Topic 20:

The Hot Deserts & “Sonoran Dances”

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

• Hot Deserts Tuesday & Thursday in class

• Animal Quiz in Lab Wed!

• FOR THURS Discussion:

  • Each group member choose 1 of the 4 Gary Nabhan articles posted on Moodle: Agave, Mesquite, Creosote, Organpipe Cactus

  • Read, come ready to discuss, & give examples of:

  • Plant-animal interactions, human interactions/uses/impacts; other interesting facts

• Final Animal Presentations:

  • today in class (1)

  • Thurs in lab (2)

Learning Goals for Days:

Hot Deserts:

•  environment

•  adaptations of desert plants to drought conditions

•  what are the various strategies that desert plants use to deal with arid conditions?  be able to describe them

Chihuahuan Desert – location (e.g. a Park you could visit), climate,

                        dominant & indicator plants (agaves: lechuguilla) & animals (zonetail hawk)

                                    zonetail hawk as example of animal mimicry

      Mojave Desert - location (e.g. a Park or place you could visit), climate,

                     dominant/indicator plants (“tree” yuccas: Joshua tree)

Sonoran Desert - location (e.g. a Park or place could visit), climate,

                        dominant & indicator plants (cacti) & animals (elf owl, gila woodpecker);

importance of saguaro cactus as keystone species

Powerpoint Presentation on Hot Deserts - link here

Gary Nabhan articles: "Sonoran Dances"

            JIGSAW:  address questions r.e.  –

o        interesting/unusual fact about the plant

o        plant-animal interactions -

o        describe the interaction(s)

o        what animals are involved?

o        use diagrams or pictures to summarize as helpful

o        explain low rates of pollination where applicable

o        human interactions/uses

Plants discussed:

--  organpipe cactus, mescal (agave), creosote bush, mesquite