Geography

The Lake of the Ozarks is located at

approximately 38.198°N latitude and -92.638°W longitude. Located in central Missouri, it has over

1,150 miles of shoreline, runs approximately 92 miles from end to end on the main arm, and has hundreds of miles of smaller arms and coves.

Weather Cycles

The following is a diagram of the average rainfall and temperature.

Month	Water Temp (surface)	Air Temp Daytime	Air Temp Nighttime	Inches of Rainfall	Inches of Snowfall
January	39.2	43.7	22.1	1.82	5.1
February	38.1	46.6	23.4	1.79	5.6
March	41.1	55.6	32.0	3.06	5.0
April	53.9	67.6	43.5	3.67	0.6
May	67.5	77.1	52.6	4.69
June	78.6	86.2	65.6	4.54
July	83.6	91.8	65.9	2.40
August	83.9	90.5	64.7	3.58
September	77.4	83.1	55.8	4.23
October	69.2	73.2	45.9	2.89
November	57.0	56.8	33.4	2.27	2.0
December	47.5	46.3	25.6	1.88	4.1

Survey of Organisms

Animalia:

Water Spiders

Water Spiders live in water, as the name implies. However, they don’t have gills.

Tadpoles

Tadpoles are the first stage in life for a frog.

Planate:

Lily Pads

There are 70 different types of lily pads.

Oak Tree

Oak Trees can live for over 200 years.

Fungi:

Morel Mushrooms

Morel Mushrooms are highly sought out by mushroom connoisseurs.

Basidiomycota (club fungi)

Club Fungi includes mushrooms that are consumed, as well as mushrooms that grow on trees and logs.

Monera:

Blue-Green Algae

Some types of blue-green algae make poisons and toxins.

Green Algae

Green Algae is the most diverse type, with over 7,000 known species.

Specific Animal

Largemouth Bass

Taxonomy:

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Actinopterygii

Order: Perciformes

Family: Centrarchidae

Genus: Micropterus

Species: Micropterus salmoides

Systems:

Respiratory

Largemouth Bass have gills which enable them to breathe underwater. They are very sensitive glands.

Circulatory

They have hearts that keep blood flowing through the body. Nutrients and oxygen get to organs by transportation in blood. The blood carries waste to the kidneys and liver for eradication.

Reproductive

Female Bass carry orange egg masses. Male Bass organs produce sperm for the fertilization of the female’s eggs, and are found in the same location. Bass eggs are even eaten as caviar.

Description

Largemouth Bass grow to a length of about 16 inches. Most are colored green with a green stripe across their bodies. They are also at the top of the aquatic food chain. They first appeared approximately 395,000,000 years ago in the Silurian/Devonian period.

Food Web

Adaptations

Water Spider:

Because many of the spider’s predators live on land, living in the water helps keep the Water Spider from being consumed.

Lily Pads:

Lily pads live on water where there is no competition from other plants. Since they receive most of their energy from sunlight, there are no other plants on the water that can prevent the Lily Pads from receiving sunlight.

Endangered Species

Ozark Cavefish

The Ozark Cavefish is an endangered fish that lives in cave waters, springs, and underground water sources. It is very small, colorless, and blind. Water pollution, destruction of its natural habitat, and human interference makes the Ozark Cavefish endangered.

Symbiosis

An example of parasitism at the Lake of the Ozarks is mosquitoes feeding on organisms. The mosquitoes benefit by receiving protein from the blood. The organisms that are preyed upon can receive various diseases, including the West Nile Virus.

Quest

1. Where in Missouri is the Lake of the Ozarks located?

2. What is the total average snowfall in a year at the lake?

3. How many organisms in the survey of organisms live in the water?

4. What is the average full-grown size of Micropterus salmoides?

5. What is the name of a blind, endangered fish at the Lake of the Ozarks?

Cody Camps & Elliot Melsness

Webliography