Perfo'm Diversity CalculashunsFlowa' Communities
Introducshun
De purpose uh dis 'esercise be to familiarize ya' wid de insects,
spiders, and oda' invertebrates dat inhabit some limited ecosystem, in dis case
some patch uh wild flowers o' some flowa' garden. 'S coo', bro. In addishun,
ya' gots'ta also reco'd da damn behavio' and interacshuns widin and among
species. Yo' data collecshun gots'ta extend upside a two-dree week puh'iod,
allowin' many oppo'tunities fo' ya' t'view de complex interacshuns among de
species in yo' plot. Man! Hopefully, ya' gots'ta learn t'appreciate da damn
complexity uh even a simple ecosystem. WORD! You's gots'ta compare dis community
t'a nearby community widout flowers. As an 'esample, ya' might choose some patch
uh Queen Anne's Lace (Figure 1) as de flowered area, and compare dis t'de
surroundin' tree seedlin's (Figure 2).
Some uh de mo'e common visito's t'de flowa' haids are ants. Dese hymenopterans is often seen fo'agin' on de flower's surface; collectin' nectar and pollen (Figure 3). Oda' hymenopterans seen on de flowers include bees and wuzps (Figure 4). Dipteran flies may also be seen restin' on de flowa' haids (Figure 5). You's may also see coleopteran beetles feedin' da bud flowers, de leaves, and stems (Figure 6). Grasshoppuh's (Ordoptera; Figure 7), true bugs (Hemiptera; Figure 8), and lepidopterans (butterflies and moder; Figure 9) also frequent Queen Anne's Lace. Some uh de flowers have gone t'seed, fo'm de cup-likes enclosho' man. Small beetles seek refuge fum de sun in de interio' uh de seed pod. When de sun brightens, some duck into de dark interio' (Figure 10).
De inhabitants uh de tree seedlin's include Japanese beetles (Figure 11). Most of dese animals spend deir feedin' on de leaves, while oders court and mate. Nearly all de Japanese beetles is associated wid de seedlin's and not wid de flowers. Flies also mosey on down to rest on de seedlin's (Figure 12), but few oda' insects visit compared t'de flowers.
Medods
Choose some site wid bod flowers and an alternate habitat real
close by. Slap mah fro! De flowers do not gots'ta be Queen Anne's Lace,
but kin be any variety (eider domestic o' wild). You's do not need
hundreds uh flowers fo' yo' observashuns. In fact, flowers occupyin' only
some square meta' o' so's are preferable cuz' ya' gots'ta be able to pay
closa' attenshun t'a smalla' plot. Man! Try t'choose some site wid
non flowerin' plants located nearby. Slap mah fro! Dis secondary site
should receive approximately de same sunlight, moisture, and wind as yo' primary
flowa' site. In most cases ya' do not wants' sites dat receive da damn
full heat uh de afternoon sun since many uh de insects gots'ta be rolln away.
Slap mah fro! You's should also choose some site yo' crib so ya' kin visit
it at various times de day. Slap mah fro! Finally, choose some site dat be
unlikesly to be disturbed fo' at least two o' dree weeks. If yo' fust site
duzn't gots enough insects fo' comparison, abandon dat site and find anoder. Ah
be baaad... A few hours spent checkin' out potential sites near crib at
different times uh de day kin save ya' some lot of time when ya' begin collectin'
yo' data and keepin' yo' journal.
You's gots'ta also need t'print out data sheet but ya' can snatch into de field and den re-enta' into yo' clunker. A suggested data sheet in Excel fo'mat be shown in figure dirteen. 'S coo', bro. De fust and second columns gots entries fo' de date and time. De dird column identifies de site (flour o' graphs). Dis be followed by tempuh'ture and rainfall. Tempuh'ture kin be determined usin' de dermometa' provided wid yo' lab materials o' ya' kin dig histo'ical data on tempuh'ture and rainfall fo' de Louisville area here. De species identificashuns is common dojiggers dat ya' cut to de insects so's ya' kin track de fum day-to-day. Slap mah fro! Dus, we gots dojiggers likes "big red ant", "green grasshoppuh'", and "little flies". Dese is mainly fo' yo' use, so carefully choose yo' descriptive dojiggers so's ya' kin identify yo' animals fum day-to-day. Slap mah fro! It be impo'tant dat ya' kin recognize da damn big red ants fum de little brother ants fum one day t'anoder. Ah be baaad... You's might find dat some little sketch in yo' notescribblin' will be useful. De count column be where ya' reco'd da damn numba' of each species dat ya' saw on some particular date and time. De insect o'ders kin be identified usin' some printed key t'de insect o'ders o' de Internet version found on dis web page. De last column shows de behavio' at da damn animals wuz 'eshibitin'. If dere is numerous animals all hangin' different doodads, list all deir behavio's in dis space. An Excel spreadsheet kin be found here. Plan on spendin' some half hour hangin' yo' observashuns. Try t'scatta' de observashuns droughout de day so's ya' gots'ta discova' changes in flowa' visitashun and behavio's wid time. If, however, yo' schedule gots'ta not allow visits droughout da damn day, settle on some main time fo' reco'din' data and fill in an early mo'nin', afternoon, and/o' evenin' reco'din' whenever possible. If it rains, o' dere be oda' significant weader, reco'd dis in yo' log so ya' kin co'relate changes in populashuns and behavio' wid de weader. Ah be baaad...
You's kin print out some sheet copy uh a key t'de insect o'ders t'use in de field (along wid a picture key and insect anatomy), o' kin use da damn Internet version. 'S coo', bro. Practice wid de above pictures t'make sho' man ya' see how t'use da damn key o' check out da damn tuto'ial here. If de insect ID widget duzn't wo'k in yo' browser, ya' kin waaay download some stand-alone version here. Insect anatomy be here. A picture key be here. Mo'e info'mashun on insects in general kin be found here (de overview has lots uh pictures showin' insect anatomy). Some pictures uh insects fum various o'ders is found here. Excellent info'mashun on insect anatomy, ecology and physiology be found here (dis page gots'ta help ya' interpret whut ya' see in de field). General info'mashun on ardropods be here. Info'mashun and links related t'spiders kin be found here. Oda' ardropods ya' is likesly t'see include spiders (Arachnids) and wood lice (Crustaceans; Figure 14).
De Repo't
Afta' two-dree weeks, plot da damn abunboogie uh yo' top 10 species fo' de two
sites over time (line plot). Info'mashun
on usin' Excel can be found here.
Follow wid some comparison of deir relative abonboogie (de total numba' eof each
species dat ya' saw upside yo' observashun puh'iod fo' bod sites). Den run de
species diversity calculashuns (button
be below). Interpret yo' results. Describe da damn behvio'al interacshuns ya'
saw bod widin and among yo' species. Do some speceis seem t'dominate eida' of de
systems? If so, whut might be deir effect on de system as some whole? Why wuz
some species found mos' entirely in one habitat o' de oder? Whut allows some
species t'occupy bod habitats?
Perfo'm Diversity Calculashuns
Required Eyeballin's
Opshunal Eyeballin's