Site Gamma

Date: October 14th, 2016
Time: 1:56 PM to 3:08 PM
Weather: 57 degrees Fahrenheit, sunny
Location: Lesley University Brattle Campus - Cambridge, MA

I wandered to the very edge of the Brattle Campus to an area that is not frequently passed by students or visitors. There is a large tree there that I believe is a European beech (fagus sylvatica). I found the shells and seeds of its fruit all over the ground around it. The tree's trunk was wide enough that I could not wrap my arms around it fully. The bark was smooth and grey, with the exception of some black scarring. The leaves were plentiful and only a handful of them had begun to turn yellow. Thick, dark roots protruded from the ground around the tree, and were sometimes separated by large areas of moss. There was also an area at the base of the tree that seemed to have been completely stripped of its bark.

The burst open beech fruits:

Area at the base of tree that has been stripped of bark:

Moss and a flowering plant between the roots of the tree:

I found long, dry seed pods scattered around the area, and traced them to a nearby tree that I believe is a honeylocust (gleditsia triacanthos). I spent over ten minutes prying open and extracting the seeds inside, which was more difficult than I expected. Sometimes I would encounter a green, sticky substance inside the seed pod. I wonder if these pods needed more time to mature, as the seeds were green-ish and difficult to reach.

I noticed a lot of squirrels around, but it did not seem as if the beech or honeylocust seeds were being eaten. I decided to collect 35 of each and place them at the base of the tree to see if they would disappear. I also collected 12 acorns from the oak trees at Site Alpha (small acorns to the right of the beech seeds), Site Beta (small acorns to the left of the beech seeds), and large acorns from an oak not far from Site Beta. I put these seeds out at 3:08 PM:

I decided to add two chestnuts, cracked corn, and sunflower seeds that I had in my room to the squirrel offerings. I returned at 4:06 PM to do so, and found that the area had already been disturbed! There were 6 Site Beta acorns, 2 large acorns, and 2 Site Alpha acorns missing. It did not appear that any of the beech or honeylocust seeds had been eaten. This is what it looked like:

This is what it looked like at 4:09 PM, when I added a few other food options:

I forgot about my little "experiment" due to other school work, and when I returned on October 16th at 3:39 PM, I found that there were only remnants of what I had left still there. All of the acorns and chestnuts were gone, and sunflower seed shells were scattered all over. The beech and honeylocust seeds had been disturbed, but I could only count a few that were missing. Some of the honeylocust seeds had been halved, but not eaten. This is what it looked like:

Oh, and as for macromolecules, I think the most abundant type in my site would be carbohydrates. I looked up the nutritional information for chestnuts, acorns, honey locust seeds, and beech nuts, and many of them were high in carbohydrates with small amounts of protein. The honey locust seeds and the pulp surrounding them are high in sugar, and can be used as a coffee and to make beer. Beech nuts were the only fruits that were higher in fat than in carbohydrates. I am not sure if all of these nuts are high in carbs to attract animals, or to provide nutrients for germination (or maybe a bit of both).