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The main species in focus for my research will be Cattails and Lily Pads, and how they can become invasive to other species, as wells studying best practise pond management techniques. I am interested to see how the presence and density of either cattails or water Lillies or both effect the density of other species in the pond. In the past several years our pond has become extremely overgrown, the growth of new trees surrounding its perimeter. Alongside the massive increase in cattails and lillies. Below are air photos of the pond from 2010 (Figure 1) and 2015 (Figure 2). As you can see in just 5 years the amount of vegetation has doubled. To some property owners this may be an “eye sore,” however, my family does not mind. As the pond continues to evolve the amount of species that inhabit and utilize it as a resource have increased. The new trees surrounding the pond provide habitat for more bird species. As the weather continues to grow colder we will soon be having many Canadian Geese as visitors.
Figure 1: 2010 Air Photo of Pond
Figure 2: 2015 Air Photo of Pond
I am still brainstorming a concrete hypothesis but it will largely surround habitat space use from varying species in our pond and how the presence of one may effect another. Below are initial notes taken on October 4, 2019 along with photos of my study areas. (Figure 3- ). The graph in Figure 3 exemplifies a visual representation of the space utilized by varying factors in the pond, I will soon create a chart and more accurately record this data. Also note I am still working to identify two of the tree species. The drawing in Figure 4 represents how my study is going to be divided directionally, taking into account wind patterns, tree locations and how the pond is utilized by which species in each specific location.
Figure 3: Initial Field Notes – Part 1
Figure 4: Initial Field Notes – Part 2
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Hi there,
Based on your ongoing observations, I think you have enough information to create a hypothesis and prediction that would be falsifiable.
A good starting point would be to think about the underlying processes that are contributing to your observations. Based on your ongoing observations, it looks as though you are assuming the presence of Cattails and Lillies adversely impact the occurrence of native vegetation. Would this mean that the area of the pond where the Cattails and Lillies are thriving is their ideal environment and they can out compete native species? What have you noticed about the areas where the Cattails and Lillies are present? Are there areas in the pond that don’t have Cattails and Lillies? Could it be related to sun exposure, depth of the water, adjacent land use, previous disturbance, nutrient availability, substrate type? Are Lillies present in deeper water than Cattails or the other way around? Are Cattails and Lillies present in areas where riparian vegetation has been cleared?
To create a clear and falsifiable predication you may need to decide on what underlying process or processes you want to focus on. For example, if you thought the depth of the water was impacting the presence of Cattails and Lillies, one hypothesis could be, “The distribution of Cattails and Lillies are determined by depth of water”. Based on this hypothesis one prediction could be, “Cattails and Lillies are present in areas less than 1.5 m deep” (which is specific and falsifiable). Based on this, one predictor variable is the depth of water, and one response variable is presence of Cattails and Lillies.
However, there may be other confounding variables to consider, such as exposure to sun, adjacent land use, substrate type and previous disturbance. These variables could also be incorporated into your experimental design but you would need to think about a way you could measure each variable in the field.
Good luck with your ongoing observations!
Courtney