RiparianRiparian Zone Retreat Zone Retreatand population studiesand population studies

Christopher RobChristopher Rob

Biology II HonorsBiology II Honors

55thth Period Period

1

2

Niche of Assigned OrganismPileated Woodpecker Scientific Name: Dryocopus pileatus

• The pileated woodpecker reside in deciduous forests with many older trees that they use to build homes out of. They build entrances into old rotting trees which are used for easy escape from danger as well as entrance.

• This particular breed of woodpecker lives off of insects that are found under the bark of trees as well as some fruits and nuts that can be found. These consist of Black Carpenter Ants, Patent-leather Beetle, Horned Fungus Beetle, Black Cherry, Wild Grape, Sassafras, American Holly, Greenbrier, Common Elderberry, Eastern Hercules Beetle, and the Dogwood Borer. They also will eat Wood Duck eggs if they are found in a borrowed out tree that has been in a recent living space or excavating.

• They also live in trees such as White Pine or Black Willow that are dieing or dead from either age or disease.

3

Factors which Affect Birth Rate of the Pileated Woodpecker

• The eggs of the Woodpecker hatch between 12 to 14 days of incubation.

• Typically the Pileated Woodpecker lays 4 eggs in the nest per season.

• They breed once a year in the spring and both parents care for the eggs.

• Both parents incubate during the day in alternating turns but at night the male incubates the eggs alone.

• With these change off by the parents it is recorded that the eggs are attended 99% of the time.

4

Factors Which Affect the Death Rate of Assigned Animal

• The Pileated Woodpecker participates in the predator prey-relationship between it and the boring insects and the Sharp-shinned Hawk.

• Mutualism where the woodpecker eats the insects that destroy trees and in the process the tree will later on provide a possible home from the trees remains.

• Its lifetime is relatively 10yrs or more.

• Two common parasite that could affect this bird would be fowl lice and deer ticks which both suck the blood from their host in a parasitism relationship.

• Over population would cause a depletion of the animals and a run out of as a food source leading to its extinction.

5

Food Chain of the Pileated Woodpecker

Goldenrod

Producer

Autotroph

Carpenter Ant

Primary Consumer

Omnivore

Pileated Woodpecker

Secondary Consumer

Omnivore

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Tertiary Consumer

Carnivore

6

Food web of the Pileated Woodpecker

Draw and explain a possible food web for your researched animal. Include description of the trophic level(s) in which each organism is found.

Herbivore

Producer Omnivore

CarnivoreCarnivore

Producer

CarnivoreHerbivoreHerbivore

Omnivore

Producer

7

Population Sampling Techniques

• Possible ways of taking a sampling of a population could be a netting of an area and counting the animal population, tranquilization and tracking of larger animals or through watching and recording different amount of the species in the area.

• The most popular way for people to take a survey of the animals by bird watching and recording the number of birds in a local area

8

Stream Quality Data & AnalysisStream Quality Data & Analysis

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

No. oforganisms

Class IClass IIClass III

• The stream describes a healthy ecosystem that thrives with macro organisms that have intolerable pollution levels exemplify an extremely healthy aquatic stream while a stream with very high levels of pollutant tolerate organisms exemplifies the fact that you have an extremely unhealthy stream quality of life.

• The pollution of a stream or environment would cause a fall in numbers of the prey the Pileated Woodpecker feeds on which in turn would cause starvation and depletion of the species in its natural environment.

• These problems can be exemplified by the number of organisms found in unhealthy stream conditions which endanger life in the ecosystem.

9

Water Testing Data & AnalysisWater Testing Data & Analysis• The ideal Level of Dissolved Oxygen is 12 to

15.• We would typically have decided the

stream would have a low amounts of phosphorous and nitrate levels with a neutral (7) pH level and a very high dissolved oxygen level due to cold temperature and low to no turbidity.

• This leaves the acid mine drainage with relatively similar a mounts of all things except for a low (4.5) pH level, Low Level of Dissolved Oxygen and a higher temperature.

• And lastly the marsh has similar pH, turbidity and higher Level of Dissolved Oxygen and there would e a major increase of nitrates and phosphates in the water and a higher temperature of it being stagnant water.

• The Pileated Woodpecker will be affected with the los of some organisms they eat that depend on the aquatic life of the stream.

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Nitrate

Oxygen

pH Phosphates

StreamMarshMine

10

Soil Testing & AnalysisSoil Testing & Analysis

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

pH Potash

Phosphorus

Nitrogen

Riparian

School Site

• In the soil, the Nitrogen, Phosphorous, Potash and pH all are in part a vital role in significant plant growth in the ecosystem.

• The ideal range of pH is between 6.5 and 7.5.

• High levels of Potash.• Low levels of Phosphorous and Nitrogen for

a livable ecosystem and nearly none when near water sources.

• The ideal a levels of the chemicals in the soil disclose the health factor that may fluctuate being healthier for one area compared to another.

• In cases of differing levels we can have an over abundance of plant water life which directly causes the loss of aquatic organisms due to the loss of dissolved oxygen and the loss of animals indirectly due that they rely on the aquatic macro organisms as food.

11

Positive and Negative Factors

• The increase in chemical compounds and mixtures in the ground will produce many vigorous plant life organisms that support all the animals of the biosphere we inhabit called earth.

• They also enrich the soil to keep a health life and germination of plants so that they can remain a viable species in the spectrum of life

• An increase in Phosphorous and Nitrogen levels in the ground could inadvertently cause the strengthening of the wood in a tree preventing the insects to ore into the or the Pileated woodpecker able to build homes which would cause a loss in shelter and food source that could lead to mass migration or extinction of the species.

12

Conclusion

• The habitat of the Pileated Woodpecker would be only found in dense forests that support its food source of wood eating foods.

•I found it interesting that this species eats out of specific trees and uses other trees for protection and raising young.

•The basis on how the environment effects the life of the organism such as pollution from acid mine drainage.

13

Works Cited

www.birdsamore.com/byb/woodpecker-pileated.htmwww.college.emory.edu/.../site/birds/pilwp.htmlhttp://www.wunderground.com/wximage/viewsingleimage.html?mode=singleimage&handle=NorthLight&number=284http://www.lies.com/wp/2005/04/28/ivory-billed-woodpecker-found-in-arkansas/

14