Park, so the plants have plenty of room to grow. There were sticks on the ground that fell from the trees, and some tree branches fell down into the stream. None of this impeded the growth of the plants, and this was proved by the fact that there was an exponential growth that occured with the plants when we visited the stream for a second time. Some plants had small berries growing on them, which could be a source of food for the birds that fly around the stream. Tall trees were also growing around the stream, but they were closer to some of the houses in the area. The trees closer to the stream looked to be shorter than the ones that grew a little farther away from the stream. Like the other plants growing on land, the trees would have to rely on the rain to grow. The trees would get a better source of sunlight, since they are higher up than the tinier plants. Overall, the plants take up quite a bit of space around the stream. We could see some of the bushes around the stream before we walked down. All these plants seem to like a lot of space, and if they didn't have that much space, they might not have grown as much and could have died out in that area. The niche of each of these plants would be described as a large, sunny, and rainy place. Plant Pictures