User: | Open Learning Faculty Member:
I appreciate how ecological theory is developed more after conducting my field research. I found it useful to tabulate and interpret the data right after it was collected in the field. I found this useful because it allowed me make changes to the for the upcoming sampling. I also found the preparation of an annotated bibliography very useful for interpreting the results in the discussion.
On the technical side, I had a lot of trouble identifying lichen even after return from the field. I chose the topic initially due to my inherent interest in lichen and background in fungal endophytes, but it presented much more difficult than I imagined. I adapted to this by grouping lichen into the traditional structural categories. This still allowed me to collect data, based on a structure-function relationship with their substrate.
