Blog post 3: Ongoing Field Observations

1. Identify the organism or biological attribute that you plan to study.

The study I am conducting will focus on the abundance of Boxelder Maple tree species and the relationship between their increase in abundance as the distance towards the riverbank decreases.

1. Use your field journal to document observations of your organism or biological attribute along an environmental gradient. Choose at least three locations along the gradient and observe and record any changes in the distribution, abundance, or character of your object of study.

Locations for study

• Location one: “Riparian Area”

This are is located N/E using the parking lot as a reference point. It is a riparian area along the riverbank of the Red River with a sidewalk on the outskirts measured at 353.18 m. There is a very high abundance of Boxelder Maple trees beside the sidewalk and as I walked my way towards the river I noticed a few other tree species with low abundance such as Buroak and Arborvitae tree. Alongside the riverbank, there also seemed to be a high abundance of Boxelder Maple trees.

• Location 2: “mini-forest”

I chose this area since it is the furthest area away from the Red River lake. I saw some White Spruce trees, a high abundance of Jack Pine trees, a low density of Boxelder Maple trees.

• Location 3: “Forest next to River” but further away from the Riverbank when compared to location 1

As I walked from the off-leash dog area towards the direction of the river, there was a high abundance of White Spruce trees, some White Willow trees and as I got closer to the river there was an increased abundance of Boxelder Maple trees.

1. Think about underlying processes that may cause any patterns that you have observed. Postulate one hypothesis and make one formal prediction based on that hypothesis. Your hypothesis may include the environmental gradient; however, if you come up with a hypothesis that you want to pursue within one part of the gradient or one site, that is acceptable as well.

Boxelder Maple trees dominate the area near the river. There are many reasons that can cause boxelder Maple trees to dominate the area near the river. One potential reason could be that it could be a natural area and since it is distant from other tree species such as Jack Pine trees it could have not been disturbed. In other areas of the park, Jack Pine trees dominate the area which could mean that it is an invasive species. Another potential reason could be their need for water. Boxelder Maple trees might require a higher amount of water in order to survive which is why they are found near the river and since trees have deep roots, they could be using the river as an additional source of water. The soil near the riverbank is the same level of dryness; therefore, soil moisture is not likely to be a potential reason for their abundance.

Hypothesis: Boxelder Maple trees is higher in abundance in areas near the river than areas further away from the river.

Prediction:

Boxelder Maple trees are more likely to be found in areas near the river than areas further away from the river.

Boxelder Maple trees require a higher concentration of water in order to survive.

1. Based on your hypothesis and prediction, list one potential response variable and one potential explanatory variable and whether they would be categorical or continuous. Use the experimental design tutorial to help you with this.

Response Variable: Abundance of Boxelder Maple trees (Continuous measure).

Explanatory Variable: Distance from the Red River lake (Continuous measure).

Since both variables are continuous, this suggests that this study would require regression analysis for its experimental design.