Sea Level Rise
By: Hannah Nagib & Stacie Selzer
Problem
Have humans influenced environmental change?
Hypothesis
If the sea level rises at the San Francisco bay, then the seagull population will decrease.
Sea Level Rise
- Global sea level rose about 17 centimeters over the course of the last century.
- The rate nearly doubled over the course of the last century.
- Birds that rely on shores for feeding habitats during migrations and the winter are affected by sea level rise.
Data Analysis
Variation in Sea Level
- This graph explains the sea level increase from January 1990 to February 2009. The red line is the average and the blue lines are the measured data. It was at a steady increase until 1200 months into the research project it slightly decreased at a slow rate.
California Seagull Population
- The blue line shows the total San Francisco bay. The red line shows Mono Lake and the green line shows the GSL region. Through 1980 to 2003 there was a steady increase but in 2004 there was a decrease and then in 2005 it increased again. It continued to increase.
CER
Humans have caused the sea level to increase, which also caused the seagull population to increase. When the seagulls first arrived in 1980, the population was very low. As the sea level continued to rise, the seagull population increased as well. When the sea level decreased the seagull population decreased as well. In 2004 the the seagull population suddenly decreased, but it rapidly caught back up. That was also when the sea level population decreased. In 1980 when the seagulls first arrived they increased because of the abundance of food. The seagull population continued to increase because the sea level also continued to increase. The sea level was increasing due to the polar ice caps were melting because of global warming. When the sea level was increasing it was causing more food to be uncovered which helped the seagull population increase.
Extend
Humans can help stop this problem by using less fuel. When humans use lots of fuel they release a lot of carbon dioxide this causes global warming. Humans can stop this or not do as much damage by carpooling, walking or biking.