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The animals native to the North America are the mallard duck, the painted turtle, Canada Goose, Eastern Gray Squirrel, and millipede. The mallard duck is a native species to North America, Europe, and Asia. It is an invasive species to New Zealand and Australia. Anas platyrhynchos hybridizes with endemic duck species, some of which are now threatened with extinction. The Painted Turtle is the most widespread native turtle of North America. The turtle is classified as G5 (demonstrably widespread) in its Natural Heritage Global Rank, and the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) rates it as a “Least Concern” species. The Canada Goose is a native species of North America, and are not endangered because they can be commonly found in urban and rural parks. The Eastern Gray Squirrel is a tree squirrel native to North America, and are not endangered. They are a prolific and adaptable species that thrive in human settlements and dense woodland. The Narceus americanus is a native millipede to North America.
The invasive animals are the Lumbricus terrestris (earthworm), honey bee, feral rock pigeon, and house sparrow. The Lumbricus terrestris is a large reddish earthworm native to Europe. In parts of Europe, it is locally endangered due to predation by the New Zealand and Australian Flatworm that was introduced there. Apis mellifera is a species of honey bee that are native to Europe, Asia, and Africa. It is considered as an invasive species to North America since it was introduced in the early 1600s. Parasites are the primary reason honeybees are endangered. They live off the honeybee and slowly kill the bee, allowing the infestation to increase and affect the whole colony. They are also endangered due to a variety of man-made problems, including habitat destruction and the misuse of pesticides. The feral rock pigeon is an invasive species that originated from Europe, North Africa, and Asia. Pigeons living in the US arrived with the settlers of Virginia in the early 1600s. They are not endangered, and usually reach their highest densities of population in central parts of cities. The House Sparrow is an invasive species that originated in the Middle East and spread, along with agriculture, to Eurasia and North Africa. The house sparrow has been introduced to many parts of the world and can spread quickly; they are extremely common and are not endangered.
The animals we identified all have their habitat requirements met in central park and each serve a function in the ecological neighborhood. The mallards and Canada Geese both require wetlands and are omnivores, consuming both plant life, small insects, and fish. The painted turtle lives in slow-moving fresh water and consumes aquatic vegetation, algae, and small water creatures. All three of these can be found in Turtle Pond, and the birds can be found in other bodies of water in the park. The pigeons and sparrows both tend to live in proximity to humans. They both feed on small seeds or, particularly in cities, on food left by humans such as crumbs and litter. Pigeons nest on ledges such as those provided by buildings, bridges, or rock formations while sparrows prefer to nest in holes such as crevices in houses and cavities in trees. The squirrels live in trees and make dens upon large tree branches and within the hollow trunks of trees. They are scatter hoarders and bury food in small bundles over a large area. They eat a variety of food including bark, and many different seeds and nuts. The earthworm lives in garden and agricultural soils where it makes deep burrows and comes to the surface to feed. The honey bees require an abundance of flowering plants and suitable places to build hives, both of which are found in central park due to the large number of flowering trees and perennial flowers. The millipedes are native species and feed on organic matter in the soil.
Base on our observations, the most common animals are the feral rock pigeons, house sparrow, and eastern gray squirrel. We witnessed at least 5 of these different animals during our exploration. We saw a few Canada Goose and Mallard in the pond while we walked by the bridge and the fountain, and some honey bees when we went close up to flowers. In the pond, we also saw a few painted turtles swimming and laying on rocks. Lastly, we only saw one earthworm and millipede because we actually dug the soil to see if there were any creatures.
The animals we found were all relatively small and benign to human activity. Our readings have detailed early settlers commitment to ridding the area of species they thought posed a threat, and with the way the city has formed many of these species stand no chance at ever reappearing in the city. Take, for example, a hypothetical reinstitution of a wild wolves in Central Park; it would never happen, because the animals are considered dangerous to human welfare, nor would the park in it’s current form be able to sustain a large wild wolf population even if conservators tried.
The conditions that make the park unsuitable for many animals have allowed other species to flourish in their absence. Due to a lack of predators, certain species have populated beyond control and have become ubiquitous both in and outside the park. The feral rock pigeons we observed serve as the most obvious example: they require little in the way of environmental conditions and have few dietary restrictions, enabling them to adapt to life in all corners of Manhattan. Thus, they have spread to areas uninhabitable by most other non-human animals and dominated the landscape.
In reality, most processes in Central park and the surrounding area are influenced by humans, even if indirectly. In her talk Felicity Arengo mentioned that extinction is a natural part of evolution and that we are currently undergoing the sixth major one in history; she also made sure to stress, however, that while past major extinctions have been caused by catastrophes such as meteors, in this one humans are the catalysts. Our modification of the environment to suit our purposes inevitably destroys the habitats of other species and upsets ecosystems.
Based on her talk, Dr. Arengo seems to be trying to maintain biodiversity on the Earth as a whole. She appears be working towards this by spending much of her time studying the habitats of animals: she mentions traveling to Latin America and arranging deals with the locals in order to prevent the destruction of wetland flamingo habitats, and also speaks about tracking turtle movement near an atoll and measuring toxin levels in the area. She then mentions preventing human encroachment and over-hunting in bear territory, and goes on to discuss the ramifications of bee colony collapse syndrome. Based on Arengo’s emphasis on the creation and maintenance of habitats for animals, it would follow that Central Park does indeed play a vital role in biodiversity, as it is a vital home to many different species of organisms. Many species of birds see Central Park as an oasis during their long migrations, and look in the park for a place to rest. Insects, chipmunks, turtles, and other animals that would not be able to survive the rigors of city life have also found shelter in the park. It is clear that the park’s existence is helping to maintain biodiversity in the area, as the absence of the park would select for only the animals that are able to coexist with human, diminishing the biodiversity of New York as a whole.
This biodiversity is worth caring about, and Dr. Arengo mentions multiple justifications for this argument. She states that 50% of medicines are based on elements of biodiversity, and in the same vein also mentions the production of materials, which may include Velcro, rubber, and various fabrics that have been drawn from nature. Beyond the creation of new inventions, however, Arengo also emphasizes the contribution of each species to the overall ecosystem. Just as the park provides a home for these species, each species also plays a vital part in the overall maintenance of the park. It is worth noting that the biodiversity of these animals and the ecosystem that they create are part what makes the park beneficial for humans. The original purpose of the part was to create a pleasant, natural environment for people living in the city, and the presence of various animal species in the park certainly contributes towards that. The biodiversity of the park is worth maintaining because it beneficial both for the humans that visit and for the animals that live there. To take away this biodiversity would be to fatally damage the ecosystem of the city.
The group only came across pigeons on the walk back from the park. Though we only found pigeons, we could have just as easily come across squirrels or certain insects. We saw pigeons both inside and outside the park, and found squirrels in the park, an animal we know to roam the streets outside the park. We came across vastly more animals in the park than on the street.
We were frustrated at the lack of animals we found outside the park. We did not even come across a squirrel; we finally found some pigeons outside of Hunter North. From the snapshot of the animal life on the city streets on the walk back to Hunter, the diversity and number of animals in the park dwarfs that of animals on the city streets. A further investigation of animal life on city streets would have yielded a larger sample of animals, but the park certainly has greater numbers and diversity of animals.
