Adventist Adventurer Awards and Answers/Habitat

Habitat
Helping Hand

== Define habitat and select one to study. ==a dwelling place or shelter

Learn about your habitat. Record the day and time you looked at it and what you saw.

A habitat is an environment where an organism lives throughout the year or for shorter periods of time to find a mate. The habitat contains all an animal needs to survive such as food and shelter. A microhabitat is a small area which differs somehow from the surrounding habitat.

There are five different types of habitats found on the earth;

• Forest.
• Desert.
• Polar Regions and Mountains.
• Ocean.
• Freshwater.

Name, photograph or draw a picture of the animals, insects, etc that you see.

Squirrel

Squirrels

Name, photograph or draw a picture of the plants that you see.

Pine tree

Pine trees

Describe your habitat and tell about interesting things that you learned.

Habitat in Georgia

Mountain Region Characteristics:

Blue Ridge mountain range of the Appalachian Mountains • Brasstown Bald- the highest elevation in Georgia • Fresh, cool , flowing streams and rivers • Only plants and animals that can survive colder weather and higher winds are found here. (Deer, wild turkey, black bear, birds (with curved beaks to find/eat seeds and short claws to hold on to branches), bats, salamanders, lizards, snakes, frogs, bobcats, gray foxes, beavers, wood chucks, and trout) • Upper mountain area: • Cool and windy climate at higher elevations (thinner air = less oxygen) • Rocky, thin soil due to weathering and erosion • Grasses and flowers grow better in this area • Lower mountain area: • Warmer neat the bottom of the mountain • Less rocks and deeper, fertile (nutrient rich) soil due to humus • Trees and shrubs (bushes) grow better in this area (Hardwood forest (maple, oak, magnolia, mountain laurel, and hickory)

Piedmont Region Characteristics:

Piedmont means “foothills” • Low, rolling hills and plains • Red clay soil (due to the mineral iron) • Pine trees (soft wood) and hardwood forest (oak and hickory) • Lakes and muddy, slow moving rivers, and waterfalls • Most populated area of Georgia (Atlanta is located in this region.) • Rock outcrops (granite, marble, and quartz) • The southern boundary is made up from the “fall line” (area of waterfalls and rapids) • River otters, opossums, beavers, raccoons, squirrels, deer, birds and birds of prey (owls, hawks, eagles) • Nocturnal animals that hunt for food at night and sleep during the day due to human population • Wild animals are being found where people live because their forests are being cut down • Warm summers and mild winters (very few days of freezing temperatures)

Coastal Plains Region Characteristics:

The largest habitat region in Georgia that was previously below sea level •Richmond Hill and Savannah are located in this region •Georgia’s land that is nearest the ocean •Wide and flat land that is made of a sandy loam soil that is great for agriculture (growing food) •Summers are hot and winters are mild •Wild hogs, rabbits, deer, snakes, squirrels, turtles, alligators, & pocket gopher (near extinction) •Water birds will be found near the coast or near rivers and large lakes/ponds •Live oak and pine trees, Spanish moss, and a large variety of plants Swamp and Marsh

Region Characteristics: The Swamp and Marsh Region are located in the Coastal Plains.

•Summers are hot and winters are mild •There are more alligators in this area than there are people Swamps: •Okefenokee Swamp –”Land of Trembling Earth” (Fresh water swamp) •Still, pure, clean, shallow water even though it appears dirty •Shaded, soft, wet land with a nutrient poor quality of soil (little nutrients) •When plants die, layers of “peat” are built up •Prairies- open area with shallow water and tall grass where most of the animals live •Lakes and islands •Giant tupelo and bald cypress hammocks (clusters of wide based trees), pitcher plant, sundew, and bladderworts (insect eaters) •Alligators, snakes, lizards, turtles and frogs live here- they are able to survive the constantly changing water levels •Black bears, deer, fox, bobcats, and raccoons •Ducks and other birds with long pointed beaks to help spear fish (herons, kingfishers, cranes, and the white ibis) Marshes: •have salty, tidal water (changes levels based on tides) •Cord grass •Estuaries- Breeding area and home for fish, crab, clams, oysters and shrimp (our seafood supply)

Coast and Atlantic Ocean:

Located directly off of the coastal beaches of Georgia •Plants that can tolerate salt and be grown in sand: sea oats , morning glory, cord grass, and cabbage palms •Phytoplankton- important “producers” in this habitat- are the base of the ocean food chain •Saltwater- based habitat that allows fish, seaweed, plankton, sea turtles, and other sea organisms to live. •Summers are hot and winters are mild •Manatees, right whales (endangered species), loggerhead sea turtles, and dolphins •Seagulls (some sea birds can drink seawater by getting rid of the extra salt through their noses) •Home for fish, crab, clams, oysters and shrimp (our seafood supply)

Find verses in the Bible that tell about your habitat.

“And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” (Genesis 2:8-9)

Genesis 1:24 ESV

And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so.

Genesis 1:9-13.

Isaiah 65:17-25; Revelation 22:1-5

On which day did God create your habitat?

Day 3

“Then God said, ‘Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear’; and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:9-10).

On what day did God create the animals?

the fifth day - creatures that live in the sea and creatures that fly were created.

the sixth day - animals that live on the land and finally humans, made in the image of God were created.