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After collecting this initial field data, I realize that I might have to expand my site to include beaches along the same coast. Farlow’s seaweed seems to grow very well when it is on its own in a tidepool. However, Farlow’s seaweed doesn’t seem to grow in many tide pools with higher diversity. To collect a large enough sample size, I might need to continue down the coast to visit more tidepools. A larger sample size will give me a more “solid” conclusion.
In addition to this, when collecting samples, the seaweed could not be completely taken off the rock. A small portion of its base remained strongly attached. The seaweed that was collected also contained other organisms. I separated the larger ones that would make a significant difference in the weighing but the smaller ones remain attached.
The major problem I encountered was that my scale only works in whole numbers so my precision is limited. I ended up having to weigh multiple samples at once in order to make the samples weighable. The samples less than one gram in weight were not detected by my scale.
The data that I’ve collected so far is not surprising. It does follow my initial hypothesis.
Hello Wyang,
What an interesting topic to choose for your field reserach project! You must have great access to the ocean in order to choose such a topic 🙂 I would love to hear what your initial hypothesis is in order to help understand what your blog post is specifically addressing. For the sake of my questions, I will presume you are observing the presence of this specific seaweed, Farlow’s, within coastal tidal pools..
I was curious to know how your sites were selected? When you observed the seaweed samples, was it necessary for you to go at a specific time of day, in order to get the samples? I am also curious to know why you chose to observe Farlow’s seaweed specifically?
Also, how did you sample your sites? It is not clear to me if you chose a grid pattern, transect, etc. or if it was random sampling based on the tides. How much of an area did you cover, & how many tidal pools were you able to sample from? How far apart was each tidal pool from the other? I would love to hear how your results turned out, & if the presence of Farlow’s seaweed is more common than other known seaweed plant communities in the area you sampled from. Did you take samples or observe any other seaweed communities or was your hyposis purely based on Farlow’s seaweed? If so, how are you able to determine how well this plant community is doing if you are forming your hypothesis on only one seaweed plant community?
If I were to suggest something for you to do, based on what I might do in your situation (& because I had to change my study focus due to lacking sample sites!) I would suggest a repeat sample site when the tide is out & the sample is observable, in order to make the observations measurable. I would place my samples along a specific length transect line (along the shoreline or in tidal pools) with a measurable quadrat (1 meter squared) placed 2 meters apart.
Depending on what your initial hypothesis is, I might also observe samples of other seaweed, in order to have some type of comparison for the Farlow’s community density & frequency. I would visit this site multiple times within the same time period, on different days, to calculate the best anaysis that could give clear & falsifyable predictions to the hypothesis.
You mention that Farlow’s seaweed is observed in depleted amounts within tidal pools of higher diversity…how interesting!..do you have any idea why that is? If you don’t have a clear initial hypothesis, maybe that could be the start of a hypothsis for you….
Thanks for choosing this topic! It was the first time I had heard of Farlow’s seaweed. You have inpired me to research this type of seaweed, & more importantly, to see if I can observe it next time I am gazing into our wonderfully beatiful BC tidal pools 🙂
All the best to you~
Sincerely,
Michelle