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BIO 120 Laboratory Alt Assignment - Grassy Balds
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YOUR NAME:____________________________

BIO 120 INTRODUCTORY BOTANY - LABORATORY ALTERNATIVE INSTRUCTION ASSIGNMENT. DUE at the beginning of class 1/25/2011.

Take Home Exercise for the Video Expeditions: Grassy Balds in the Heart of Roan.

Please answer the following questions. You may work in small groups, but you must clearly indicate the members of your group at the end of this document. Answers will be graded based on information presented in the video.

  1. What is a bald? (‘your instructor’ will not be counted as a correct answer)
  2. Grasses and _____________ make up most of the plants on a grassy bald.
  3. List the common name of one rare and endangered plant mentioned in the movie.
  4. Why is there tall fescue on many of the grassy balds in North Carolina?
  5. How many endangered plant species are there on the grassy balds in North Carolina? (circle most accurate)
  1. 0-5
  2. 5-10
  3. 10-15
  4. 15+
  1. What role did the last ice age play in plant species distribution from the Roan Highlands of NC to Mt. Washington in New Hampshire?
  2. Explain what the theory of island biogeography has to do with the highlands of Roan Mountain.
  3. How long have the rare high-elevation northern plant species been hanging on in the grassy balds of North Carolina? (circle the best answer)
  1. 1000-5000 years
  2. 8000 - 10000 years
  3. 18,000-20,000 years
  4. over 100,000 years
  1. What is arguably the most famous rare plant found on Roan Mountain? For extra credit: Who discovered and named this species?
  2. What is the prevailing theory on how the grassy balds were created?
  3. Where else is the rare groundsel (Schweiz’s) highlighed in the video found?
  4. How is a heath bald different from a grassy bald?
  5. What are some of the difficult decisions that must be made when managing grassy balds?
  6. How many breeding pairs of Golden Wing Warblers are there believed to be left in North Carolina? What is their preferred habitat? (be specific)
  7. What is one way that native, but invasive, blackberries can be controlled without chemicals?
  8. What drove Bison and Elk from the grassy balds and lead to the need for active human management to keep the rare ecosystems intact?
  9. What did the camouflaged Lark chicks look like that were shown in the video?
  10. What are two of the many organizations mentioned that play a role in protecting the Grassy Balds of North Carolina?
  11. What is the importance of an un-fragmented forest?
  12. Do grazing cattle necessarily damage the grassy balds?

Names of any students you worked with to complete the assignment:

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