Introduction
Parks are made of all different ecosystems and depending on what is living in them and what is affecting them, they can have an unhealthy or healthy environment. If there is algae on a pond, it can kill most of the other organisms and plant life underneath it, or if there is stormwater running off from people’s yards, it could contaminate the area with pesticides or insecticides as well as other natural factors that can be toxic to the environment. The purpose of my experiment is to test the health in Glenmere Park to see what makes a local park healthy and safe for people to be around. If a natural area is filled with toxins, an invasive species, or pollution, then there needs to be a way to determine what a healthy park is and isn’t. Hopefully, I will be able to see if this park is healthy and a good environment for the animals that are living in it
Glenmere park has two large bodies of water. A lake that is the main body which leads out to the pond that leads out into a ditch. I focused mainly on the lake and the pond to see if there were any differences. If there is a difference in these lakes, then there must be a reason for this difference. The lake in Glenmere Park is stormwater storage area for Greely-Loveland Irrigation. Most of the species that live in that lake are either put in by the park management or they come in from upstream. These include carp, bluegill, chad, trout, and other species of fish as well as different algae and plants that live in the lake. Fish vary in what type of water they can live in, as there are warm water, cool water, and cold water fish. If the water goes above a certain temperature, trout, for instance, would be unable to spawn and at some point not even survive. There are also cases where certain fish can outcompete other fish that are considered desirable. In those cases, park management might have to come in and thin out the undesirable species. This happens rarely, however, because most ecosystems can regulate themselves to ensure that one species does not kill the other off. Fish can also survive in a certain pH range, which is from five to nine. If the water is too acidic or alkaline, most fish will be unable to survive. Algae is also a problem as well, as it can destroy most of the pond’s life forms that are living underneath. Algae can do this by blocking oxygen and sunlight from getting to the water, which means that any plants underneath will have no way to photosynthesize and the animals beneath have no oxygen to breathe. Many other animals rely on the water for shelter, safety, and water, but they do not leave nearly as much as an effect on the pond’s environment. The water in this lake comes from a long irrigation system that eventually leads into the Poudre River.
Parks are made of all different ecosystems and depending on what is living in them and what is affecting them, they can have an unhealthy or healthy environment. If there is algae on a pond, it can kill most of the other organisms and plant life underneath it, or if there is stormwater running off from people’s yards, it could contaminate the area with pesticides or insecticides as well as other natural factors that can be toxic to the environment. The purpose of my experiment is to test the health in Glenmere Park to see what makes a local park healthy and safe for people to be around. If a natural area is filled with toxins, an invasive species, or pollution, then there needs to be a way to determine what a healthy park is and isn’t. Hopefully, I will be able to see if this park is healthy and a good environment for the animals that are living in it
Glenmere park has two large bodies of water. A lake that is the main body which leads out to the pond that leads out into a ditch. I focused mainly on the lake and the pond to see if there were any differences. If there is a difference in these lakes, then there must be a reason for this difference. The lake in Glenmere Park is stormwater storage area for Greely-Loveland Irrigation. Most of the species that live in that lake are either put in by the park management or they come in from upstream. These include carp, bluegill, chad, trout, and other species of fish as well as different algae and plants that live in the lake. Fish vary in what type of water they can live in, as there are warm water, cool water, and cold water fish. If the water goes above a certain temperature, trout, for instance, would be unable to spawn and at some point not even survive. There are also cases where certain fish can outcompete other fish that are considered desirable. In those cases, park management might have to come in and thin out the undesirable species. This happens rarely, however, because most ecosystems can regulate themselves to ensure that one species does not kill the other off. Fish can also survive in a certain pH range, which is from five to nine. If the water is too acidic or alkaline, most fish will be unable to survive. Algae is also a problem as well, as it can destroy most of the pond’s life forms that are living underneath. Algae can do this by blocking oxygen and sunlight from getting to the water, which means that any plants underneath will have no way to photosynthesize and the animals beneath have no oxygen to breathe. Many other animals rely on the water for shelter, safety, and water, but they do not leave nearly as much as an effect on the pond’s environment. The water in this lake comes from a long irrigation system that eventually leads into the Poudre River.