Field Study #3

KEY INFO! ↓

DATE & TIME: Sunday, October 11, 4:58pm - 5:34pm

WEATHER: ↓

- Climate Conditions: Sunny with wind at 5mph.

- Temperature: 69 degrees, feels like 73. 

- Length of Day: 11hrs 15m

OBSERVATIONS: 

I noticed several different things today, but I think the reasons my observations were dramatically different from the previous 2 times is because the water fountain was off. This was the first time I have been to this location with the water fountain not running, therefore it was a different yet cool experience to observe. To begin, when I first arrived I could hear many more creature sounds. I heard lots of birds chirping, wind gusts rustling the plants together, and cars driving by on a nearby road. I had heard these sounds in previous visits, but they have never been as loud or as clear as they were today. The pond was more peaceful and calm, which makes me realize how big of a factor the fountain is to the overall location of the area. Another thing I noticed was that the water had even less algae than before. There was still significant amounts on the left side, but its noticeable that the amount is decreasing. It seems that the amount of algae is shrinking but unfortunately I'm not 100% sure what's causing that. I observed many leaves that have fallen from trees above onto the surface of the water as well. The trees and plants surrounding the pond still seem to be healthy and thriving, however the weeds and smaller plants seem to be dying. Overall I think the biggest observation I received was that when the pond fountain was off it created a more clam and relaxing visit which was a cool experience for me!

- Much more wildlife sounds.

- More peaceful location (no running fountain)

- Calm, still water.

- Healthy large trees surrounding pound

- Algae nearing left side of pond.

- Leaves fallen from trees to pond surface.

- Small plants on water boarder are dying.

As you can see, with the fountain turned off the pond is very calm with minimal movement through the water. You also can see that the water doesn't look very clean. There is a lot of leaves and random debris in the water. Something I am noticing within my "same spot photo" choice is that each photo is starting to looks less vibrant. When you look back at my last 2 field studies, the photos are SO vibrant. The green color in all of the plants is so bright, and the area looks so ALIVE. Now, it's starting to look dead. This project is showing me how much of a factor the seasons are to our wildlife! All of the plants are starting to die, the leaves are starting to fall, and the temperature is dropping. That makes me sad, however I am so grateful to be able to witness the changes in our seasons!