Environmental science uses natural
indicators to provide clues about the health of an environment.
No single indicator can reveal the health of an environment,
but when carefully examined together over time, a set of indicators
can signal that your study site is under stress.
Stress often causes a change
in the normal pattern of biotic distribution, or even the maintenance
of an artificial pattern. It is important for teachers to give
their students room to discover those breaks in the patterns.
When conducting their inventories,
many classes have used the following as useful indicators of
environmental stress on their sites. Do you detect such signs
on your site, and if so, what can they tell you? Can your class
identify any signs of stress that are not listed below?
Lichens
Loss of abundance and diversity
_________
Discolorationpink, white
_________
Loss of lichen center _________
Other _________
Higher Plants
Loss of abundance and diversity
_________
Presence of non-native opportunistic
species _________
Other _________
Growth
Stunted and/or deformed; one-sided
growth _________
Fewer young plants _________
Smaller fruits _________
Other _________
Deciduous tree leaves
discolored, off-season, mottled,
flecked, stippled, dusty, eaten, or enlarged _________
other_________
Conifers
fewer needles, white bands,
or red needles _________
pine bark beetle _________
other _________
Signs of Contaminants
Water
Thick with biota; eutrophied
_________
Very clear (acidified) _________
Other _________
Air
Non-natural odor _________
Limited visibility _________
Other _________
Soil
Discolored _________
Oily _________
Compacted _________
Eroded _________
Scant organic matter _________
Narrow topsoil _________
Other _________
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