Page 617: Forests in the Western United States and Their Recovery after Wildfires of 2000

Intermountain Forest Association
This page describes the Intermountain Forest Association's point of view on the management of forests after the devastation of wildfires. Read the Association's opinions about keeping the forests alive and rehabilitating the black areas. How does wildfire affect soil's ability to absorb water?

Great Outdoor Recreation Pages
Visit the GORP site to read an opinion article about forest recovery after wildfires. The article's author, John Grassy, offers the example of Yellowstone National Park's recovery after its catastrophic fire to describe nature's power in regeneration. How is the forest ecosystem affected as a result of wildfires?

Page 633: Coral Reefs

U.S. Coral Reef Task Force
The U.S. Coral Reef Task Force was established in 1998 with the goals of reducing coral reef destruction and promoting conservation. Scroll down the page, then browse through the site. What are some of the threats to coral reef ecosystems?

Hawai'i Coral Reef Network
The Hawai'i Coral Reef Network is a group of people who are interested in conserving coral reef resources. Visit other parts of this site to learn about the coral reef ecosystems around the Hawaiian islands. Watch the slide show called "Why are coral reefs important?" by clicking the picture next to the caption. What forces of nature do coral reefs protect shorelines from?

Page 639: Wetlands

Environmental Protection Agency
This site, sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency, provides information about America's wetlands. Click the links for America's Wetlands, What are Wetlands?, Wetlands and Nature, and Wetlands and People to find out about this threatened environment. Why are wetlands a valuable natural resource?

North Carolina Estuary in QuickTime Virtual Reality
Visit this site to view images of the North Carolina Estuarium located in Washington, North Carolina. Click the buttons to view different Quicktime presentations. Describe the environments you see.

Field Guide, page 806: Recyclable Plastic

Consumer Recycling Guide
This site provides tips and guidelines for recycling many types of products. Click on “Guide to recycling common materials” and read the section on plastics. Why is it important to know which type of plastics you can recycle? Can you recycle all plastic products?

How to recycle plastic
Read suggestions on how to recycle plastic. The number on the bottom of a plastic container tells you what type of plastic it is and whether or not it can be recycled. Which types of plastic can be recycled? Which types cannot be recycled?

Field Guide, page 810: Cones

American Museum of Natural History
Visit this page in the American Museum of Natural History to find out how to distinguish conifers that are native to the United States. Use the dichotomous key to identify different types of conifers. To conduct the activity, you will need to a twig that has fruits or cones that seems to be typical of the tree you are trying to identify. What type of conifer did you classify?

Oregon State University
Go to the Tree identification page at Oregon State University. You can use the online dichotomous key to determine what type of Pacific Northwest conifer you have. Click the dichotomous key link to begin the analysis. What type of tree does your specimen match?