Capstone+Exercise


 * ECOLOGY CAPSTONE PROJECT**
 * ZOL/PLB 355**

One of the basic skills in ecology is being able to apply principles and research to new geographic locations. To give you experience with this, and as a means for you to synthesize the information covered in this class, students will choose a natural environment to observe and report on. Components of the report will include pictures, descriptions, and predictions. These different exercises will be performed over the seven weeks and then compiled. The last week of the course is a synthesis week for you to evaluate your group’s collection of sites. Applying what you have learned directly to a situation, will help you to identify the significance of what you are learning and help you to address misconceptions or gaps in your understanding that we can address.
 * Description:**

The main objective of this project is for you to apply the theory and examples we discuss in class to a novel location of your choosing. In addition, you should gain an appreciation for the geographic arrangement of information and how this technique can help researchers to organize and analyze information. The first portion of this assignment is finding a piece of land that you can make observations on. The plot should be at least 30 meters square (think of the largest lecture hall on MSU’s campus and use that as an estimate of size). Ideally it will be a relatively undisturbed plot of land. Because we are looking at natural processes and relationships the more artificial your location the more difficult your tasks become. If a pristine area is not available to you, choose a location that is as little disturbed as possible. You should have legal access to this location and be able to visit it multiple times over the seven weeks of our class. Suggestions for locations might include parks, nature preserves, and places that have hiking trails. You could also consult local offices such as the Department of Natural Resources. The project is broken down into multiple assignments that are due over the course of the first six weeks of class and a written assignment in the last week (1-2 pages). The activities include but are not limited to: Further descriptions of these of these exercises will be given when they are assigned. The final project will draw these exercises together. Students will use a group discussion forum to come to a conclusion about which group member’s location should be used to develop into a mall and which location should be protected as a conservation area. Besides a description of each site, students should express what makes a site good for development and why a site would be inappropriate. Successful reports will give evidence for impacts to wildlife, effects on water movement... Student’s will peer edit the discussion forum contributions. In the end, each group will assemble a persuasive argument on Flickr. Other groups will vote on which location they think should be protected and which developed based on group recommendations. We will be using Flickr ([|www.flickr.com]) as our means of displaying your information because it has geotagging capabilities. This capability mimics a geographic information system (GIS), a tool commonly used by ecological professionals. The main premise behind GIS is giving information a location. This allows you to track changes over a geographical landscape. The information could be temperature, which could show you different microclimates available for butterflies, or it could map deer droppings found that could show you the distribution of deer. It is a powerful tool that we will approximate using Flickr. Images that you take with a camera, draw, or fill with a proxy, will be identified by their location. You will make predictions of your sites and use pictures as photographic evidence.
 * Objective:**
 * Choosing your location:**
 * Exercises:**
 * 1) Taking pictures of the location
 * 2) Taking pictures of the organisms
 * 3) Creating a trophic diagram of the organisms
 * 4) Applying a theoretical model to your location
 * 5) Applying research from your textbook to your location.
 * 6) Compare locations with other members of your group
 * 7) Predict human impacts on the natural systems and cycles of your location.
 * Flickr:**
 * Capstone Exercise 1:**
 * Due Sunday May 31st by Midnight**

Your first exercise for the capstone project is to find and describe your location. The first portion of this assignment is finding a piece of land that you can make observations on. The plot should be at least 30 meters square. Ideally it will be a relatively undisturbed plot of land. Because we are looking at natural processes and relationships, the more artificial your location the more difficult your tasks become. If a pristine area is not available to you, choose a location that is as little disturbed as possible. You should have legal access to this location and be able to visit it multiple times over the seven weeks of our class.

Students need to take and upload at least three pictures of your location. Try to take photos that capture the nature of the location (its size, vegetation cover, proximity to human influences, etc.). These photos need to be placed onto the map and to the group “ZOL355” (see tutorial in the “How to’s” folder under the lesson’s tab) and tagged with the following IDs (be sure to include the underscore sign “_” where shown): Students need to upload at least five pictures of different organisms in your location. Try to get as large a range as possible two photos of plants species, three of animal species (can be insects, mollusks, mammals, annelids, and don’t forget decomposers such as fungi). These photos need to be placed onto the map and to the group “ZOL355” (see tutorial in the “How to’s” folder under the lesson’s tab) and tagged with the following IDs (be sure to include the underscore sign “_” where shown): · “ZOL355” · the year · Your group number (“group_1”, “group_2”, or …) · “Organism_1”, “organism_2”… · also include a tag with your last name_first initial. So Mine would say "Thomas_S". Ideally, you will be able to take photograph of your plot of land and upload the photos to our Flickr site. However, if you do not have a digital camera, a phone that takes digital photos, or a conventional camera that you can take photos and upload them into your computer, you might consider purchasing a disposable camera (or using up the film in one you already own). When you take the film to get processed, many times you have the option of getting a data CD as well as the photos. This might make it a painless process. Alternatively, you could find photos online that represent your location. You could also draw or make other representations. The more distant the method is, the more descriptive you should be in the caption of the image file in Flickr. For instance if you draw one of your species, you might say that you think the species is an insect probably in the order of beetles. It will help us to make more sense of your illustration. ZOL/PLB 355 Crumpled Paper Watershed Exercise Adapted from Rob Wade’s “Adopt-a-Watershed” Using a piece of crumpled paper, you will create a watershed model to demonstrate the geographical flow of water across the landscape, and the relationship of natural/cultural activities to water quality. This model is a birds-eye view of the watershed of your capstone location. It is a visual aid that helps you think about not just water, but also the movement of nutrients. Paper (recycle old 8.5x11 or other paper) - this forms the watershed base model Spray Bottle - For creating the precipitation Drawing implements: Pencil/Pen (OR you can get fancy and used the following pens). Permanent Markers (green, black, etc.) - for drawing landforms and native vegetation Water-Soluble Markers (red, blue, black, brown, etc.) - for drawing water flow, nutrients, sediment, etc. “A watershed is more than an area of land defined by its ridges with one outlet for water to flow. A watershed supports a variety of resources, uses, and activities in such a way that eventually all things are affected by everything else in the watershed. A watershed contains the history of all that went before and the spirit of those who touched it remains.” George Wingate A watershed is an area of land that sheds its water into a common body of water. A watershed is a (noun): stores water {groundwater} and a (verb): sheds water {surface water}. A watershed is the gathering ground for a body of water. You will be creating a mini-watershed model with a simple piece of paper. You will be able to see the ridges, slopes and drainages that make up a 3-D watershed landscape. **2. Make it three-dimensional:** While at your location, crumple the paper into a ball. Gently un-crumple the paper so that it will sit on a table but still maintain the folds and creases that will represent peaks ridgelines, valleys and watercourses. Form the paper so that it matches the real landscape. For example pull up and crease the paper so that areas that are high stick up and those that are lower form basins. Lightly and evenly spray the models with water (either from a spray bottle, or by dipping and flicking your hand. This is precipitation. Note how water flows across the landscape and how it affects the entire watershed, not just the watercourses and channels. Take a picture of your piece of paper (either before or after the crumpling and wetting). Add the following tags to the picture: lastname_first initial (i.e. “Thomas_S”, zol355, the year, watershed, group_your group number (i.e. “group_2”). Answer the following questions in the picture’s description: a. What general observations did you make? b. Describe how the water moved across your model? c. Where are the closest human structures (i.e. parking lots, homes, etc.)? d. Identify how carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) are entering your ecosystem. e. Should they be concentrated in any specific section of your location? f. How can those nutrients leave the location or become unavailable for use? g. How is the geographic landscape affecting where organisms are located? h. Give an example of how an organisms might in return affect the abiotic factors we have been discussing?
 * 1) **Taking pictures of the location:**
 * “ZOL355”
 * Your group number (“group_1” or “group_2” or …)
 * “Location_1”, “Location_2”, and “Location_3” continue to follow this pattern if you want to add more than three pictures of your location (i.e. “Location_4”)
 * the year
 * also include a tag with your last name_first initial. So mine would say "Thomas_S".
 * 1) **Taking pictures of the organisms:**
 * Capstone Exercise Week 3:**
 * Tracing water: **
 * Objective:**
 * Materials:**
 * Watershed:**
 * Activity:**
 * 1. Go out to your site and make a schematic on a standard piece of paper:**
 * 1) On the paper, draw the major plant communities (trees, fields, aquatic plants, etc.). If using colored markers, you could outline with a permanent marker like green and fill in with water-soluble red marker.
 * 2) Draw any human structures in the area. If using colored markers, draw with a black water-soluble marker.
 * 3) Any bodies of water (ponds, creeks, ephemeral pools, etc.). If using colored markers, use a water-soluble blue marker.
 * 4) Exposed dirt surfaces (trails, boulders, etc.). If using colored markers, outline with a permanent black marker and use a water-soluble brown marker.
 * 3. Let it rain:**
 * Debrief and Discuss:**
 * Soil Texture: **

In this exercise, you will be conducting a “feel test” of soil texture. The only material you need is some water and the will to get dirty. Soil texture is used in agriculture to determine the appropriateness of soil for growing particular crops; however, the same concept applies to ecosystems, in that the soil texture will influence the types of organisms that can survive in a location. When estimating soil texture using the feel method, there are essentially four steps to approximate the USDA’s 12 category Soil Textural Triangle (in the diagram reference section). 3a. If the ribbon length is less than 2.5 cm, the general category is loam. 3b. If the ribbon length is between 2.5 cm and 5 cm, the general category is clay loam. 3c. If the ribbon length is greater than 5 cm, the general category is clay. After determining the general category by clay content, move to Step 4. Feel and listen as the sample is worked in the hand. If grittiness dominates, then the modifier, "sandy" will be added to the general category determined in Step 3, e.g., sandy loam, sandy clay loam, or sandy clay. If grittiness does not dominate, but smoothness does, then a form of silt will be added, e.g., silt loam, silty clay loam, or silty clay. Silt is not sticky, but is smooth like flour, foundation make-up, or talcum powder. Notice, this method does not provide a method to identify the silt texture class. You can see how this method compares to the USDA Texture Triangle by looking at the diagrams in the reference section. The lines are in similar place, but not exact. Repeat this test with another sample and see if you get consistent results. Working with this method eventually will allow you to make good estimates, but the estimates should always be confirmed with lab studies if the results will be used for research. Consultants often become familiar enough with the soils in a region that their "feel" estimate is good enough for the management suggestions they offer. Take a picture of the soil in your location (you can use a previous picture if appropriate). Add the following tags to the picture: lastname_first initial (i.e. “Thomas_S”, zol355, the year, soiltest, group_your group number (i.e. “group_2”). Answer the following questions in the picture’s description: How does your soil’s texture aid or hinder water flow and the movement of nutrients? What types of organisms are in the area where you collected the soil? What effects do these organisms have on the soil’s qualities? Is the soil you collected likely to be eroded? How would its loss affect the current location? Where would it erode to in your site? How would its presence affect the location it moves to? As an ecologist, why is it important to think about soil texture? // Objective: for you to apply concepts that work at the level of population to a species at your location. // You will be identifying and describing a population of organisms from your location with regard to what is constituting an interactive group of individuals that has the potential to reproduce with one another. Assignment: Choose an organism from your location to study concepts of populations. There has to be more than two observable individuals of this organism (they do not have to be animals). Identify the species (as best you can) and collect some preliminary information on it (be sure to cite from where). On a standard piece of paper map out the locations of your organism and give estimates about the number of individuals in each location and how the population is dispersed. Take a picture of the organism and a picture of your paper map (tag these pictures with “poporg” and “popmap” along with your last name_first initial, “zol355,” the year, and group_your group number). In the description portion of the Flickr post answer the following questions. From your internet research: What is the organism? How does it disperse? What is its global range? How does it reproduce? How many reproductive units does it create? Does it have any particular adaptations of note? From your observations: Is it a single or multiple population(s)? Where are the nearest mating members? How is it distributed (random, clumped, uniform) at each location or over the entire range of your site? Why is it located where it is? Do you think the population you are observing is a source or sink? Where do the offspring of the population you are observing go? Where do immigrants come from? From your brain and calculator: Plug the average number of offspring created by an individual during one time period, as well as the number of individuals you estimated, into the geometric population growth equation. What should the population be in 5 cycles? In 20 cycles? This model is a hypothesis of sorts. Do you think your population is experiencing this type of growth? Explain why you think this? From the literature: Discuss how 2 models or experiments you have studied in class apply to your site. Give the researcher/year/organism, their question and conclusions. Then summarize in a sentence or two how those models inform you about your site. Objectives: For this exercise you will be documenting and commenting on the relationship between trophic levels as well as how landscape structure may be affecting your location. Part 1: Trophic interactions Read the article: For this exercise you will start off by reading the article posted in this week’s capstone folder. This article by Slobodkin, Smith, and Hairston (1960) is a classic in evolutionary ecology. Through reasoning alone they attempt to explain the roles that dictate interspecific interactions and community structure. Document trophic interaction: After reading the article, visit your location. Take a picture of a trophic interaction going on in your location. T ag this picture with “trophic” along with your last name_first initial, “zol355,” the year, and group_your group number. In the description of the picture (besides a one sentence description of what your trophic interaction is), answer the following questions about your ecosystem: What do you think is the most influential species in your location (don’t include humans) explain why you think it is important? What would happen if you removed it? What if you replaced it with an invasive species? Choose three of your organisms you took photos of for the first capstone exercise, list what they are and tell what Slobodkin, Smith, and Hairston’s article says they are ultimately limited by. Part 2: Question effects of scale and pattern. Develop a question to ask about your location: After all of this time observing your location, you must have thought of some questions that you would like to know more about (humor me here). Write down your best question into one of the pictures you took at your location. IMPORTANT: add the tag “question” to that picture, so I can find it. Look at your location from Flickr on “satellite” mode. Zoom in to the highest magnification then step by step zoom out (see tutorial in this folder). Find two patterns in your landscape. It can be at the level of landscape or geographic ecology. Either take a screenshot of the pattern, or draw it on a piece of paper and take a picture of that. In the description of the picture describe the pattern and what is causing it. Also, hypothesize whether or not that pattern is biologically significant to your system and why. T ag this picture(s) with “pattern” along with your last name_first initial, “zol355,” the year, and group_your group number. Objective: Over this semester you have looked at processes that shape the landscape and the relationships of all living creatures. The scope of those theories is large and can be hard to arrange and apply. For the past 6 weeks you have been thinking about how these theories apply to your location. This last week is about reflecting on the information and arranging ecological theories into a cohesive image. Grid exercise (20 pts): In last week’s capstone, you came up with a question for your location. Fill in the attached matrix with your question at the appropriate level of complexity (from individual to landscape ecology and from a day to 1,000 years). Fill in the rest of the grid with other ecological studies we’ve covered in the course. For each box, supply a study that exemplifies that temporal or geographical scale (your question will take the place of one of the studies). Each study listed should include the following pieces of information: · Researcher, year, organism · Question they researched · Conclusion they found Paper (100 pts): You will be writing a three-page paper explaining your research question. There should be three sections to your paper. The first is the introduction to your location. The second explains your question and the research that is connected to your question. The last section explains the significance of your site in the ecological landscape. Format: · Your paper can be no longer than three pages with one-inch margins, and 12 point font. · If you are citing the textbook you just need to include the following citation (Molles, pg.#) next to the quote. If you are using references other than our textbook, be sure to reference your sources (this can be a separate page that does not count in your three-page limit). You can use any accepted format (e.g. MLA, APA, etc.). Just be consistant. · In general the majority of your paper should be taken up with Section 2 with a paragraph or two for Sections 1 and 3. //Section 1 Introduction:// This is your introduction to your location. This section ties into your earlier capstone exercises, where you describe the surroundings: physical conditions, community structure, human impacts, etc. //Section 2 Question and Research:// In this section you need to describe your question, why you think it is important, and how it ties to other ecological concepts. Two tools that will help you are the grid that you produced for the first part of this capstone and the charting exercises you have been doing throughout the course. These tools will show you closely related topics and the research questions that were done on those topics. You should tie in at least three ecological concepts from different spatial scales (individual, population, community, ecosystem, landscape, geographic, biosphere), giving specifics for how they help explain your question and examples of research from the book that show how that concept has been explored in the past. //Section 3 Impacts of your system:// Explain the significance of your site with regards to resources, communities/biodiversity, ecological services, or structure in the larger landscape. Why should we care about the question you are asking in this location? This should not be an emotional argument or one that argues for the “circle of life”. //Rubric for the paper (100 points total):// This breakdown shows you how many points will be allotted for each component of the paper and gives you general information to put into these sections. It does not mean that you will get full points for mere inclusion. Meaning, just because your paper contains a list of three appropriate ecological topics that it gets the full 50 points. Followed formatting instructions: 10 pts. Citations are present and consistent in format Proper number of pages, size font, and margins Introduction: 20 points Includes description of location, abiotic, and biotic conditions. Describes human impact Research question / explanation: 50 points Includes at least 3 appropriate ecological topics Explains connections between ecological topics to the proposed research question Includes research examples from the book that support their ecological topics Conclusion: 20 points Includes explanation for why their question and/or site is important (might include topics such as natural resources, larger ecological connections, types of organisms, etc.) Discussion forum (20 pts)
 * Objectives ** : For students to get a “feel” (literally and figuratively) for soil texture. Students should understand the different categories for textures and the implication of this abiotic factor on the movement of water and nutrients as well as the placement of organisms.
 * Preparing the soil to test ** . Remove any visible organic matter like leaves, twigs, roots, insects, etc. as well as any particles larger than 2 mm (best estimate).
 * Step 1. ** Take a handful of soil. If the soil is dry, moisten it just enough to determine if it will form a ball when squeezed in the palm of the hand. If the moist soil will not form a ball, it is a sand.
 * Step 2. ** Bounce the ball. If the moist soil remains in a ball when the hand is opened, bounce the ball in the hand. If the ball breaks when it hits the hand, it is a loamy sand. Notice, these textures occupy only the bottom, left corner of the triangle. If the ball does not break, move on to Step 3.
 * Step 3. ** Determine if the moist soil will form a ribbon when extruded between the thumb and forefinger (or how long a 1/8" or 3 mm diameter ribbon will form when rolled on a flat able). The principle behind forming ribbons is related to the cohesion that exists among clay particles. Clays are sticky when moist, and so the ribbon length is proportional to the clay content. Caution: When starting with dry clays, make sure to allow time for the clays to become moist, and make sure "gritty" particles are not aggregates.
 * Step 4. ** Are modifiers (sandy, silt, or silty) necessary?
 * Debrief and Discuss:**
 * Reference Diagrams: **
 * Exercise 5: Population**
 * Exercise 6: Community/Ecosystem/Landscape**
 * Week 7 Capstone Project **
 * Part 1: Background**
 * Part 2: The Application**
 * Part 3: The Conclusions:**

In this exercise you will be making conclusions about the ecological significance of a location. In your first post cut and paste one of your location pictures into the post (see tutorial in the “How To” folder) along with the conclusion portion of your paper. Feel free to include weblinks to other Flickr pictures you have taken of your site. Title the post with your last name. This post is due by Tuesday. From the conclusion portions of your group’s papers, you will then decide which location in your group should be preserved and which location from your group should be used for the next site of a mall. You will post a justification for why one site should be developed and the other preserved. Your justification should be no more than a page. In your consideration you could include reasons such as organisms present, types of interactions, landscape dynamics, natural resources, aesthetics, ecological roles/concepts, etc. You should look at the materials your fellow students have created and make your decision. You do not have to respond to anyone else’s posts (but feel free if inspired). Your justification is due in by 11:59p.m. July 1st. Just a friendly suggestion: Do not make your justification on one quality. Saying that a site should be developed because it is surrounded by developed land lacks the robust analysis you should be able to make with all of your knowledge on the relationships of abiotic/biotic systems. Also, do not make an emotional plea or one based on sociological reasons (e.g. This area should not be developed because it is next to an economically depressed region). It is not that these arguments do not have merit, but they do not convey the information or thoughts we wish to assess you on.