I will try to keep this in layman's terms as best I can. Here is a description of my research:
What I am studying:
I am studying the effect that habitat patch size has on the nesting success of ground-nesting grassland birds. In addition to this I am also looking at: edge effect, patch vegetation structure, and bird communities; but I will just focus on the nesting and patch size question for this post. I am using a ratio of patch perimeter to patch area (P/A) as an objective measurement of patch size and shape. For patches that are the same shape, larger sized patches will have a smaller P:A ratio. For patches of the same size, more regularly shaped patches have smaller P:A ratios; therefore, the core area of those sites is largest.
How I am doing this:
To study the nesting success (warning this is a little dry/boring) I am using 6 different grassland patches, located throughout Summit County, OH (the county in which Akron resides). At each site I am doing two 10-day nesting sessions, where I put nests out on day 0 and check their statuses on days 5 and 10. Basically, I am measuring predation rates: have the eggs been taken or eaten? The nests are artificial nests, a ~1 inch deep and 3 in wide hole that I dig, in which I place 2 unfertilized quail eggs. Then I mark out the location of the nest with a flag located 5m to the north of the nest. Now, there are biases related to artificial nest studies, which I won't address here, but they are still widely used to study nesting success due to the difficulty of finding and monitoring natural nests (which also has some biases).
What I hope to find:
My prediction is that I will find a negative correlation between nesting success and P:A ratio. What this means is that as P:A ratio increases the nesting success will decrease. In other words, smaller sites (or more irregularly shaped sites) will have lower nesting success (due to predation) and larger sites will have higher success. As for edge effect, I expect that nests farther from the edges will survive longer than nests that are closer to edges. This is because predators tend to frequent edges.
What I have so far:
So far, it appears that my predictions about nesting success and site size are correct. My first set of data shows that as P:A ratio increase, nesting success decreases (with the exception of one site that has a remarkably high survival rate in general).
What this means:
What this means is that resource managers who are attempting to conserve/restore grassland sites for use as habitat by birds should take into account the size and shape of the patch that they are going to keep/restore. Too small a patch will have inadequate core area and will serve as a sink (a "trap" where birds think the habitat is ideal, but have low survival rates) so management strategies should seek to maximize size. However, size alone does not tell the whole store because P:A ratio also takes into account the shape of the patch. Management should focus on decreasing P:A ratio and increasing size in order to provide grassland habitat that acts as a source (an area where birds successfully reproduce) for birds, rather than a sink.
Alright, you can wake up now.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
I'm baaaaack
Wow, it has been a long time since my last post. I have been ridiculously busy with my research towards the tail end of this program (2 weeks to go) and have completely neglected to update this thing. I'll talk about my research in the next post; for this post I wanted to focus on things I've done that are not research... which isn't much, unfortunately. Anyway, a list:
- Went to Cleveland Museum of Natural History and got a behind the scenes tour. This was really cool because we got to see all the bird and mammal skins, as well as some mounted reptiles, that are stuffed, mounted and used for displays. This was the last time we did a whole group "sponsored" REU event.
- Bill Zawiski of the Ohio EPA had our whole group to a stream quality monitoring activity. Wait, wait, wait. That sounds boring. What I meant to say was we got to go electro-fishing; which is exactly what is sounds like. We all jumped in the stream, wearing waterproof waders, and got a giant fishing net hooked up to a generator and basically shocked fish into "paralysis" and scooped them up in the net and tossed them in a bucket. As a note, the fish were not actually harmed or killed, the bucket was in the water with holes in it to allow water flow, it was basically just to contain the fish. Anyway, it was a pretty sweet little activity, definitely a cool skill to learn, even if it was only a basic lesson.
- Saw "Inception" last night in the movie theatre with Bayoan, Mollika and Alicia. Great movie. I definitely recommend it.
As far as noteworthy experiences go, that's about it. The rest is just the usual: hanging out, eating out at some cool local restaurants, bird watching.
That's about it.
- Went to Cleveland Museum of Natural History and got a behind the scenes tour. This was really cool because we got to see all the bird and mammal skins, as well as some mounted reptiles, that are stuffed, mounted and used for displays. This was the last time we did a whole group "sponsored" REU event.
- Bill Zawiski of the Ohio EPA had our whole group to a stream quality monitoring activity. Wait, wait, wait. That sounds boring. What I meant to say was we got to go electro-fishing; which is exactly what is sounds like. We all jumped in the stream, wearing waterproof waders, and got a giant fishing net hooked up to a generator and basically shocked fish into "paralysis" and scooped them up in the net and tossed them in a bucket. As a note, the fish were not actually harmed or killed, the bucket was in the water with holes in it to allow water flow, it was basically just to contain the fish. Anyway, it was a pretty sweet little activity, definitely a cool skill to learn, even if it was only a basic lesson.
- Saw "Inception" last night in the movie theatre with Bayoan, Mollika and Alicia. Great movie. I definitely recommend it.
As far as noteworthy experiences go, that's about it. The rest is just the usual: hanging out, eating out at some cool local restaurants, bird watching.
That's about it.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Resilience
One lesson that I have learned through this research experience is to always be adaptable; resilience is key. I don't know how many times my research plans have changed so far and it is a little frustrating, to be completely honest. However, the important thing has been to not get overwhelmed by this.
My first week here, when I was coming up with a research idea, I sort of shot myself in the foot by changing my idea from a forest birds study to a grassland birds study; grasslands are not an abundant habitat type in Ohio. While it would have been easy to scrap my grassland plans I instead put in all the legwork necessary to get a grassland bird study going. Needless to say, this plan has had its setbacks. First, Lisa Petit (the director for Natural Resources at Cuyahoga Valley National Park) sort of tossed my nesting success idea out of the window and told me that I wouldn't get enough data and it would be a lot of work for nothing. I later found out that Lisa did her Ph.D. research on grassland nesting birds so she's knows better than any how difficult an endeavor it is.
I'm back on track now, I think, and am ready to go with a study of grassland bird communities and artificial nest success (artificial nests baited with quail eggs) as they are related to landscape factors such as patch size, perimeter:area ratio, and surrounding landscape type.
I don't think I would be on track though without the following advice:
1. Be prepared for unexpected opportunities. Life is just as much about preparing for the unknown as it is the known, that is why it is so important to always be in a frame of mind that allows you to see an opportunity and pursue it.
2. Don't complain, work harder. As long as you are willing to put in the work to be successful, no matter how difficult the task, you will accomplish something. While you may not accomplish all that you wanted to, and I certainly know that I frequently don't, it is a good step to at least get something done toward your ultimate goal.
This week I'll be visiting grassland sites and doing a preliminary assessment of what types of birds are there, nothing terribly exciting. Posting frequency may decline because of this, but will probably pick back up once my research gets in full swing and I have more to talk about.
My first week here, when I was coming up with a research idea, I sort of shot myself in the foot by changing my idea from a forest birds study to a grassland birds study; grasslands are not an abundant habitat type in Ohio. While it would have been easy to scrap my grassland plans I instead put in all the legwork necessary to get a grassland bird study going. Needless to say, this plan has had its setbacks. First, Lisa Petit (the director for Natural Resources at Cuyahoga Valley National Park) sort of tossed my nesting success idea out of the window and told me that I wouldn't get enough data and it would be a lot of work for nothing. I later found out that Lisa did her Ph.D. research on grassland nesting birds so she's knows better than any how difficult an endeavor it is.
I'm back on track now, I think, and am ready to go with a study of grassland bird communities and artificial nest success (artificial nests baited with quail eggs) as they are related to landscape factors such as patch size, perimeter:area ratio, and surrounding landscape type.
I don't think I would be on track though without the following advice:
1. Be prepared for unexpected opportunities. Life is just as much about preparing for the unknown as it is the known, that is why it is so important to always be in a frame of mind that allows you to see an opportunity and pursue it.
2. Don't complain, work harder. As long as you are willing to put in the work to be successful, no matter how difficult the task, you will accomplish something. While you may not accomplish all that you wanted to, and I certainly know that I frequently don't, it is a good step to at least get something done toward your ultimate goal.
This week I'll be visiting grassland sites and doing a preliminary assessment of what types of birds are there, nothing terribly exciting. Posting frequency may decline because of this, but will probably pick back up once my research gets in full swing and I have more to talk about.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Research Update: Week 3
This past weekend was far from eventful. The weather was pretty crappy (overcast, chilly and rainy) and I found out that there are no Wachovia or Wells Fargo branches in the entire state of Ohio, so I can't deposit my paycheck. I really didn't do much else other than try to regather my thoughts and mix up my research ideas until something worthwhile finally emerged. Here is what I came up with:
I'm still going to do a grassland bird study, however I will be focusing on how landscape structure affects community structure. On top of this, I will be doing a study of nesting success using artificial nests (fake nests baited with quails eggs) to try to relate that to landscape and community structure as well. We'll see how that turns out, the idea is still a little raw but I have to start doing something.
On Monday I went out to the field station to do a "practice run" of my bird counting methods (transect banding) but it was the middle of the afternoon so bird activity wasn't exactly at its peak. (The grassland habitat at the field station is called "Grandview Alley," so know that I mean the field station grassland when I talk about grandview alley). I saw 2 red-tail hawks soaring above the grassland and calling like crazy when I got there so I took probably 10 minutes to just sit in the shade (near the forest edge) and watch them do their thing; it was nice to let my thoughts wander away from research for a little bit. Nothing really unique to report on as far as the bird counts go. I saw the usual suspects: bobolinks, eastern meadowlarks, red wing blackbirds, song sparrows and tree swallows (the swallows aren't grassland birds but there are bluebird houses that they've taken up residence in so they fly around pretty much all day). Here are some pictures I took out there:
Tuesday, Greg and I went out to some different Summit Metro Parks sites to see if we could find the grassland habitats that the Director for Resource Management at the parks, Mike Johnson, told us about. We only found one good grassland site but there are probably more that we didn't find because we didn't really cover every square inch of the parks. Hopefully Mike J. can point me in the right direction as to the sites he told me about. I also got a book on bird census techniques (exhilarating!) and some decent ideas about my experimental design.
Today I am just reading, looking for quail eggs to buy online, and coming up with a good experimental design.
I'm still going to do a grassland bird study, however I will be focusing on how landscape structure affects community structure. On top of this, I will be doing a study of nesting success using artificial nests (fake nests baited with quails eggs) to try to relate that to landscape and community structure as well. We'll see how that turns out, the idea is still a little raw but I have to start doing something.
On Monday I went out to the field station to do a "practice run" of my bird counting methods (transect banding) but it was the middle of the afternoon so bird activity wasn't exactly at its peak. (The grassland habitat at the field station is called "Grandview Alley," so know that I mean the field station grassland when I talk about grandview alley). I saw 2 red-tail hawks soaring above the grassland and calling like crazy when I got there so I took probably 10 minutes to just sit in the shade (near the forest edge) and watch them do their thing; it was nice to let my thoughts wander away from research for a little bit. Nothing really unique to report on as far as the bird counts go. I saw the usual suspects: bobolinks, eastern meadowlarks, red wing blackbirds, song sparrows and tree swallows (the swallows aren't grassland birds but there are bluebird houses that they've taken up residence in so they fly around pretty much all day). Here are some pictures I took out there:
Grandview Alley
Grassland... grasses, I guess
This red-wing blackbird was so agitated he kept flying around over my head and being generally loud and obnoxious.
Tuesday, Greg and I went out to some different Summit Metro Parks sites to see if we could find the grassland habitats that the Director for Resource Management at the parks, Mike Johnson, told us about. We only found one good grassland site but there are probably more that we didn't find because we didn't really cover every square inch of the parks. Hopefully Mike J. can point me in the right direction as to the sites he told me about. I also got a book on bird census techniques (exhilarating!) and some decent ideas about my experimental design.
Today I am just reading, looking for quail eggs to buy online, and coming up with a good experimental design.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Thursday was a pretty low key day, it rained most of the day so I didn't do anything in the field. I went to the gym for the first time in a while and then came back to the dorm and read/researched for the rest of the day with Tara and Mollika (study party). Went to the grocery store and got poured on. All in all, pretty lame.
Friday:
Bayoan and I went out to Cuyahoga Valley National Park to meet with some organic farmers whose farms he was going to be doing his research on and I tagged along to chat with Lisa Petit. We spent about 4 hours there and it turns out that neither of our projects were really all that feasible. Lisa did a lot of research on ground nesting grassland birds for her Ph.D. and after talking with her it became abundantly clear that it will be too much work for too little data in the time frame that I have available. So I have to come up with some other idea that won't be useless come 8 weeks from now. Greg and I talked and I have some options, so not all is lost, but it was just a really frustrating turn of events.
No pictures or anything to share. Though on completely unrelated note: I've been practicing guitar pretty much daily and I think I'm starting to see some progress, so hopefully I can keep that up!
Friday:
Bayoan and I went out to Cuyahoga Valley National Park to meet with some organic farmers whose farms he was going to be doing his research on and I tagged along to chat with Lisa Petit. We spent about 4 hours there and it turns out that neither of our projects were really all that feasible. Lisa did a lot of research on ground nesting grassland birds for her Ph.D. and after talking with her it became abundantly clear that it will be too much work for too little data in the time frame that I have available. So I have to come up with some other idea that won't be useless come 8 weeks from now. Greg and I talked and I have some options, so not all is lost, but it was just a really frustrating turn of events.
No pictures or anything to share. Though on completely unrelated note: I've been practicing guitar pretty much daily and I think I'm starting to see some progress, so hopefully I can keep that up!
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