Taraxacum officinale (Common Dandelion)

For this organism sample I chose Taraxacum officinale (Common Dandelion), because I am a boring person. The environment was a baseball field at Picnic Point Elementary at approximately 47.8728° N, 122.3132° W. The environment was a field with mixed grasses and low flowing plants, only 6 different species were easily observable. The field was flat and groomed, meaning very little environmental change occurred between each sample along the transect. All of the plants apeared to occupy the same habitat, making the other species the largest limiting factor to the growth of the dandelion population.

Along the edges of field, on the other side of the fence, was a mature 2nd growth forest with mixed conifer and broad leaf trees. The edges of the field had scattered fallen leaves, however very few were in the middle of the field and aren't seen in the transect. It is likely that the leaves had been recently removed. Tire ruts were also found scattered around the field, but by chance were also not represented in the transect. Despite this, I believe my samples are an accurate depiction of the population, but it is possible that multiple species were counted. Another species, Taraxacum japonicum (Japanese Danelion), looks remarkably similar and is known to grow in the united state.

Overall 35 Taraxcum officinale were found in the survey, averaging to 2.92 plants per sample. There was another species present that looked quite similar, and more abundant, making the count difficult. Most of the Taraxcum officinale were not flowing or had their flower removed, further complicating the count.

Taraxcum officinale were spread out randomly throughout the field. Their distribution and proximity to each other appeared to only be affected by other species that were dominating the area.

Surveys like these can give snapshots of small ecosystems that can represent the larger ecosystem they belong to. By looking at these much smaller snap shots, it become easier to evaluate how the ecosystem is developing. By looking at one species at a time, we can tell how it is competing with other species around it.