National Parks Ecology Survey

There are 58 National Parks in the United States, including those in Alaska and Hawaii. They cover most of the terrestrial ecosystems on the planet and the fresh water aquatic ecosystems as well. There is an amazing diversity of both flora and fauna that is found in them.

Ecology is the study of the interactions of these different species with each other as well as with the environments in which they live. As a Biology teacher, I have really come to appreciate these interactions and the way in which all of us, and I mean all species, are interconnected and in turn, interdependent. I also realize that  there is so much to learn and my knowledge is cursory at best. I aim to improve that. That is the etiology the National Park Ecology section of our blog. Our goal is to travel to “most” of the 58 National Parks that are located in the continental US over the next 12 months, and, to report a “survey” of each parks ecology. I use the term survey since even one park would take 12 months or more to document its ecology and report it out. So, even though there are limitations to this endeavor, it still holds tremendous potential for learning and also for reporting. I’ll do my best to be factual and objective in my reporting but, I’m sure there will be some errors that come through. It could be an alpine plant that is identified incorrectly, or a rock formation, or a species of bird. I welcome corrections as well as additional insights on the parks and the posts. For many of my past students who I implored to “get out of Pequannock” (and then come back) my blog and instagram posts will hopefully show you  that amazing diversity and species interactions I often spoke to you about. And, maybe it will excite you enough to get out yourself, whether for a weekend, a week, a month, or a year, and experience this great diversity and interdependence of living things yourself, just like Laurie, Jackson, and I are about to.

I HAVE FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO SEPARATE MY OBSERVATIONS ON A PARKS ECOLOGY WITH OTHER OBSERVATIONS AND WRITINGS ABOUT THE PARKS THAT I FEEL I WANT TO WRITE ABOUT. MOVING FORWARD, I WILL BE COMBINING ALL OF THE THINGS I HAVE TO SAY IN ONE ESSAY. I REALIZE THAT THIS MAY BE MORE READING THAN ONE WANTS TO DO AT A TIME, AND/OR, THAT THERE WILL BE SOME THINGS YOU HAVE TO READ ABOUT OF WHICH YOU HAVEN’T ANY INTEREST.  I’M SORRY FOR THAT. I HOPE YOU STILL GET TO READ IT ALL AND, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO COMMENT.