Tuesday, June 24, 2008

W is for

Wide, Whale, Water, and Wear




A Wide Sitka Spruce

Rain Forest Monarch



The temperate rain forest is dominated by Sitka Spruce. Except where it penetrates valleys such as Hoh, the Sitka Spruce grows along a narrow coastal strip from northern California to Alaska.

High rainfall, fog, and ocean moderated temperatures create optimum growing conditions for these monarchs. This is one of the largest Sitka Spruce trees in the United States.

Height……………………......... Over 270 feet
Diameter at chest height… Over 12 ½ feet
Age………………………........... ~ 525 years

Martha was having a hard time measuring it.



Whale Breaching
Alaska


Around 90% of the body clears the water before the whale turns to land on its back or side. "Belly flops" also occur but are less common. In order to achieve 90% clearance, a Humpback needs to leave the water at a speed of eight metres per second or 29 km/h.



Water and Wear

With a little help from lichens


Living organisms may contribute to mechanical weathering as well as chemical weathering. Lichens and mosses grow on essentially bare rock surfaces and create a more humid chemical microenvironment. The attachment of these organisms to the rock surface enhances physical as well as chemical breakdown of the surface microlayer of the rock. On a larger scale seedlings sprouting in a crevice and plant roots exert physical pressure as well as providing a pathway for water and chemical infiltration. Burrowing animals and insects disturb the soil layer adjacent to the bedrock surface thus further increasing water and acid infiltration and exposure to oxidation processes.


To participate, visit ABC Wednesday, mrsnesbitt's place. Click here.

Troy and Martha

44 comments:

Petunia said...

WOW! The tree looks like a dinosaur's foot! A big dinosaur!
Very great post!

Petunia's ABC

Anonymous said...

Another great post filled with information. Your W's are wonderful.

Juliana RW said...

wow...that was WIDE tree :D

Please visit mine also in here Thanks

Anonymous said...

you have wonderful W post.

Mine in here at My Imaginary Travels. Thanks

Reader Wil said...

I like all your photos! Whales are spectacular! I saw some in New Zealand and was impressed! The tree is also formidable!

naturglede/Randi Lind said...

Realy good pictures. Love them:)

Gouldiae said...

Nice post. Mosses and lichens hold a particular fascination. Amazing how such minute organisms are the start of something so vital to an ecosystem.

imac said...

All fantastic photos.
Love the tree tho.

Pop and see my "W"

me ann my camera said...

What a whale of a tree!! Nice W's!
varying seasons

Dragonstar said...

That's a big tree! Very interesting post.

Miss_Yves said...

Great , great choices !Impressive pictures !!!
I feel tiny, indeed in front of such a tree...
miss Yves

kjpweb said...

Excellent "W"! Not seen on a daily basis! Despite I never saw one life - this tree impresses me even more than the whale.
Great info as well! Cheers, Klaus

Anonymous said...

Oh, that tree! what an impressive wide....Love your photos every week.

Kathie Brown said...

Troy, you sure have been busy. I'm glad Martha's arms don't stretch that far. Whew! I checked out the book cover. Amazing. Did you see the photo someone else submitted? You can submit your own if you'd like. That's an expensive book but with over 900 photos I can see why. Let us know if you like it! The mesquite is fine. Read the post below the fire post to see an update on it. Haven't seen the beetles since. Still don't know what they are.

esnorway said...

great shoots

Louis la Vache said...

You two come up with the most interesting posts!
:-)

"Louis la Vache" invites you to step right up to the Wheel of Life!

Profile Not Available said...

WOW! Those are big W's!

I love the tree...it was facinating to look at!

My W is up now, if you want to wander back by.

Cath said...

Wow! These are wonderful pictures. I can't believe the size of that tree - wide indeed! And that is a brilliant shot of the whale. Fantastic.

Mine is up too.

EG CameraGirl said...

Martha just needs to grow longer arms!

I had no idea humpback whales could jump so high. Amazing.

Linda said...

That is a big big tree. Great pictures and information.

Doug Taron said...

That's an amazing tree.

kRiZcPEc said...

wow. a giant tree, must be very old. love the other shots as well.

myonlyphoto said...

Wow that is one big tree, and I really like your whale photo. Anna :)

Lynette said...

Yours is an impressive ABC Wednesday post!

Unknown said...

Wonderful pictures and interesting reads.


Gary
Bodge's Bulletin

Rune Eide said...

Impressing photo of that whale - and I would dare anyone to decorate that Sitka for X-mas

Jane Hards Photography said...

Fabulous images an info.

Anonymous said...

Fantastic photos!
But I must say that when I opened your blog and saw the first photo I got a real huge scare ... my first thought was "no way, this can´t be the famous and secret fig tree that we have never seen!"

Andrea said...

"W" is for "WOW, WHAT a WONDERFUL post!"

Andrea

mrsnesbitt said...

I had to laugh at the words saying Martha found it hard to measure...I thought they were referring to the whale! LOL!

Unknown said...

What an awesome tree! I'd love to see one that wide!

AphotoAday said...

"W"ell, "w"hat an interesting set of "w"'s...
And that Sitka Spruce is amazing -- I thought that only redwoods got that huge...

Daryl said...

WOW .. wonderful Ws all .. and wasnt Martha a good sport to wrap her arms 'round the tree!

:-Daryl

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Troy: Very nicely captured set of pictures, I love the whale photo.

Sara at Come Away With Me said...

There are W's to be found everywhere!

Suburbia said...

Beautiful! But I particularlt like the last one.

becky aka theRAV said...

Very good post! That tree is something else to behold. Opps. It can't be held! LOL

Kjersti said...

WOW! Wonderful W-post. That tree is awesome, and so is the other photos!!!

Pernille said...

WOW! Fantastic W-shots. And a very nice post:)

Anonymous said...

What magnificent pictures of nature in all her glory!

Shelley said...

That tree was spectacular - the size is mind boggling!

abb said...

Four lovely W's! Wonderful four times!

Bear Naked said...

Wonderful choices for the letter W on ABC Wednesday.

cedrorum said...

This post really makes me want to get up an visit Alaska again.