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Article Moussa.

In ecology a microsite is used to describe a sub environment within an environment, which has its own qualities that differentiate it from other microsites within the environment; among other differences are its temperature, humidity, sunlight, availability of nutrients, soil physical characteristics, and vegetation cover.

Microsite features.

Microsites being a subset of the environment can be identified with its own:

·        Temperature; it refers to the temperature of the surrounding environment measured in degree Fahrenheit. The temperature of one microsite may not necessarily be the same with another one even if they are closely related in terms of location. http://www.dictionary.com/browse/ambient-temperature https://www.skepticalscience.com/microsite-influences-on-global-temperature.htm

·        Humidity; It refers to the relative amount of moisture that could be held in the air. The more saturated the air is with water vapor in a microsite the more relative it is in humidity. http://www.fondriest.com/news/relativehumidity.htm

·        Sunlight; Plants https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plant uses energy from the sunlight to carry on photosynthesis. https://gridclub.com/subscribers/info/fact_gadget_2009/best_ever_qa/nature/plant_life/1627.html The possibility of sunlight to reach a microsite is another distinguishing characteristic which creates differences between microsites. There are some areas that the sunlight doesn’t reach which creates a different environmental condition that those that the sun reaches thus making some plant and a

·        Availability of nutrients; Some microsites are rich in nutrients while some are not. This is a great difference because seeds geminate more in microsites that have more nutrients it needs than those that lack them. This is because plants and other autotrophs get nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and Sulphur) they need from soil and water available in their microsite. http://nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/nutrient/

·        Soil physical characteristics; Plants obtain hydrogen from water found in the soil. Animals are influence by the soil physical characteristics for example where a fish will survive is not the same like that of a camel or goat. http://agriculture.vic.gov.au/agriculture/dairy/pastures-management/fertilising-dairy-pastures/how-do-the-properties-of-soils-affect-plant-growth. All this features help differentiate one microsite from another and explains the existence of organisms in one and not in the other.

·        Vegetation cover; This refers to collections of plants species over a land surface. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetation. A microsite in the savanna https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savana is different from that in the Sahara because of their vegetation cover. This explains the differences existing between the type of organisms that live in both areas.

Microsite influence over habitat selection.

With the many microsites that exist in an environment, organisms usually base their selection of habit on the features of the microsite they come across. Being able to choose the best microsite will positively influence the organism’s survival, growth and reproduction. This will benefit the future generation of the organisms. https://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfp/silviculture/planting/MICRO/MICROS.HTM

Limitation of microsites

Not all microsites have the necessary ingredients needed by plants and animals to survive and grow. While some may have, some condition may arise to render those ingredients not available again in the environment such as pollution or invasive species. In the case of seedling; air, light, soil, humus are all need by seedling to grow and survive. The lack of these elements will cause a growth limitation factor in the said microsite and also survival issues. Same applies to animals but however in animals they can immigrate to other areas that favors their growth and survival while those who can will be limited.

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Below are reliable sources I will be using for my article.

1 - McLean, Sarah Louise Constance Olive. Local Adaptation and Microsite Limitation: A Thesis Submitted to the Victoria University of Wellington in Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Ecology. N.p.: n.p., 2003. Print.

2 - Kayes, Lori J. Early-successional Vegetation Dynamics and Microsite Preferences following Post-fire Forest Restoration in Southwestern Oregon. N.p.: n.p., 2008. Print.

3 - Jones, Clive G., and John H. Lawton. Linking Species & Ecosystems. New York: Chapman & Hall, 1995. Print.

4 - McConnaughey, Paul Kevin. Transient Microsite Models of Denitrification: Theory and Experiment. N.p.: n.p., 1983. Print.

5 - Root, J. Jeffrey. Microsite and Habitat Boundary Influences on Small Mammal Capture, Diversity, and Movements. N.p.: n.p., 1997. Print.

6 - Blood, Laura E. Microsite Effects on Forest Regeneration in a Bottomland Swamp in Western New York. N.p.: n.p., 2007. Print.

7 - Damme, Laird Van, S. Warrington, and L. J. Buse. The Effect of Microsite Compaction on Direct Seeding Success of Jack Pine and Black Spruce in Northwestern Ontario. Place of Publication Not Identified: Canada-Ontario Forest Resource Development Agreement, 1988. Print.

8 - McKenna, John. The Effects of Multiple Resources on Forest Regeneration: Microsite Variation and Seedling Response. N.p.: n.p., 2007. Print.

9 - Gillman, Len N., and John Ogden. "Microsite Heterogeneity in Litterfall Risk to Seedlings." Austral Ecology 30.5 (2005): 497-504. Web.

10 - Zobel, M., M. Otsus, J. Liira, M. Moora, and T. Mols. "Is Small-Scale Species Richness Limited by Seed Availability or Microsite Availability?" Ecology 81.12 (2000): 3274. Web.

My chosen topic is Microsite (ecology). I am planning to provide more materials from reliable sources about the definition of the subject, what makes and how a microsite comes into existence. What factors influence the subsistence of a microsite. Again, I will add contributions of experts from the field while making sure my inputs are unbiased and fair. Currently the article does not have any reference and citation. I will definitely have to add them to make the article more believable and unbiased. Ina nutshell, I will add more materials about the subject from reliable sources and provide citation.

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