After reading the Biodiversity Handbook, I was very surprised at the fact that so many endangered species lived in our city using skyscrapers and other landmarks as their sanctuary. For example, the peregrine falcon have successfully used steeples of churches for nesting locations for their young to grow safely. Another species that I was familiar with being endangered was the piping plover that nests on beaches. Living close to Robert Moses beach on long island, I was constantly exposed to the presence of these birds. A lot of our beaches were fenced off and marked as nesting grounds for these birds. I never understood why they blocked it off but now learning that they are endangered it is nice to know that our parks department is taking a step to protect them.
I also found it quite interesting that the global value of natural landscape production is valued at $33 trillion, which is twice the global GNP of $18 trillion of 1997 dollars. Natural landscapes provide things such as aspirin from the willow tree. Another things I thought was interesting was how much money the trees in New York City save the city. By catching falling rain, trees save the city $35 million in storm surge maintenance costs and also $6.9 million is saved by the shade that trees provide.
One thing that I felt made an impact on me was when they showed the two pictures of soil and the layers that there were going down 40+ inches. The soil in corporate parks woods in Staten Island was clean and naturally layered. However, the soil in La Guardia, which has been affected by human interaction was littered with fragments and garbage and was not naturally layered at all. These pictures shows a true affect of what humans have done rather than just words on paper.
-Michael Woyevodsky
