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Published: September 25th 2008
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1.) Looking southward from Butte over Lake Yellowstone from the eastern rim of the caldera, 16/9/08.
Everything in this photo is within the caldera with the exception of the Tetons. Grand Teton can just be discerned to the right of centre as a white pyramid.
The dead trees here are Lodge Pole Pines that, as I understand it, were burnt in the 1988 fires. These were so fierce that they sterilized the soil here so that seeds that were released from specialised cones by the fire were destroyed. On the first evening in the Park I took a guided tour at sunset to Butte which is a hilltop on the eastern side of the caldera rim. I was astounded by the scale of the caldera: in the accopanying photos (1 to 3), which were taken a few days later, almost everything except the most distant peaks are within the caldera. It is elliptically shaped and is some 72 Kms from the southwest to the northeast and about 56 Kms from the southeast to the northwest. Within this caldera are various remnants and reminders of the last major eruption 640,000 years ago: massive lava flows; geysers, hot springs and boiling mud pots (photos 4 to 18) that vent their superheated steam and contribute their run-off to the melting snow and, in the past, the melting glacial ice to carve canyons and waterfalls (photos 19 to 22) through softer strata below the relatively hard lava. I also took pleasure in the beauty of the landscape and there are three photos of it (photos 23 to 25).
As always, living organisms have to deal with their ambient conditions as best they can. Whether they be bacteria that live in superheated
2.) Looking west from Butte, 16/9/08.
Everything in this photo is within the caldera. water at 105 degrees C, various other species, together with algae, that can tolerate various temperatures down to 20 to 30 degrees, they have to find a niche or they die. In addition they often have to survive high mineral content and high acidity. The rich colours that were seen in the outflow from various geysers and springs (photos 4 to 18, and in particular Morning Glory Pool, photo 10) were due to such organisms and, as Yellowstone is a prime example of such bacterial communities, more photos of them follow (photos 26 to 39).
Higher plants and animals also have, of course, to deal with the ambient conditions: plants usually have an abundance of nutrients in soil that is derived from magma and larva but, at least at the higher elevations, may suffer from a paucity of water. Nevertheless, all but the highest peaks are clothed in various species of plants with the Lodge Pole Pine, as has been seen in many of the photos, being the dominant tree. Other gymnosperms are also present and also the angiosperms, Aspen and Cottonwood, in the valleys. Fires are quite common in the Park and maybe started by lightning or human
3.) Looking north from Butte, 16/9/08.
Again, everything with in this photo is within the caldera. The mountains in the distance are the Washburn Range and form the northern rim of the caldera. activity. They have a quite profound affect on the vegetation in that the dominant Lodge Pole Pines are killed and can only regenerate if the fire is not so hot that it completely destroys all the seeds. Some are adapted to fire in that they are only shed after being burnt but the remains from the extensive fires of 1988 are still obvious (photo 1). In other places there was an understory of some two metres of new trees while the dead trees of up to 10 metres remained. Many other species are affected by fire: in particular the fireweed,
Epilobium augustifolium, growing rapidly with bright red foliage after fires. One or two were seen in flower and several in seed (photo 40). However, by mid-September the flowering season is essentially over so that only a few other flowers were seen. Among them was the beautiful haresbells (photo 41).
The animals are, of course, in turn dependent on the plants whether it be for food, shelter or as a food source for their prey. There were many birds in the Park with Ravens being common, the occasional hawk in the tree tops, Canada Geese on the waterways and some
4.) Old Faithful at 6:30pm, 14/9/08.
Old Faithful was at near maximum height here.
After an eruption the geyser's empty 'plumbing system' fills with cold water which begins to heat up. When the water is above boiling point bubbles of steam rise up and amalgamate to form a 'plunger' that blows the overlying water out in a fresh eruption. Sandhill Cranes in an open meadow (photo 42). There were also many elk (photos 43 and 44), pronghorns in the Lamar Valley (photo 45), and bison (photos 46 and 47) in the Park. Moose and Black and Grizzly Bears can also be seen, but not by me. However, I did see a pack of four wolves on the far side of the Lamar Valley for a few seconds through a telescope. Until the reintroduction of wolves the Coyote (photo 48) was the dominant carnivore - although it is parhaps better described as a scavenger - in the Park and it is of interest that the population of elks and deer has, as expected, slightly declined but the amount of willow, a food source for herbivores has somewhat increased.
Even in a national park man has a profound effect on the environment by road building and his need for food and shelter. It therefore seems to me that it is appropriate, in the spirit of conservation, that the Park management has encouraged the re-introduction of refurbished and, in some cases restored, coaches from the 1930's for the transport of visitors on guided tours (photo 49).
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