Blog Post 5 – Design Reflections

     So far I have not had much difficulty in actually implementing my sampling strategy, but I did have some questions to answer before initiating my strategy. Firstly, I had to consider that although I am observing honeybee activity in relation to the road, I had to find plants in each location that would be similar enough to sample the activity of the honeybees. I have chosen 3 plants that all contain flowers and leaves and seem to have honeybee activity regularly.

     After doing my replications, I was somewhat surprised with the results! At a quick glance, the elderflower shrub has an extensive amount of insect activity. But after observing the plant for 5 minute increments, I noticed that majority of these insects were not the Western Honeybee. Regardless of this, I was able to obtain some number for each replicate to add to my study.

     I think I will continue to collect data using the same technique as it makes the most sense for my study. I will keep the same plants I initially observed as I think they are the most similar and will assist in the accuracy of my study. Not only are these plants similar in looks, but they are also all cultivated plants which will help to keep my samples similar as opposed to having some cultivated plants and some naturally occurring plants.

Below is my replicate chart and the plants I intend on using for my study: