Vazken Avetissian
Professor Difiori
Physical Science 2
1 December 2012
What is Hahamongna Watershed Park?
Before taking a field biology class, I was unaware of the beautiful Hahamongna Watershed Park. With multiple habitats and various kinds of wildlife, it really is a site to behold. My assignment during my time there was to discover the habitats and what kinds of plant-life and animals live in them. During this time, my amazement for how beautiful the park was never wavered. There are five habitats in the park, Riparian, Freshwater Marsh, Alluvial Scrub, Chaparral, and Oak Woodland.
Found in the edge of Hahamongna's stream, the Riparian habitat is known for its abundant vegetation and a large variety of species. Plant-life in this habitat include elderberries, wild rose, blackberries, willow, oak, laurel, sycamore, and cottonwood trees. Wildlife includes songbirds, woodpeckers, hawks, owls, frogs, and deer. The Freshwater Marsh habitat, found in Hahamongna's southern basin, is made up of mostly flowery plants, mainly cattails, sedges, and rushes, with not much wildlife. The Alluvial Scrub habitat is a “Mediterranean shrub-land type that occurs in washes and on gently sloping alluvial fans.” (Save Hahamongna) The alluvial scrub is mostly made up of soft-leaved shrubs with short life-spans, but they are covered by larger species found in the chaparral habitat. The plant-life in the alluvial scrub habitat is mostly made up of scalebroom, white sage, redberry, California buckwheat, mulefat, and many other. One of the more notable alluvial scrub plants is the Riversidean Alluvial Fan Sage Scrub since it is an endangered plant, with “less than 15,000-acres” remaining in the world (Save Hahmongna). Found mostly in the slopes of Hahamongna, the chaparral habitat is mostly made up of evergreen scrub oaks and other shrubs that have resistance against drought. Wildlife in the chapparal habitat includes the gray fox, which can sometimes be seen foraging for food during the day. The Oak Woodland habitat is mostly made up of oaks (of course), broadleaf trees, coniferous trees, various “grasses, herbs, geophytes, and shrubs.” (Save Hahamongna) The types of oak in the habitat include Coast Live Oak, Canyon live oak, and other California oaks. The plants and wildlife that I have mentioned here are just a fraction of the many plants and wildlife you could see if you visit Hahamongna Watershed Park.
Works Cited/ References
Save Hahamongna. 1 December 2012
<http://www.savehahamongna.org/index.htm>
This blog was beautifully written and paints a very vivid picture of this park. You definitely made me, as the reader, want to visit this place. While you did a great job at setting the stage for your second blog, I do wish that you had added this blog to the other one and made it one big blog. That way you could have written another blog with a different point to it. I felt that this blog, by itself, lacked a point. If you pair it with your other blog, it makes perfect sense but on it's own it's just a nice description of a beautiful place.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your argument. The description was very well done; I really felt like I could picture what the park must look like. However, maybe it is because I am not from California, but I have no idea where this park is located. Because I didn’t know where Hahamongna Watershed Park is it made picturing it a little more difficult. If I were to ever want to visit this park I would have to look up where it is in order to find it. Also, while your argument was very descriptive it did not have a clear argument. Were you arguing to save this park? Is this park being threatened to close? I did not see a definite argument therefore I was not sure how to respond. I would suggest that you find a controversy involved with this park. For example, I noticed that your citation said something about saving the park. That would be a great argument for your blog. You could discuss the benefits of the park and why it should be saved. Make sure you take a clear stance on the topic so the readers understand why they are reading your argument and what you wanted to get across to them.
ReplyDeleteI thought that your blog post was very interesting as I have never known anything about Hahamongna Watershed Park. You provide very descriptive information about the natural life in this park. However, I would like to point out that you have no argument within your post. What I understood from your blog post was that it was a very detailed summary of what you have experienced on your trip. Although you do paint a good picture of the park for those of us that have not been there, there is no clear argument. What you could have written about is a point of controversy concerning the park itself. You could even discuss the importance of the park and what it stands for, otherwise all you have is a descriptive synopsis about the park.
ReplyDeleteYour blog was very informative especially since I had never heard of this Park. It was described perfectly and felt as if I had seen it and pictured it. I have lived in California my whole life and was very intrigued by this park especially since I have been to many parks around California. I think the information you gave was very specific a location would have been nice, but I think without it you made the reader more curious to want to know where its at. I don’t know if there was anything to argument so that made it easier to read although an argument would have led me to understand your topic more. Without an argument it was still well written and very informative to one who doesn’t live around California or who has never been.
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