User:Aaroncoolfire/sandbox

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Keystone species
Keystone species are plants and animals that play a special role in the ecosystem. Without them, the ecosystem will not function. There are two kinds of species, native and invasive. Native species are animals that are from British Columbia and that have not been introduced in our land from elsewhere. Invasive species are animals that are not from BC and were introduced to our land who also steal food and shelter and have the potential to harm people and our ecosystem. Some keystone species in Hawthorne Park are..

Bees

Bees are a type of keystone species native to BC. The honey bees have been around for millions of years and are environmentally friendly and are vital as pollinators. The leader of the bees is the Queen bee. She makes 2500 eggs per day. Unfortunately, the bees' lifespan is 5 to 6 weeks. Bees can fly 25 kilometers hourly and they are the only insects that make food for people to eat. It is estimated that 1100 honeybee stings are fatal and bees can't sleep at all. Sadly since 2006, Bees have been disappearing due to CCD (Colony Collapse Disorder) caused by Neonicotinoids which are a type of pesticide that harms honeybees and their colonies.

Bees are important because they keep our plants, trees and flowers alive by pollination. (IN HAWTHORNE PARK, THEY POLLINATE HAWTHORNE GARDENS AND ALSO THE FOREST.) Bees live in hives. They make honey not just for us but for themselves that is worth double the millions of dollars. If Bees were to go extinct then flowers and plants would die because they need pollination and there will be no honey left and there will be no animals because they eat flowers and plants and herbivores will have no food and if there's no herbivores, then the carnivores will have no food because they eat herbivores. In English, no bees = no flowers = no herbivores = no carnivores = no earth.

Coyotes

Even though they are dangerous, they are still a keystone species. Sure, they eat animals, but they are small prey like mice, rats, squirrels, and rabbits. Coyotes keep the small predator population in check. However, if the coyotes become extinct, then small predators like rats and mice will multiply. Also the birds will be eaten due to the small predator population. Coyotes are a keystone species because they eat small predators like cats, opossums and raccoons.

Bald Eagle

The coyote is not the only animal that keeps the small predator population in check, there are a lot of animals, like the Bald Eagle. The Bald Eagle swoops down and eats fish and rats. It lives in all sorts of places like California, Florida, Newfoundland, Alaska. Bald Eagles chase other bird predators like Osprey, Gulls, Ravens and Hawks.The Bald Eagle is about 7 ft. tall. The Bald Eagle is not really bald, It is called Bald Eagle because of it's white head, questioning people if the Bald Eagle is bald. The Bald Eagle live in all sorts of places, mostly at North America because they live in waterways, oceans, and lakes. The Bald Eagle can live up to 30-40 years. The Bald Eagle can swim, in fact, they are really good swimmers! The Bald Eagle's enemies are raccoons and owls but mostly poisoned food supply and less nest trees. The Female Bald Eagle can lay 1-3 eggs.

Squirrels

Squirrels are a keystone species, but how? In winter, they collect nuts, people say all they do with nuts is eat but actually on the last day of winter and the first day of spring, they used the nuts left over to plant some flowers! There are more than 250 squirrel species worldwide. 250! There are actually 265. If a squirrel feels incoming danger, it remains...motionless. (If a squirrel is on the ground) It will run up to its tree where it can be safe! (If a squirrel is in his tree) It will circle the trunk of the tree and press up against the bark with its body! Squirrels can trust people and can also eat food out of a person's hand. In the United Kingdom and other colder regions, squirrels plan ahead earlier than the humans to survive the frozen months. (November, December, January and February.) Squirrels tend to run in rocky paths to escape predators. Squirrels are very smart creatures. They know which kind of food is good or bad for them.

Woodpeckers

Woodpeckers are master woodworkers and they make habitats for animals and they abandon their nest for other bird Woodpeckers are neither herbivores nor carnivores but omnivores! Their cuisine is tree sap, nuts, seeds, insects and eggs. Like frogs, woodpeckers have a long tongue to capture insects. Woodpeckers drill through trees with their beak for getting food and making nests. There was over 180 woodpecker species around the world, but they are nowhere to be found in Madagascar, Australia and New Zealand. The 2 biggest woodpeckers in the world are the Imperial woodpecker and the Ivory-billed woodpecker. But they may be extinct... but the biggest woodpecker in South Asia is the great Slaty woodpecker and the biggest woodpecker in North America is the pileated woodpecker! Woodpeckers' lifespan is 6-11 years. (depending on the species.) The female woodpecker lays 4-7 eggs. The female woodpecker sits on her eggs for 2 weeks. The young woodpeckers does not leave the nest for 4-5 weeks. Woodpeckers drums new holes in trees. As for the old holes, there used for bird nests.