# Presentation: 785251

## Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument

- Effects that might have influenced climate change at Florissant.

- A slide show for the “Project P.I.C.K” curriculum, Unit 2.

## Exploring Modern Ecosystems

- Climate, soil, and geologic features can be considered a single interacting unit called a ecosystem, even this small sheltered space in a rock.

**Is this an ecosystem?**

## These region are called biomes.  Some of these areas would be prairies, tropical rainforests, and deserts.

## Abiotic or non-living factors are important to biotic or living species.  Some abiotic factors are elevation, nutrients, rainfall, rocks, slope, aspect to the sun, soil, temperature, and wind.

- Abiotic Factors

## Some abiotic influences might be altitude, clouds, rocks, and soil.

- This area might be high above timberline in the mountains of Colorado.

## Garden of the Gods is a city park near the base of Pikes Peak.  From here we can see four of the five life zones (ecosystems) of Colorado’s Front Range ecology; foothills, montane, sub-alpine, and alpine.<number>

- Garden of the Gods is a city park near the base of Pikes Peak.  From here we can see four of the five life zones (ecosystems) of Colorado’s Front Range ecology; foothills, montane, sub-alpine, and alpine.

## The plains are the fifth life zone found on the front range in Colorado.

## Slide 8

## Slide 9

## Slide 10

## Slide 11

## Plains

- Foothills

- Montane

- Sub alpine

- Alpine

## As elevation changes, life zones and climates change.

## Climate all over the world.

**Climate all over the world.**

## The earth’s outer crust is in motion, this is call Plate Tectonics.  

- The earth’s outer crust is in motion, this is call Plate Tectonics.

## The continental plates shift and what was once close to the equator now moves north or south away from the equator.

## Notice how far North American has moved and changed over 100 million years.

## Our proximity to the sun can affect the climate change.

## The tilt of the Earth’s axis can affect climate change.  The more moderate the fluxuation in season temperatures the more moderate the climate.

## The poximity of the Earth to the Sun at the time of the equinox shifts every several thousand years.  This can also affect the climate.

## What are some observation about the plant list?

- What are the characteristics of a Subtropical Climate? Warm Temperate? Cool Temperate?
- 3. 	What would you infer about the past climate at Florissant based on the plants you circled?

- Answer the following questions on your work sheets:

## You have just completed an exercises showing how scientists use the 

-           “Foristic Method”

## Climatic environments of modern plant genera.

**Climatic environments of modern plant genera.**

_**Subtropical**_
*Dryopteris*
*Sequoia*
*Salix*
*Sapindus*
*Vauquelinia*
*Zizyphus*
*Cardiospermum*
*Rhus*
*Typha*

**Climatic environments of modern plant genera**.

_**Warm Temperate**_
*Pinus    Rosa         Sequoia*
*Crataegus                     Carya*
*Fagopsis          Acer*
*Cercocarpus*
*Chamaecyparis*
*Cedrelospermum*
*Paracarpinus*
*Ulmus           Cardiospermum*
*Rhus          Salix*
*Sapindus*
*Bursera*
*Quercus*
*Typha*
*Ulmus*

_**Cool Temperate**_
*Pinus*
*Cercocarpus*
*Populus*
*Chamaecyparis*
*Acer*
*Salix*
*Rosa*

- Floristic Method

## Describing different climate all over the world.

**Describing different climate all over the world.**

## Tropical

- -Close to the equator, low elevation.
- -Coldest month above 18 degrees C
- -annual mean temperature, 27 degrees C
- -Average annual rainfall 100 and 200cm

**Philippines**

## Subtropical

- -Coldest month above 6 degrees C and below 18 degrees C
- -Annual mean temperature, 20 degrees C
- -Average annual rainfall 50-100cm

**Hawaii**

## Warm Temperate

- -Coldest month above 0 degrees C
- -Annual mean temperature, 12 degrees C
- -Average annual rainfall, 50-100 cm** **

**Redwood National Park**

## Cool Temperate

- -Coldest month below 0 degrees C
- -Annual mean temperature, 6 degrees C
- -Average annual rainfall, 25-75cm

**Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument**

## Cold

- -six to nine months below 6 degrees C
- -coldest monthe well below 0 degrees C
- -Average annual rainfall, below 25cm

**Alaska**

## What are the characteristics of a Subtropical Climate? Warm Temperate? Cool Temperate

## Observations				Inferences

- Observations				Inferences

- What would you infer about the past climate at Florissant based on the plants you circled above?

## For example if a species of modern willow is found in Subtropical and Warm Temperate climate today and we find a similar species of willow in the fossil record:

- The **observation** is that willows are found in Subtropical and Warm Temperate climates.
- The **inference** maybe that this fossil willow was in a Subtropical and Warm Temperate climate.

## We can hypothesize about Florissant’s climate by using the Physiognomic method which observes plant characteristics.

- We can hypothesize about Florissant’s climate by using the *Physiognomic *method which observes plant characteristics.

## The physiognomic method is another technique used to analyze climate and elevation.  This method describes common characteristics of leaves and forests found in each climate type.

- The **physiognomic method** is another technique used to analyze climate and elevation**.  **This method describes common characteristics of leaves and forests found in each climate type.

## Botanical Climate

**Certain characteristics, such as smooth margins indicate a plant is from a tropical to subtropical climate.**

**Botanical Climate**
**Indicators**

**Use the Pieces/Parts handouts to identify 3 characteristics on your extant sheets.**

## Tropics

- -Leaf margins between 57% and 89% entire:
- -Leaves with driptips common on understory evergreens.
- - Vines are common in the understory
**Subtropics**
- -Leaf margins between 39%-55% entire
- -Broad-leaved evergreens often with conifers and broad leaved deciduous.
**Warm Temperate**
- -Leaf margins between 30%-38% entire
- -Broad-leaved deciduous with confers.
- -Evergreens present, but not dominant
**Cool Temperate**
**-**Leaf margins less than 20% entire
- -Conifer with some brod-leaved deciduous.

## Observations				Inferences

- Observations				Inferences

- Look at your “Characters Commonly Used in Vegetational Analyses” and list observations and inferences about the characteristic found in the leaves.

## Smooth or entire margin are found in tropical to subtropic climate

- Acuminate apex or drip tip is usually found in tropical to subtropical climate.
- Acuminate apex with a non entire margin is usually associated with a temperate climate.

## Hypotheses

- The climate in this area now is considered Cool Temperate.  If this is different than the climate you inferred for Florissant, how could you explain the change?

## So what is the answer???

## Floristic Method.

- The floristic method was first developed by Harry MacGinite. First data collected on specific plants found in our modern climates is used.  Then we identifying the closest of these modern species to the fossil leaf found at Florissant.

## The problem is evolution.  These plants could have adapted to new conditions and environments over time.

## Dr. Herb Meyer, Florissant’s paleontologist, along with

- Dr. Jack Wolfe and Dr. Kate Gregory have used this method to determine the paleoclimate at Florissant.
- Presently this is most widely excepted method of determining Florissant’s climate.

**Physiognomic Method**

## Was Florissant was closer to the equator?

## Florissant was not closer to the equator, but plate tectonics may have played an important role.

## 50 mya

- Notice Central America is below sea level and the proximity of Australia and South America to Antarctica.

## Fossil evidence shows us that the redwood  forest extended throughout North America into Greenland and across Europe and Asia.

## 30mya

- Notice the shift of Australia and South America.  Central America is now rising above sea level.

## Convection current increased cooling around Antarctica.  The ice sheet grew.  As it grew the ocean surrounding it became colder.

## At the end of the Eocene about the time that Florissant fossils were beginning to form, ocean and air currents circulated in a different pattern.

- Once South American and Australia broke away from Antartica and Central America was above sea level, the Pacific currents flowed south.  They picked up cold Antartic water and air to bring up into the Northern Atlantic.

## Was Florissant’s elevation lower, could that account for the vegetation changes?

## Dr. Emmet Evanoff, hypothesized in 1997 that the region

- has been uplifted since the Eocene and proposes that the uplift began only 5 million years ago.

- His technique of evaluation is based on sedimentary deposits in stream beds to calculate the relative age of tilting and canyon cutting.

## We address all the hypotheses in the light of current scientific explanations.

## We hope that students have learned that science is a process not just facts.  

**That the best explanation can change with newly acquired data.**
**When looking at a scientific explanation, there may be many view points to consider (hypotheses) before determining the best explanation.**