ACER TREEVIA Forest Ecology Quiz

More info: Information on one such initiative in Ontario can be found at https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2012/rncan-nrcan/Fo122-1-54-2012-eng.pdf but many more boreal and deciduous forest studies can be found elsewhere online!

More info: The deciduous forest of Southern Ontario is the most threatened because of the trees that have been cleared for agricultural or urban development.

More info: Trees and plants are at the bottom of the land food chain and are eaten by primary consumers.

More info: The stomata are enclosed by two ‘guard’ cells which open or close depending on the amount of sunlight and the amount of moisture in the air.

More info: Most deciduous trees will grow new leaves that same season if defoliation exceeds 60%.

More info: Photosynthesis is the process by which plants use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to create oxygen and food (in the form of sugar.)

More info: The seed coat protects the entire seed. The embryo is the part that develops into a new plant. The stored food (endosperm) provides food, mostly in the form of starch, to the developing embryo.

More info: Fire is often a natural event in the forest ecosystem contributing to pest control, soil enrichment, forest regeneration, and forest diversity.

More info: Most tree “litter” (needles from conifers shed intermittently through the year and leaves from deciduous trees shed in the fall) becomes food and habitat for forest floor organisms such as insects, spiders, worms and fungi.

More info: The rest of the “litter” is used by other organisms such as worms and insects that drag it into their tunnels in the soil.

More info: The cones of conifers can be viewed as very simple flowers since they produce both pollen and seeds but lack the complex structure of true flowers. The smaller (and not often noticed) male cones produce pollen while the female codes produce seeds once fertilized by the pollen.

More info: Xanthophyll and carotene produce yellow and orange pigments, and anthocyanin produces red pigment.

More info: Seeds: hardwood trees are angiosperms whose seeds are enclosed in protective fruits. Softwood trees are gymnosperms that do not have fruits, instead, their seeds are “naked” and are usually produced in cones. Leaves: generally, hardwood trees are deciduous (broad-leaved) and softwood trees are coniferous (have needles). Cellular structure: hardwood trees have a visible pore system to transport water nutrients which is absent in softwood trees.

More info: Old growth forests are found throughout Canada’s forest regions, with the most notable (most biomass and the oldest trees) located in B.C.’s Pacific Maritime forest region.