more at
http://news.quickfound.net/cities/los_angeles
.html
Overview-summary of
California natural resources as of
1950.
Public domain film from the
US National Archives, slightly cropped to remove uneven edges, with the aspect ratio corrected, and one-pass brightness-contrast-color correction & mild video noise reduction applied.
The soundtrack was also processed with volume normalization, noise reduction, clipping reduction, and/or equalization (the resulting sound, though not perfect, is far less noisy than the original).
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/
3.0/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California
...Flora and fauna
California boasts several superlatives in its collection of flora: the largest trees, the tallest trees, and the oldest trees.
California's native grasses are perennial plants. After
European contact, these were generally replaced by invasive species of
European annual grasses; and, in modern times, California's hills turn a characteristic golden-brown in summer.
Because California has the greatest diversity of climate and terrain, the state has six life zones which are the lower
Sonoran (desert); upper
Sonoran (foothill regions and some coastal lands), transition (coastal areas and moist northeastern counties); and the
Canadian, Hudsonian, and Arctic
Zones, comprising the state's highest elevations.
Plant life in the dry climate of the lower Sonoran zone contains a diversity of native cactus, mesquite, and paloverde. The
Joshua tree is found in the
Mojave Desert.
Flowering plants include the dwarf desert poppy and a variety of asters.
Fremont cottonwood and valley oak thrive in the
Central Valley. The upper Sonoran zone includes the chaparral belt, characterized by forests of small shrubs, stunted trees, and herbaceous plants. Nemophila, mint, Phacelia,
Viola, and the
California poppy (
Eschscholzia californica) – the state flower – also flourish in this zone, along with the lupine, more species of which occur here than anywhere else in the world.
The transition zone includes most of California's forests with the redwood (
Sequoia sempervirens) and the "big tree" or giant sequoia (
Sequoiadendron giganteum), among the oldest living things on earth (some are said to have lived at least 4,
000 years).
Tanbark oak,
California laurel, sugar pine, madrona, broad-leaved maple, and
Douglas-fir also grow here...
The high elevations of the Canadian zone allow the
Jeffrey pine, red fir, and lodgepole pine to thrive.
Brushy areas are abundant with dwarf manzanita and ceanothus; the unique
Sierra puffball is also found here.
Right below the timeberline, in the Hudsonian zone, the whitebark, foxtail, and silver pines grow. At about 10,
500 feet (3,
200 m), begins the Arctic zone, a treeless region whose flora include a number of wildflowers, including
Sierra primrose, yellow columbine, alpine buttercup, and alpine shooting star...
In the deserts of the lower Sonoran zone, the mammals include the jackrabbit, kangaroo rat, squirrel, and opossum.
Common birds include the owl, roadrunner, cactus wren, and various species of hawk. The area's reptilian life include the sidewinder viper, desert tortoise, and horned toad. The upper Sonoran zone boasts mammals such as the antelope, brown-footed woodrat, and ring-tailed cat.
Birds unique to this zone are the
California thrasher, bushtit, and
California condor.
In the transition zone, there are Colombian black-tailed deer, black bears, gray foxes, cougars, bobcats, and
Roosevelt elk. Reptiles such as the garter snakes and rattlesnakes inhabit the zone. In addition, amphibians such as the water puppy and redwood salamander are common too. Birds such as the kingfisher, chickadee, towhee, and hummingbird thrive here as well.
The Canadian zone mammals include the mountain weasel, snowshoe hare, and several species of chipmunks. Conspicuous birds include the blue-fronted jay, Sierra chickadee. Sierra hermit thrush, water ouzel, and
Townsend's solitaire. As one ascends into the Hudsonian zone, birds become scarcer. While the Sierra rosy finch is the only bird native to the high
Arctic region, other bird species such as the hummingbird and
Clark's nutcracker.
Principal mammals found in this region include the Sierra coney, white-tailed jackrabbit, and the bighorn sheep.
As of April 2003, the bighorn sheep was listed as endangered by the
US Fish and Wildlife Service. The fauna found throughout several zones are the mule deer, coyote, mountain lion, northern flicker, and several species of hawk and sparrow.
Aquatic life in California thrives, from the state's mountain lakes and streams to the rocky
Pacific coastline...
As of April 2003,
118 California animals were on the federal endangered list;
181 plants were listed as endangered or threatened...
- published: 24 Sep 2015
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