Biol 111 (TA: Jonathan) Wednesday's Journal

On the 6th of October 2021, we are asked to make five different observations about fungus and make five identifications about other peoples’ observations. It does come to my attention that the location where I found those fungi share something in common. No matter what the size or the type of fungus is, I found the fact that they usually grow up in a moist, lightless environment. Hence, I believe this is a self-adaption result for the environment because their hyphases are too thin to dry out easily without being in moist, lightless conditions. Fungi mainly absorb water and digest sugars and starches which they use to grow. (Microbe Magic)
Furthermore, I also noticed that a lot of fungi grow on trees and I am curious why would that happen? One reasonable explanation is some fungi act as decomposers in the ecosystem. They are still essential to the growth of forests, sharing nutrients between trees and helping to break down dead wood and release nutrients back into the soil. If a tree has already been weakened, a fungus can move in and feed off the tree's nutrients while the tree is still alive. (Why are mushrooms on trees?)
Fungus is fascinating organisms, it plays roles more than just food, medicine or decomposers. They are different from plants, animals or bacteria but they did have great importance in our life. However, some fungus can somehow be harmful to people such as the disease called athlete’s foot( even though not deadly, still a disease).

Boletus edulis is a basidiomycete fungus, also commonly known as Cep, Porcino or Penny-bun Bolete. Boletus edulis are known to be the most desired species of edible mushrooms. (Nicholas P. Money, Boletus edulis 2016) Majority of them can be found in deciduous and coniferous forests where they tend to form mutualistic and symbiotic relationships with the root systems of very specific trees and shrubs, they do so by encompassing the tree roots by sheaths of fungal tissue. (Boletus edulis bull. - CEP, porcini or Penny Bun Bolete) Boletus edulis gets its name from the French botanist who first described it in 1782, Pierre Bulliard. One of the reasons why it is considered to be one of the safest edible mushrooms is due to the fact that none of its lookalikes are poisonous.

Lab 2 Journal Entry, Bioblitz (Bugs)-Mila Boucher

1) I found that Clover Mites, one of the bugs I observed, have a very unique lifestyle. On the contrary to most bugs, they prefer colder temperature. In fact, these pests tend to come out and feast off grasses, clover and other weedy plants the more the temperature drops outside. However, when it gets to cold (or too hot), they and their eggs are able to go into dormancy to protect themselves from the weather. Their tiny size permits them to go in just about any crack or crevasse they can find to do so.
2) It is important to mention that not all bugs that I found and observed are insects, for example, worms, snails, and spiders. However, all 10 of my observations still do have a common adaptation, which is that they are all invertebrates. An invertebrate, by proper definition, is a cold-blooded animal with no backbone. They can live on land or in water. The ones that I observed, however, were all found on land. All invertebrates evolved long ago (by things such as their tissues and organs and their different nervous/skeletal systems) which brought them to be such important components of food webs and fulfil many ecosystem services.
3) The Phylogeny of a European Earwig:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Infraclass: Neoptera
Superoder: Exopterygota
Order: Dermaptera

During the observation for iNaturalist, I have found many interesting insects and flowers that are either native or foreign species, living in the Royal-Mount ecosystem. There was a unique characteristic of a species that I have observed, which stood out to be an adaptation to the environment. I have discovered a yellow flower that grow along with the hill (which is an inclination). Most of the flowers that I had discovered were growing vertically, rather than horizontally. This specific characteristic might be an adaptation of the Royal-Mount area where people like to sit on the lawn.

One common adaptation which is among all of my observation is the adaptation to attract or pollinate each other. Flowers that I had observed all have scent that are “attractive”. At the same time, the insects that I have observed have wings and dry trunk that are suitable for pollination.

One of my observation is an insect with metallic-colored body and wings. According to One Zoom, the phylogeny placement is from all life category to Archaea and Eukaryotes, Eukaryotes, Animal Fungi and more, Animals, Bilaterally symmetrical animals, Protostomes, Crustaceans and Insects, Mandibulate, Hexapods, Insects, Winged Insects, Modern wing-folding insects, Insects with complete metamorphosis, Beetles, Leaf beetles rove beetles, scarab beetles longhorn beetles snout beetles etc., Long horn beetles, and tortoise beetle.

one unique adaptation for one selected observation:
On the 15th of September 2021, we were asked to go on a naturalist bioblitz where we walked around Mount Royale making different observations, the theme of my group was trees. So I spent time looking for different trees, taking pictures and making observations. One specific tree that caught my eye was the Sugar maple, scientifically known as Acer saccharum. It's roots were large and branched out and were visible from above the ground. Upon further research I found out that that is an adaptation for Sugar Maples, they have adapted their rooting system to be extremely adequate to obtain nutrients and water from the soil. In addition, they have a mutualistic relationship with a specific fungi which allow them to optimize and maximize their water and nutrient intake.

one adaptation that all observations have in common:
A common adaptation that all the observations of my group had was bark, which is an outer covering that protects trees from several external factors like diseases, insects, animals, extreme weather conditions. In addition it has inner spaces for air that act like insulators for the tree allowing them to maitain an optimal temperature.

one phylogeny placement for one selected observation: Sugar Maple

Domain Eukaryota
Kingdom Plantae
Phylum Magnoliophyta
Class Magnoliopsida
Order Sapindales
Family Aceraceae
Genus Acer
Species saccharum