Biodiversity in Foss Park
Lasata Maharjan, Haimonot Tsegai, Maika Teascher Li
July 29, 2023
There is lots of biodiversity at Foss Park, in Somerville, Massachusetts. Such as several types of trees, many different plants, and many animals.
Fauna
There are lots of animals around the Foss Park. There are also insects and bugs inside the park. I observed more birds than squirrels in the park, but there are lots of other animals hidden around the park. When you see an ant hole, you might think “is there a queen ant in every ant hole?” Yes, every ant hole has at least one queen ant in it.
When it rains you might even see a worm in a puddle (if you’re lucky)! The most common birds that I observed are Robins, Sparrows, and a brownish blackish bird called a common grackle. If your are lucky your might even see a different bird.
If you se a brown ant it probably would be a pavement ant. You also might see moon moths in the summer. They look like butterflies but they’re moths.
Flora
Now you might be wondering, “Well what about the plants? What are they called?” Well lucky for you, I’m going to tell you some of them.
First, the Chicory flower is a blue-ish, purple-ish flower, with around 16 petals on each flower. You can actually eat Chicory flowers. People commonly use these flowers for tea. You can eat the roots of the Chicory flower.
Another flower is the yellow toadflax. This flower has a light yellow outside ,and it has a dark yellow inside, making it look like an egg. They have a long stem, and there are lots of leaves on the stem.
Next is the woodsorrel. The woodsorrel looks like a clover. Growing from the woodsorrel are tiny yellow flowers.
Now for some more well-known, common plants, dandelions, clovers, clover flowers, weeds, and, of course, grass. Let’s start with dandelions. In some seasons, the dandelions are yellow, around the spring the dandelions are white. You can blow on the dandelions and all the “petals” will fly away and make new dandelions where they land, because all the “petals” are seeds.
Next are clovers and clover flowers. Clovers are small, green plants, commonly with three leaves on each, but if you are lucky you can find one with four petals/leaves! There are many clover patches in Foss Park so maybe you’ll find one.
With clovers come clover flowers. Clover flowers are a flower with white, tiny petals. They grow around clovers, that is why they are called clover flowers.
A little fact is clovers are also considered weeds. According to the blog, Love the Garden, weeds are wild plants growing where it is not wanted!
The last two types of plants are grass and weeds. Specifically, the narrow leaf plantain. The narrow leaf plantain weed is all around the park. This weed has a long stem, and at the top is a cone shaped flower. At the bottom of the plant are green leaves. These plants help the ecosystem in unique and important ways, adding to the value of the park.
Trees
The Eastern White Pine has long but skinny pinecones. The bark of an Eastern White Pine on the outside is rough. The inside is smooth but rough. According to the Morton Arboretum Eastern White Pine is native to Chicago, Illinois, North America. Eastern White Pine is the common name. The scientific name is pinus strobus. This is one of two types of pine trees [in Foss Park]. The other is a pitch pine.
Conclusion
All this biodiversity helps the environment and park thrive. The plants help the air and the animals help balance out the park. So this is why we should take care of the park and keep it clean.
This article is a collaboration between three “Hot Shots”, our nine- and ten-year-old campers from week four of Coach Drew Tennis and Writing Camp.
Things to do at Foss Park
Lasata Maharjan
July 17, 2023
Here at Foss Park there are many things to do, such as a big open field to walk, run, or do other things you may want to do. Right next to the field, there is a soccer, and football field in one field! The soccer and football field are a multi-use field, so you can walk, run, or jog in it too! There are two other courts for sports too. So if you don’t want to do something at the other fields, you can play tennis in the tennis court, or play basketball in the basketball court that is right next to the tennis court.
Now for the parts of Foss Park that aren’t just for people! What I’m talking about is the dog park. The dog park is quite spacious, so if you have a dog you can bring your dog as well to play with. And if you or your dog doesn’t want to play at the dog park, you can take a walk around the park.
If you don’t want to play on the grass, on the field, or courts, that’s ok! There’s a part for everyone, and that part is the pool and the sprinklers! The pool is a nice place to hang out and practice your swimming skills. If you don’t want to go in the pool, you can go in the sprinklers, which are right next to the pool.
If none of these activities appeal to you, there are two more activities to do! One of the two are the playgrounds, there are two playgrounds, a big one and a small one. The small one is made for smaller kids, but you can really play in it regardless what age you are. The bigger playground has monkey bars and swings for bigger kids and there’s other features.
Finally for the second part, also the last thing you can do at the park. If you want something that isn’t very active, then having a picnic is a great option! There are a few picnic tables, but there’s lots of empty grass space to put your picnic blanket down and enjoy your food.
Now that I’ve told you about all these things to do at Foss Park, I hope you go and enjoy all the things to do! Just enjoy the park and follow the rules along the way!
Lasata Maharjan is a 10-year-old camper at Coach Drew Tennis and Writing Camp. She wrote “Things to do at Foss Park” as park of the camp’s journalism unit.
COACH DREW TENNIS 