A Field Guide To Fairfax County’s - AlexandriaVA.Gov

A Field Guide toFairfax County’sPlants andWildlife

A Field Guide toFairfax County ’SPlants and WildlifeDeveloped by Fairfax County Stormwater Planning Divisionand Urban Forest Managementin coordination with Fairfax County Public SchoolsDesign and layout by Allen Wayne, Ltd.Illustrated by Joe SutliffThis book is copyrighted 2013 all rights reserved.This publication is protected by federal copyright law,and permission to copy material must be obtainedfrom Fairfax County government.If such permission is sought, please contact theDirector of Stormwater Planning12000 Government Center Parkway, Suite 449Fairfax, VA 22035

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Table of ContentsIntroduction.2Plants . 13Non-vascular Plants. 14Activity: Where is my air? . 18Vascular Plants . 20Ferns .22Flowering Herbaceous Plants. 23Grasses . 30Vines . 34Activity: How big is it? . 38Activity: Organism observation . 39Trees. 40Activity: What plant can you find? .50Activity: Traits and adaptations (Part 1 and 2) . 51Decomposers . 53Activity: Name game .56Animals . 59Invertebrate Animals . 60Annelids. 61Molluscs.62Activity: Nature all around.65Arthropods . 67Insects .68Arachnids . 78Crustaceans . 84Myriapods . 87Activity: You are what you eat (Part 1) .89Vertebrate Animals . 90Fish . 91Activity: The watershed around you . 101Activity: Where did the insects go? .104Amphibians . 105Activity: Stream ecosystem challenge .113Reptiles .114Activity: What’s in that stream? .124Activity: You are what you eat (Part 2) . 125Birds . 126Activity: Key to success (Part 1 and 2) .135Mammals .138Activity: What animal can you find? .146Activity: Dinosaur dilemma .147Fairfax County’s Ten Most (Un)wanted Invasive Species .148Index .150r1r

IntroductionGeneral IntroductionMost people are naturally curious about the world they live in. Scientistsare also curious about the world, and explore the natural world to makeobservations and new discoveries. Science is a huge and amazing field andthere are many different types of scientists who study and work with differentthings. A biologist is a scientist who studies living organisms and theirrelationships to their environment. Some biologists focus on one kindof organism, while other biologists study entire communities of organisms.How Living Things areClassifiedAn organism is an individual livingthing. All organisms are made of cells,obtain and use energy (eat), growand develop (have a life cycle), haveoffspring (reproduce), respond to theirenvironment, and respire (breathe).Biological classifications are based onhow organisms are related. Organismsare classified into a series of orderedgroupings based on things that they havein common (see sidebar).A species is defined as a group oforganisms that have the ability tointerbreed and produce fertile offspringin nature. Species is the basic unit ofclassification. The name of a species ismade by using two words: the genusname followed by the species name.The genus name is always capitalizedwhile the species name is not. Forexample, Homo sapiens is the scientificname for humans.r 2 rBiological classificationgroups go in order fromlargest to Here’s a handy way toremember the order ofclassification groups: takethe first letter of each group(KPCOFGS) and make upa fun saying to help youremember. For example:“Kids Prefer Chocolate OverFunky Green Spaghetti.”Try it!

A dichotomous key (from dichotomy, meaning divided into two parts) is atool scientists use to identify organisms based on their unique traits. It asksa series of paired questions, each of which narrows down the set of species.For example, the question “Does it have a backbone?” may be used to divideanimals into vertebrates and invertebrates.IconName and DescriptionInvertebrate. Animal lacking a backboneVertebrate. Animal with a backboneA dichotomous key used to identify plants might ask, “Does it have woodytissues to transport water, minerals and nutrients?” to divide plants intovascular and non-vascular species.IconName and DescriptionNon-vascular. Plants that lack woody tissues. Includeshornworts, liverworts, most mosses and some algaeVascular. Plants with woody tissues, such as club mosses,ferns, trees and flowering plants (including grasses)About the IconsThis field guide uses a system of icons to categorize organismsinto groups. The icons provide a quick visual reference to indicatewhether an organism is a non-vascular or vascular plant; aninvertebrate or a vertebrate animal; a native or non-native species;and identify the organism’s habitat types and role in the food web.The key to the icons shown in the Introduction is located on theinside back cover.r 3 r

Ecological RolesThe word ecology comes from the Greek word oikos, which means “life.”Ecology is the study of the relationships that living organisms have witheach other and their environment. Ecology is divided into four increasinglycomprehensive levels: Organism; Population; Community; and Ecosystem(see diagram). Each species’ ecological niche explains its way of life or rolein an ecosystem. Factors used to define an organism’s niche include itsdistribution (where it is found), habitat (where it lives), role in the food web (itsfeeding relationships) and life history (how it lives and grows).r 4 r

DistributionThe distribution of a species is the geographic region where individuals ofthat species are found naturally. Virginia has five geographic regions calledphysiographic provinces: the Coastal Plain; Piedmont; Blue Ridge; Valleyand Ridge; and Appalachian Plateau. Each province has unique structuresand features resulting from its geologic past.Data Source: http://water.usgs.gov/Related SOLs: ES.8aSoutheastern Fairfax County (east of Interstate 95) lies in the Coastal Plain.Northwestern Fairfax County (west of Interstate 95) is in the Piedmont. Thedividing line between the Coastal Plain and the Piedmont physiographicprovinces is called the Fall Line.A watershed is an area of land where all of the water that falls on it drainsto the same body of water, such as a stream, river or even the ocean.Watersheds come in all shapes and sizes and can cross physiographic,county, state and even national boundaries. Fairfax County has 30watersheds that are part of the Potomac River watershed, which in turn is partof the Chesapeake Bay watershed.The distributions of aquatic animals like fish that cannot move around on landor in the air are defined by watersheds rather than geographic regions.Because streams and rivers within a watershed are connected, what happensupstream can affect the quality of downstream water bodies.r 5 r

Fairfax County Watersheds by Number1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.10.Nichol RunPond BranchDifficult RunBull Neck RunScotts RunDead RunTurkey RunPimmit RunFour Mile RunCameron Run11. Belle Haven12. Little Hunting Creek13. Dogue Creek14. Accotink Creek15. High Point16. Kane Creek17. Mill Branch18. Occoquan19. Sandy Run20. Ryans Damr 6 r21. Wolf Run22. Old mill Branch23. Pohick Creek24. Popes Head Creek25. Little Rocky Run26. Johnny Moore Creek27. Bull Run28. Cub Run29. Horsepen Creek30. Sugarland Run

Sometimes, either accidentally or deliberately, species are introduced intoplaces outside of their native distributional range. Some introduced speciesmay cause harm to the ecosystem into which they are introduced.IconName and DescriptionNative. An organism living in an area naturally, without anyhuman interventionNon-native. An organism introduced to an area outside itsnormal range, usually through human activityHabitat and Habitat TypesHabitat refers to a physical place where an organism (or a community oforganisms) lives, including all living and non-living factors or conditions of thesurrounding environment. Habitats in Fairfax County fall into six basic types:IconName and DescriptionWoodlands. Forests, thickets, stream buffersMeadows/Fields/Open Areas. Parklands and other openspace with few or no trees and vegetated mostly by grassesLakes/Ponds/Wetlands. Non-flowing bodies of water or landsaturated with water (bogs, marshes, swamps etc.)Rivers/Streams/Creeks. Flowing bodies of water. FairfaxCounty is in the Potomac River watershed, which is part ofthe Chesapeake Bay watershedEstuaries. Where fresh water and ocean (salt) water mix,such as the Chesapeake Bay and tidal (below Great Falls)Potomac RiverSuburban Areas. Developed areas such as subdivisions,apartment complexes, malls/shopping centers, etc.r 7 r

Role in the Food WebA food chain is the path of energy from organism to organism. Plants, whichconvert the sun’s energy into food, are usually at the base of a food chain.Since most organisms eat more than one type of animal or plant, food chainsare interconnected in a food web. Look at the food web diagram below for anexample; the arrows show the directions in which energy and nutrients flow.r 8 r

Within a food web, organisms are grouped based on how they get theirenergy:IconName and DescriptionProducer. Organisms (mainly plants) that generate and storetheir own food/energy from the sun or other energy sourcesConsumer-Herbivore. Consumes only plantsConsumer-Carnivore. Consumes only animalsConsumer-Omnivore. Consumes plants and animalsDecomposer. Breaks down dead/decaying organic matterinto component elementsLife Histories and Life CyclesAn organism’s life history is a series of steps related to the processes oflife that help it to survive, such as eating, respiration and migration. Thelife cycle of an organism is part of its life history, and describes how itreproduces, grows and develops. For some organisms, the life cycle isa gradual process with steps that blend into each other. However, someanimals undergo a more radical physical change called metamorphosis.The immature form (usually called a larva; more than one larvae) often hasa body plan completely different from that of the adult organism.r 9 r

How to Use This BookThis field guide is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all of theorganisms that might be found in Fairfax County. It is a guide to some of thecommon organisms that are likely to be observed in typical neighborhoods,schoolyards, parks and other outdoor areas of the county.The guide is organized into major groups of living organisms: non-vascularplants; vascular plants; decomposers; invertebrate animals and vertebrateanimals. Each group has a different color-coded tab on the outside edge ofthe pages. The colored tabs correspond to the color highlights shown in theTable of Contents and make it easier to find groups quickly. Activities haveblue headers and do not have colored tabs.Each organism page was designed to provide the most information possiblein one page. Take a look at the example page below to understand howinformation is presented throughout the guide.Color tabCommon andscientific namesFirefly(Lampyridae)Illustration ofspeciesIconsAppearance andlife historyFun facts aboutthis organismDescriptionFireflies are actually beetles.They tend to be brown andhave a soft body with leatheryfront wings. The males andfemales attract each otherwith a flashing green light,known as bioluminescence,which occurs when livingorganisms convert chemicalenergy into light. Firefly eggsand larvae also glow.Distribution and HabitatThe flashing light acts as a languagewhere different flashes act as codedsignals. For example, some malefireflies use blinking patterns to helpattract potential mates. If a female isinterested, she flashes back.AdditionaldrawingsFireflies can be seen in meadowsand open woods. They are found inall five physiographic provinces.Role in Food WebFirefly larvae are carnivores and eatsnails, slugs, other fireflies, aphids,mites and soft-bodied insects.Adults only live long enough toreproduce and usually do not eat atall, although they sometimes drinknectar. Predators include SpringPeepers, toads, salamanders, skinks,birds, spiders, moles and bats.r 72 rNow, let’s go outside and start exploring!r 10 rWhere it livesFeedingrelationships