European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 23, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Hard cracked land near Covington ga., gives testimony to the severity of the . Drought of 88. The big drought by Elizabeth Pennisi United press International the drought that has ravaged american Farmland and threatened livelihoods has Bee democratic striking songbirds Northern forests and wildflowers As Well As  May be fewer Robins to brighten the Spring in affected areas. There Are already fewer mosquitoes. Even fish in Inland lakes Are feeling the effects of this unusually hot dry season. Just How unusual and therefore devastating these effects Are depends on your perspective according to ecologists across the United states. What we perceive As unusual is purely a function of the time Frame we re looking at said John a. Wiens professor of ecology at Colorado state University. For most of nature it s just another year in their thousands of years of existence said Stephen p. Havera wildlife ecologist for the Illinois natural history Survey. But of what a year. Called the most widespread severe drought in the United states in 30 years by the National oceanographic and atmospheric administration with no end in sigh this weather is taking its toll on natural communities As Well As on farms. Farmers May lose this year s crops but lakes and forests May be altered forever especially if drought persists More than one year. At the Kellogg biological station in Michigan annual plants in forests seem to have been hit the worst. I be never seen anything like this said Deborah Goldberg assistant professor at the University of Michigan. Even fairly Hardy weeds Are dying. It s just incredibly  the Spring was wet enough to get Many plants started but now soil is Bone dry and crumbles and blows away As dust when handled. Wildflowers Are one Quarter their Normal size have fewer shoots and fewer Flowers. About one third of the plants have died others lie Limp on the ground according to Stephen Tonsor assistant professor of botany and Plant pathology at Michigan state University. Plants like Pitcher plants that depend on moist environments suffer the most. In bogs the water level has dropped so much that Pitcher plants have turned Brown in july a japanese Maple has already turned Bright red leaves on other Maples Are Brown and wilted. Aspens have lost leaves and new Needles on White Pine Michigan s state tree Are one half their Normal length. Only plants in dry Sandy patches of Prairie Are thriving said Tonsor. The prickly Pear with its Bright yellow Flowers is doing very Well and if the drought lasts several years May expand into other areas. If this season is an indicator of a change in weather then a few years in a Row could substantially tuesday August 23, 1988 alter the Plant communities. That would be a catastrophe said Tonsor. However catastrophes like this Are nature s Way of rearranging ecosystems. It s Only from a fairly narrow human perspective that it s a problem said Tonsor. But he is not about to let nature take its course in his experiments. As part of a project funded by the National science foundation he has been following 3,500 individual plants monitoring their growth. About 65 percent of these weeds have died. If we Don t get some rain soon i will have to Start watering them said Tonsor. Otherwise years Worth of work could be lost. To do that he will have to run hundreds of feet of Hose from a nearby irrigated Orchard. At Trout Lake in Northern Wisconsin site of a Multi year research project funded by the National science foundation scientists wonder whether certain fish will disappear from Small lakes. Lake Levels Are the lowest Ever measured lower even than during the 1930s, when another famous drought struck old timers from the area say. Tributaries have dried up and ceased to be a source of fresh water and nutrients or organisms to the Lake. The consequences of drought can be hard to pin Down said Wiens. Depending on How organisms respond there May be severe time  yet those responses alter the natural Community forever. Events like droughts can cause an ecological crunch that tests the organism s ability to survive. While doing her research and teaching at the Kellogg biological station this summer Anne b. Clark has noticed that a lot More animals squirrels groundhogs Are depending on mulberries for food but that the Mulberry Trees Are producing fewer berries. That suggests there s a lot of Competition for them said Clark adjunct assistant professor at Michigan state University in Lansing. Other typical foods seem absent. There Are fewer Mosquito and no mayflies insects that need water during the Early part of their life Cycle. Robins Are having a Tough time finding Worms and so get by on fewer of their favorite items. They la survive the summer but May fail to store up enough fat to make it through the Winter or to Migrate to Winter Homes said Clark. My worry is that those Birds Are not in Good condition she said. Trees will also be ill prepared for Winter. If they drop their leaves Early they also have lower reserves. The drier Wood cracks More easily in wind storms. Roots have a harder time holding on in the dry soil and so More Trees maybe toppled in fall and Winter freezes and storms. That can have a Large effect on How Well Birds do said Clark. Woodpeckers and Nuthatches depend on holes in Trees for shelter. Water Birds will also suffer. As Small shallow Ponds shrink the fish and frogs in them become More concentrated and easier catches for herons and bitterns. But once these watering holes dry up these Birds too will have to move on or go hungry. Moving on is one Way animals Cope with drought. Birds can Fly North to moister cooler places. However Many songbirds Are very Picky about where they Breed. It these Breeding grounds dry out so that there s not enough food for Young then those populations of Birds could be lost said Clark. In Illinois where the humidity is so Low that there is no Dew animals Are travelling farther to find water and More Are being run Over As they Cross roads Blu thirds have had 20 percent to 25 percent fewer Young and fewer Birds laying eggs that could mean smaller populations in years to come in Kansas native plants Are struggling but surviving in the Kanza Prairie near Manhattan Kanthe tall grass is simply stunted. It s knee High instead of thigh High according to Ted Barkley director of the research project there. Its roots reach deep so it can tap water Well below the parched surface. The Prairie supports 400 types of plants enough variety so that if one Plant does not do Well others will. These plants have evolved to Cope with dry spells Barkley said. The stars and stripes Page 13