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Natural History of Cleveland UST 259

Natural History of Cleveland UST 259. Lecture 3 – Climate, Soils, and Forest Systems. Chapter 5 Climate & Weather. Ohio’s Climate & Weather. Many types and patterns of weather impact Ohio Climate v. Weather: What’s the difference? Weather Temperature Precipitation Humidity Wind

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Natural History of Cleveland UST 259

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  1. Natural History of Cleveland UST 259 Lecture 3 – Climate, Soils, and Forest Systems

  2. Chapter 5Climate & Weather

  3. Ohio’s Climate & Weather • Many types and patterns of weather impact Ohio • Climate v. Weather: What’s the difference? • Weather • Temperature • Precipitation • Humidity • Wind • Barometric Pressure • Cloudiness

  4. Ohio Climate • Climate: weather over a long, long period of time • Ohio Climate • Classified as Continental climate • Moderate extremes of wet/dry and hot/cold • Winters cold enough to support fixed period of stable snow • Relatively low summer precipitation • Lake Erie further modifies Continental climate

  5. 3 Major Continental Cold & Warm Front Tracks in U.S. • Canadian and Arctic Cold Fronts • Pacific Cold Fronts • Warm Fronts • Lake Erie is our Major Weather Producer

  6. Average Ohio Temperatures • Jan 25.7 • Feb 28.4 • March 37.5 • April 47.6 • May 58.5 • June 67.5 • July 71.9 • Aug 70.2 • Sept 63.3 • Oct 52.2 • Nov 41.8 • Dec 31.1 Annual Average 52 F

  7. Ohio’s Major “Weather Producer?” • Lake Erie! • Late autumn/early winter causes “lake effect snow” • Lake Effect snow: NW winds blowing across lake pick up lake moisture and deposit as snow inland

  8. Seasonal Ohio Weather: Spring • Tornadoes - 70% during spring, 90% come from southwest, 1st in Geauga County 1804, none in Vinton • Floods – early spring/late winter is common, frozen ground can’t absorb rain (2/28/2011), also led to worst in 1913, led to dams/levees • Cold Lake Erie can drop land temperatures by 20 degrees in spring • Reason for violent spring weather?

  9. 1913 Flood Delaware & Chillicothe

  10. Average Annual Precipitation Elevation Map

  11. Lake Erie Hydrology • What causes fluctuating lake levels? • Heavy snow falls • Rain • Seiches • Draught (no NOT drought)

  12. Seasonal Ohio Weather: Summer • Temperature variations • Hail • Fog • Temperature inversions

  13. Temperature Variations • Gallia County 1934 – 113 degrees • turn on the AC (ok- no AC then) • Extended 90 degree days not uncommon in Southern Ohio • Mean max temp in Cleveland about 84

  14. Formed when water condenses around dust particles Blown high in the air by rising currents Water freezes and drops, circulates, and finally too heavy Size related to number of circulations Hail

  15. Fog • Fog is a cloud at the earth's surface • Colder, heavy air drops into warmer valleys and produces cloud

  16. Temperature Inversions • Hot air rises in late summer/early autumn • Traps layer of cool air beneath • Pollutants are trapped near the ground

  17. Seasonal Ohio Weather: Autumn • Sunny / hazy days – September, warm with light winds • “Cloud season” – Cold air in November from Canada picks up Lake Erie water vapor (Nov / Dec top cloud months) • First frosts – anywhere from September to November but Lake delays in Cleveland • Lake effect snow…

  18. Lake Effect Snow • Orographic Lifting • Winds across unfrozen Lake Erie • Pick up water vapor • Collides with colder air in higher elevations (Chardon)

  19. Seasonal Ohio Weather: Winter • Winter storm tracks • Winter temperatures • Winter snow

  20. Winter Storm Tracks • Alberta Clipper – fast moving, cold/light snow • Panhandle Hook – through handle of Ok, heavy wet snow • Westerly Lows – Great Plains, no moisture, smaller accumulations of snow • Gulf Coast Low – lots of moisture, rain or the wettest snow • East Coast Lows – heavy snows but only impact Cleveland with the “Noreaster”

  21. Winter Temperatures • Perry County February 1899 – 39 below zero • Average annual lowest temperature in Cleveland is 0 to 5 degrees • 1976 to 1978 saw some of the toughest on record • 1976-1977 coldest in weather history

  22. Winter Snowfall • Variation – Chardon average 106 inches to Scioto County at 15 inches • 1901 Blizzard dropped 31 inches of snow, 10 foot drifts • Great Thanksgiving Storm of 1950 lasted 6 days and 40 inches • Blizzard of 1978 – lowest barometer in history, hurricane winds, only 12 inches of new snow but 20 foot drifts

  23. Chapter 6 OHIO SOILS

  24. Geology & Glacial Review • Millions of years where Ohio was under ancient seas and then “dry” out • Plant and animal sediment compressed into sedimentary rock over time • Land masses eroding from wind, water, glaciers • Plant and animal material continues to break down in wet areas (lakes, bogs, wetlands) • Land masses floating in oceans and running into each other, pushing up mountains (plate tectonics –see slide next page)

  25. Continental Plate Tectonics

  26. SOIL • Can range from several feet thick to thin (inches) • Uppermost layer of earth’s crust • Ohio has 100’s of different soils • Mineral soils • Organic soils

  27. What determines properties of soil?Five Influences • Parent material – different bedrock, glacial till, organics • Climate – temperature, moisture • Living organisms – plant and animal influences • Topography – formation at different elevations • Time – more developed soils have usually developed over longer period of time

  28. How is soil formed?

  29. Soil Horizons • O: organic • A: topsoil • B: subsoil • C: parent material • R: bedrock R- Bedrock

  30. Ohio Soils • Lake Plain soils • Glaciated Appalachian Plateau soils • Till Plain soils • Unglaciated Appalachian Plateau soils • Bluegrass Region soils • Flood Plain, Bog, & Lake Sediments

  31. Ohio Soils • All soils are classified into one of the nearly 400 Soils Series – (and NO you don’t need to know all 400) • soils with similar characteristics are grouped together • 5 Physiographic Regions

  32. Lake Plain Soils • Derive from ancient lakes material left by Wisconsinan • Fertile but poorly drained soils • Large # of soil series • Parent material in nw Ohio: from great black swamp • Flat topography • “Truck” crops

  33. Lake Plain Soils

  34. Rolling and hilly Parent material - mostly from Wisconsinan, some from Illinioian along southern border Loam/silt loam till Primarily well-drained Hilly terrain more conducive to wheat and less on row crops Beach/maple forests Many streams reversed path i.e. Cuyahoga River (next slide) Glaciated Appalachian Plateau Soils

  35. Stream Reversing Path

  36. Glaciated Appalachian Plateau Soils

  37. Slightly more rolling than lake plains Better drained Soils influenced primarily by topography Topography - rolling Parent material-glacial high lime till (Limestone Bedrock) Fertile – corn and beans Till Plains Soils

  38. Till Plains Soils

  39. Very hilly Parent material - local in origin, derived from sandstone, siltstone, shale, limestone bedrock Well drained, less fertile, but good forest development Many different types of soil, mostly acid in pH Unglaciated Appalachian Plateau soils

  40. Unglaciated Appalachian Plateau soils

  41. Parent material - non-local limestone and shale Varies in thickness Generally clayey & rocky Many referred to as Prairie Soils Bluegrass Region Soils

  42. Bluegrass Region Soils

  43. Floodplains, Bogs, & Lake Sediments • Flood Plains • Flooding brings alluvial deposits…results in undeveloped soils…always adding new parent material • Influenced by soil/erosion upstream • Deep, loamey, silty, clayey, sandy soils • Very fertile soils • Bogs • Organic soils (Till Plains & Glaciated Plateau) • Consist of black/brown organic material decomposing

  44. Chapter 7 OHIO FORESTS

  45. Ohio Forests • Vast Forest Wilderness • Deciduous vs conifer • Soil fertility resulted in tree diversity • Oaks, hickories, beeches, maples, tuliptrees, walnuts, elms, gums, chestnuts, ashes (some >150 ft tall) • Beech & Sugar Maple - NE • Nuts, maple syrup/sugar • Oaks - S, SE • Mast- what is that? Wildlife food source • Conifers – SE • Infertile, dry soils • “Swamp” Species – W • Oaks that like their feet wet

  46. Tree Identification • Branching & shape • Leaves • Bark • Buds i.e. tulip tree bud • Location • “Seeds”

  47. Forest system Tree species grow specifically on particular soils Oaks, hickories on deep well drained soils (have deep root system, drought resistant) Black walnut, tulip tree on deep, moist, well drained soils Alkaline = “sweet” Acidic= “sour” Topography influences where certain trees grow

  48. Sugar Maple Important species to the ecology of many forests in North America. Shade Tolerant. Can grow comfortably in any type of soil, except sand.

  49. Red Oak Red Oak Important species to the ecology of many forests in North America. Shade Tolerant. Bark ridges that appear to have shiny stripes down the center. Tolerant of many soils and varied situations, although it prefers the glacial drift and well-drained borders of streams.

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