Examining Biodiversity
Last week at the farm was very informative. When we got to the BioCube we noticed that the cube was submerged. It had not been before. It had rained earlier in the week and it was clear that the water levels had changed. The cube was also in disarray. Multiple poles had disconnected from one another, probably due to the rain and high water levels.
We found many bugs in the stream. My groupmate picked water up with the cloth net and drained it away, leaving only the debris and organisms. One bug was long and oval. It had an orangey-brown color with a dark line down its sectioned back. It also had more than 6 legs and swam fast around the tupperware container we put it in. Another bug was extremely skinny, almost like a stick. It was light brown and had 6 legs. It also had a fin-like tail. Its head had two black eyes on the sides and two antennae. Another bug was similar but thicker and darker. Its tail split into two, both fin-like. It also had 6 legs and two antennae. One bug was translucent with a black line down its back and many legs. It curled up on itself in the water. One insect was a brown-green color with a sectioned back, more than 10 sections. Its tail split into three and each part ended with a sharp point. It had fin-like structures attached to its back. The last insect we observed was a spider. It was very small and dark brown. We caught it at the edge of the stream and it moved fast by the water.
We found many plants of interest by the stream and in the water. One plant that was very abundant was the skunk cabbage. There were more than 40 in a 20x20 foot area. Each cabbage was composed of a bundle of large, light green leaves and a small purple structure curled up next to the leaf. The purple structure had yellowish spots covering its waxy exterior. We found thorns everywhere on the shore next to the stream. The sticks the thorns stuck out of were red and next to the thorns on the sticks were bundles of very small green leaves. Each leaf had many lobes on its edge. Close to the ground we found small almost circular leaves. They were bundles and medium green color. They also were covered in small holes, perhaps made by an insect nearby. Near the ground, we also found a different species with different leaves. They were very waxy with almost a shiny finish. They also were arranged in a sort of flower petal pattern. The leaves at the base of the pattern were a dark green, and as they got closer to the center of the pattern the color became lighter.
As it was the last day at the farm, we made sure to bring back everything in the BioCube. Using the cloth net we retrieved water and insects from the stream in the BioCube. We also dug up the soil at the bottom of the BioCube. There were multiple plants we brought back to analyze as well. We made sure we also had the detritus from the BioCube. Using the tupperware we captured the bugs described earlier and will analyze them in the lab next week.
The day was overcast and it even rained a bit, but to my surprise my phone camera captured the biodiversity much better in the overcast lighting. I found that the images came out more clear and more detailed than they had in past weeks. I was able to capture some good pictures of certain organisms, especially the skunk cabbages. The intricacies of the cabbages really came out well in the pictures. Some of the pictures of the other plants came out really well too.
I am really excited to get into the lab next week and really analyze the specimens we collected today. I am very interested to see the biodiversity present in a western Massachusetts stream. I am also interested in looking at the stream water through a microscope, something we were unable to do in the field. I predict we will find many protists, probably primarily algae and it will be interesting to see.
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