The Beoufifullnvoder

Informational
~
The Beoufifullnvoder
by Doris Licameli
STRATEGIES & SkiLLS AT A GLANCE
Read to
Find Out
Why do som e
people wa nt to
stop loosestrife
from growing In
certai n places?
Comprehensio n
• Strategy: Monit or
Comp rehension
• Skill: Draw Conclusions
Vocabulary
• capture, disappear, enclosure,
harm, involved, protect, supply
Vocabular y Strategy
• Dictionory: Mult iple-Meaning
Words
CONTENT-AREA VOCABULARY
Words related to purple
loosestrife
(see glossary)
NATIONAL CONTENT STANDARDS
Science
• Life Sci e nce
Word cou nt : 688**
ph ot o c red it s 2: oKelly M ooneylCORBIS 3: CPot AndersonNisuols Unli mited . 4 : C POI A nderso n!
Visuals Unlim ited . 5: Cf ine Art Ph ot ograph ic: Library, london I An Resource, NY. 6: (e l) e lo h n
T. Fowler/Alomy; (br) C Bernd BloueylCornell. 7: C Mithoel P. Godomski/PhotoReseorchers Inc. 8
ClDave Sc hiefelbeinlGelty Imoges. 10: C Williom l eomonfAlomy Images. II: (erl C Doug londislForestry
I moges; (be) CDoug Londislforeslry Imoges. 12 : CErie Comb\lForeslry Images. 13: Macm illan!
McGraw-Hili. 14: C H. Stonley JohnsonlSuperslock , CVR : C Pol AndersonN isuols Unlimited . TOe:
(bkgd) C Pot AndersonNisuo ls Unl imi fed. TOC: (inseT) Macmillan/McGraw-HilI.
illustrotl on crediTS 3: (Ir) Joe LeM o nn!er. 9: (cr) Sue Norris.
A
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Pri n te d In the Unite d St ates of Am e nca
12.3 4 5 6 789 BSF 10 09 08 07 06 05
" T he total wo rd co u nt IS based on w ords 10 the r u nning text a nd headings only
Nume r als and w o rds In cap t ions. labe ls. diagrams. ch arts. a nd Side b ar s are not Iflcluded
by Doris Licameli
Table of Contents
Introduction .. . .. .. . ................ . . 2
Chapter 1
Where Did the Marsh
Monster Come From? .. ............ .. . 4
Chapter 2
Why Did th e Marsh Monster Spread? .. 6
Chapter 3
How Did the Seeds Trave l? .. ... ...... 8
Chapter 4
What Can Be Done? . .... ... . ....... 10
Chapter 5
How Can We Help? . ... .... . . ....... 12
Conclusion . . . . ... . ... . ... . . .......... 14
Glossary/Index . ...... . .... . . . .. . . .. .. 15
Comprehension Check .. .. ... ..... .... 16
Introduction
Wetland s are low, wet
areas. Marshes, swamps,
and bogs are kinds of
wetlands. Pond edges
and banks of streams
and rivers are, too.
Wetlands are home to
many plants and animals .
Native plants, grasses,
and tree s live near the
water. Ravens nest in
the tree s. You might see
a raccoon cleaning food
in the water. But this
environment is
in danger if purple
loosestrife shows up.
2
o This is a healthy
wetland .
Loosestrife harms
native plants. The plants
get choked off and die.
Without food and shelter,
the wildlife can't survive.
The balance of nature
is upset. That's why the
plant is called a marsh
monster.
o Purple
o
There are many
marshes in
North America.
loosestrife can be found in
almost every state in our country,
as well as parts of Canada.
Chapter 1
Where Did the Marsh
Monster Come From?
Purple loosestrife is a nati ve plant in
Euro p e and As ia. Th e plant is no t a p est
th ere. In fact, some people tho ug ht it w as
a helpful herb. How did it reach N orth
A meri ca?
Purpl e loosestrife ca m e t o No rth
A meri ca in the 18 00s. No o ne is sure
how it got here. Co ul d seed s have b een
brought here in ship s?
The Language of Flowers
..
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.
-,".......
t~;
,>.. ',', 'J)~'"
t . -. '. .
,1·
o'
.
~
-j
,
••
Hanakotoba (HAN-uh-koh-toh-buh) •. _ , ,'; " \ " ..•a-',
' .;., " ....
;,: :'.'
". \..
, ....
is the "language of flowers" in
) ••. 'Jr - , ../ ~":
Japan. It tells the meaning of
'~I.J 1.7' . '~ :...:.
each flower, According to
1.: fr.O:o~·I.., ~ · ~ ·
\
~/
Hanakotoba, purple loosestrife
~ '('
.,'..
is a flower that tells of sadness.
... '.'
I. "
.., '
4
ff
'
•
o Early immigrants sailed in ships like these.
Some people think immigrants brought
the seeds here. They planted them in their
gardens.
Almost 100 percent of purple loosestrife
seeds that are planted will sprout and grow.
5
Chapter 2
Why Did the Marsh
Monster Spread?
Purple loosestrife was not out of control
in Europe and Asia . It had natural enemies
there. Certain kinds of beetles ate its
roots, leaves, and stems . They kept the
plant from spreading too much.
o This
huge beetle
eats the leaves.
Larvae from one;)
kind of beetle eat
the roots.
6
Giant Reed
The giant reed was brought to
California in the 1700s. It is a huge
plant. Its reeds grow four to five
inches a day. Now giant reeds
cover thousands of acres. Like
purple loosestrife, they kill nearby
native plants.
In North America, howeve r,
th ere were no beetl es to
keep the purp le loosestrife in
co ntrol . The p lants g rew t all e r
t han bef ore. Th e root systems
grew stronger and longe r.
Na t ive wetl a nd p lan t s bega n
t o die o ut.
Purple loosestrife choke:l
off the cattails.
Some marsh monsters can be
25 feet (7.6 m) tall.
7
Chapter 3
How Did the
Seeds Travel?
Each loosestrife plant can make almost
three million seeds a year. The seeds are
small and light. A simple gust of wind can
carry them a long way.
Seeds can travel on an animal 's fur.
A human visitor to a wetland should take
care, too. The seeds might cling to pants
or a pair of boots.
c: Purple
loosestrife
seeds can travel on
almost anything .
Purple loosestrife grows quickly.
Rootstocks grow about one
foot a year. A rootstock is like
an underground stem that grows
sideways. Plants grow from the
rootstock. One "stem" can send
up 30 to 50 spikes each spring .
Then they will sprout a sea of
purple flowers.
This d iagram shows how spikes:l
grow from a rootstock.
The marsh monster's rootstocks are strong
enough to grow in gravel, sand, clay, or
between rocks.
9
Chapter 4
What Can Be Done?
People have not been able to kill
loosestrife with chemical sprays. Burning
and flooding the plants doesn't help either.
Scientists wanted to protect wetlands
from more harm. They came up with a
plan to fight the pest. They would learn
more about the marsh monster's natural
enemies-beetles. Maybe some of the
beetles could be brought to North America.
But would it be dangerous to other plants
and animals to bring them here?
There used to be many black
terns in northern New York.
These birds disappeared at the
same time purple loosestrife
began growing in the area.
10
Scientists hoped to find beetles that
would eat only purple loosestrife. They
didn't want bugs that might kill other
plants by mistake. They chose four
insects to study.
In Europe the scientists captured a
supp ly of beetles. They raised them here.
Finally they released the beetles. At some
test sites, the beetles ate most of the
purple loosestrife.
This site shows the
land before the beetles
were released.:l
U This photo shows the
same site after the
beetles were there.
Chapter 5
How Can We Help?
Millions more beetles were needed.
Scientists asked a few schools to get
involved. They thought students could
raise beetles as a science project.
Students from some schools in
Indiana and Wisconsin joined the study.
They began with a supply of beetles
and a plastic wading pool. The pool
was an enclosure where the loosestrife
would grow.
U The students used ordinary
things to grow the plants.
Beetles Can Help
The students started out with 100 beetles
the first year. After eight weeks they had
10,000 beetles to place on plants. Some
science classes saved 300 of the beetles
for the next round.
The students got loosestrife rootstocks
from a wetland . Th ey planted them in the
pool. When the plants reached 24 inches
tall, the students added the beetles.
Th e stud ent s p laced ten beetles on each
plant. A screen around each plant kept
th e beetles from getting out. Th e students
soon learned that one beetle cou ld hatch
over 100 offspring! After a w hile they
p laced the beetles in the wet land. There
the beetles cou ld stop the marsh monsters
from choking out other plants.
13
Conclusion
No one knew purple loosestrife would
be so harmful when it got here. It turned
into a beautiful invader with nothing to
stop it from spreading. Now there are
beetles to attack the marsh monster. Our
native plants are sprouting again. Can the
return of native animals be far behind?
U This wetland is healthy without loosestrife.
Glossary
environment (en-VIGH-ruhn-muhnt) the place
or condition w here plants, animals, and
humans live (page 2)
herb (UHRB) a plant used in medicine or as
a seaso ning (page 4)
native (NAY-tiv) a plant or animal that lives
or grows in a particular place (page 2)
natural (NACH-uhr-uhl) something real or alive,
acting in the usual way (page 6)
nature (NAY-chuhr) everything that is living
(page :1)
rootstock (ROOT-stahk) a root that a plant
uses to reproduce (page 9)
Index
beetles, 6, 7, 70-/3, 74
giant reed, 7
scientists, 70-72
seeds, 4-5, 8
sprays, 70
wetlands, 2, 7, 8, 70, 73, 74
15
Comprehension Check
Summarize
Clu e
+
Use a Draw Conclusions Chart
Clue
to tell about purple loosestrife.
+
Clu e
Should people be concerned
about purple loosestrife? Why?
+
Conclusion
Think and Compare
1. Turn to pages 12-13
In
this book. What do
you think the students learned by helping
to solve the loosestrife problem?
(Draw Conclusions)
2. If you visited a wetlands area, what would
you do to make sure you didn't carry
seeds home with you? Why? (Apply)
3. Non-native plants are still coming into
this country. Some stores sell them
to people who plant them in their
gardens. What do you think might
happen as a result of this? (Evaluate)
16
Write a Letter
Write a letter to a plant store explaining why
it should or should not sell purple loosestrife
seeds . Don't forget to give reasons for
your idea .
Draw a Flow Chart
Find a picture of a wetlands f lower seed, or
draw one. Place it in the middle of a chart .
Show how it can travel. Show how the seed
might begin to grow in another place. At the
end , draw a finished f lower.
9-,,"0'''0
Ecosystems
I
Science
~
Benchmark 30
Lexile 630
3.6 Week 5
rhe McGraw H,U Compa/1les
978·0.<J2·200326·5
MHID: 0·02·200326·6