- According to the segment, what is a park’s purpose?
- What types of environments were among those shown and described in the segment?
- In what ways do those environments compare to your idea of a “park”?
- Which of those environments would you like to know more about?
APES: Land and water Use Unit
PARK PROFILE
America’s national parks represent a wide variety of environments, from glacial ice to fiery volcanoes and dry deserts to deep fjords. To explore a specific park, start with the Web site of the National Park Service at www.nps.gov. Use the site’s “Find a Park” tool to locate your park. Then research its dedicated pages for acts about the park that you can share with others. Organize your information using the following table.
EXPLORING
LOCATION State and Region – Alcatraz Island is located in San Francisco, CA
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS -
Park borders (area)- It is a secluded island that has a tight security due to the prison built on it.
Size of the park (acres)- 22 Acres of land
Climate – The climate on the island is quite erratic often shifting form sunny to foggy, or even windy due to the surrounding ocean. The most desirable climate there occurs from April to June and again in September and October. The temperature peaks at 75 degrees F and does not drop below 38 degrees F. Often rain is expected during the winter unto early spring.
Landforms- It is an Island; it contains gardens which is the main focus of the conservation of the island.
Vegetation- Alcatraz visitors often find a landscape filled with variant types of old roses, fig trees, bulbs and a variety of colorful flowers. The roses were imported from the Mediterranean islands often surviving with little water. The flowers include lilies, irises, hydrangeas, and marigolds, to name some. However the island is flourishing with flora.
Wildlife- The wildlife is dominated by birds due to their tendency to hunt for the fish from the surrounding ocean of the island. Also there are smaller types of animals due to few resources such as deer mice, banana slugs, and other insects.
HUMAN CHARACTERISTICS
Visitors per year – Approximately 1.3 million people per year.
Most popular visitor sites- Many are there for the gardens and the prison.
History of development (movement) – It was first developed as an impenetrable prison for the most notorious criminals, however now it is one that people seek to see and even visit to see the magnificent flowers that blooms annually.
Changes in landscape over time- It includes defensive, recreational, residential, industrial, and prison. Throughout time the fortification is not as detrimental and the tourism increased to bear witness to the legendary prison. Also the residency has increased.
(human-environment interaction) – Humans have almost destroyed the beautiful gardens of the Island until the conservation communities started a movement to preserve not only the history of the island, but also the beauty behind the fortifications.