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- Northern Tree Habitats - Geophysical Institute
Interior Alaskan forests have only six native tree species: white spruce, black spruce, quaking aspen, balsam poplar, larch (tamarack) and paper birch Northern Canadian forests have all of those, plus jack pine, balsam fir and lodgepole pine Since northern Canada and interior Alaska share the same grueling climate and extremes of daylength, why are the Canadian tree species absent from
- Visit to an exotic tree plantation in Alaska | Geophysical Institute
The two-acre exotic tree plantation is part of a much-larger “boreal arboretum” on the UAF campus, which mostly consists of native spruce, birch, aspen, poplar and willow trees Having borrowed the key from a researcher with UAF’s Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, Woodward has invited me to join him inside the chain-link fence
- Trees as Earthquake Fault Indicators | Geophysical Institute
Then using tree ring dating methods, it may be possible to date earthquakes occurring before historical records were kept The ability to identify and date very large earthquakes occurring within the past thousand years is important in establishing earthquake risk and for predicting future earthquakes
- Tropical Fossils in Alaska | Geophysical Institute
A 20-inch fossil palm leaf that once waved over a tropical forest in Alaska 45-60 million years ago The fossil was found in rocks near the Malaspina Glacier Photo from the U S Geological Survey, Dept of the Interior
- Witches Broom | Geophysical Institute
Witches' broom on spruce trees is caused by a rust disease (a kind of fungus disease) The rust lives on the spruce tree throughout the year Each spring, small yellow pustules appear on the new needles of the broom A strong sweet odor, which is easily recognizable, usually accompanies the maturation of these pustules
- More on Why Tree Trunks Spiral | Geophysical Institute
I eventually found a tree with a spiral lightning mark and it followed the spiral grain exactly One tree, of course, proves nothing "But why should the tree spiral? More speculation here: Foliage tends to be thicker on the south side of the tree because of better sunlight
- Tree Rings and History | Geophysical Institute
A tree's age can be easily determined by counting its growth rings, as any Boy or Girl Scout knows Annually, the tree adds new layers of wood which thicken during the growing season and thin during the winter These annual growth rings are easily discernible (and countable) in cross-sections of the tree's trunk In good growing years, when sunlight and rainfall are plentiful, the growth rings
- The war within the aspen leaves | Geophysical Institute
They think the fierce, silent conflict has probably benefited both the insect population and a tree that’s been under siege in Interior Alaska for a long time Leaf miners are moth larvae that stencil the surfaces of aspen leaves with their transparent tracks After infestation, the leaves appear silvery from a distance
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