Category: Percy Hebert

Blog 6

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Materials used in data collection include, 300m measuring tape for transect line and quadrant marking; as well as measuring distance from center of quadrant to species and DBH. Field journal and pencil ( not pen because ink has begun to freeze while writing due to cold temperatures). A compass to ensure my transect line ran from North to South. Activities have included me walking the randomly generated step to transect point in each substrate area. I then will walk the randomly generated steps between quadrants marking the area with bright green tennis balls ( they stand out well against the small amount of snow) Species distances and DBH are measured and recorded in field journal.

So far I have collected 10 replicates on bedrock, and 10 replicates amongst soil substrate. I have found my experimental design and methods easy to carry out without too many problems. The only difficulty I have found is trying to walk through thick brush with measuring tape , trying to keep line as straight as possible.  I have noticed that along with jack pine frequency being more common on bedrock, the species also appears to be distributed heavily in higher elevations then the rest of the forest canopy. It seems as though jack pines have adapted away from the boreal canopy, thus away from species competition. I still expect to see relative frequency and distribution higher amongst bedrock though the variable of elevation may be contributing to this bedrock preference. That or the high drainage of bedrock with low soil and water content may have determining factors for Jack pine abundance.

Ongoing Field Observations

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The organism I have chosen to study is the leaves on the trees in my study area.  While at my study area I was observing the environment around me trying to decide what to study.  I looked on the ground and noticed that the leaves had begun to fall recently.  I studied the leaves on the ground and in the trees.  I noticed that the leaves had a white substance on them, presumably fungus or mould.  I am going to study the leaves from the different trees in all the areas of the park to see whether the leaves’ placement has an affect on if and how much of the white substance is on the leaves.  My hypothesis is that the placement of the leaves has an affect on whether the leaves will have the substance and will also affect the amount of substance.  I postulate that the leaves still in the trees will have less of the substance than the leaves on the ground.  Some continuous variables could be the amount of moisture the leaves are exposed to, amount of sunlight exposed to and temperature; some categorical variables are species of tree, the size of leave, thickness of leaf, colour of leaf, and other organisms around the leaves.  

Post 3: Ongoing Field Observations

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I plan on focusing on the soil moisture of three varying areas and see how this relates to the vegetation growing there.

Location 1

  • Surrounded by coniferous trees, with a few leaf trees
  • Weed grass everywhere
  • Sloped hill, north facing
  • Many varieties of mosses
  • Some small mushrooms
  • Soil feels very moist, a dark brown, friable consistency,

Location 2

  • Area mainly consists of weed grass and sagebrush
  • Slightly sloped, north facing
  • A few mushrooms and different variety of small plants
  • Soil feels moist, but loose consistency and is a lighter brown than location 1, the texture is silky.

Location 3

  • Vegetation consists of tall cattails and various other tall grass species
  • The soil is noticeably more moist as this is a marsh area
  • The soil has almost a green colour to it, a firm almost clay consistency, and a sticky texture.

There are multiple processes and factors that lead to this difference in vegetation. Some including sunlight, elevation, nutrients, pH and moisture. I hypothesize that moisture level of soil greatly affects the vegetation of that area. From this hypothesis I predict that location 2 will have the lowest moisture level in the soil and location 3 will have the highest moisture level. This is my prediction based on the vegetation I saw in these areas. The response variable is the vegetation and the explanatory variable is the soil moisture.

Blog Post 5

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Did you have any difficulties in implementing your sampling strategy?

I chose to investigate my hypothesis by using the point centered quarter technique. I found this way of collecting data very efficient and straightforward. I did not come across any difficulties.

Was the data that you collected surprising in any way?

I was surprised to observe how sparse Jack Pines are within the forest itself. I thought they would be distributed more evenly amongst the spruce , but they seemed to only appear around forest edges were rocks were present . I also found it interesting how Jack Pines seem to be the dominant species on rock faces. It doesn’t seem like a large tree such as a Jackpine would thrive on a terrain with little to no soil .

 

Do you plan to continue to collect data using the same technique, or do you need to modify your approach?

Point centered quarter sampling is used to gather information on tree density, frequency and coverage. This technique will provide the data that I will need to prove my hypothesis. It can also provide information on how common Jack Pine is relative to others  in the ecosystem. So yes I will continue to use this technique.

Changes to my technique:

  • I may add in more detail to my report relative density, relative frequency and relative basal area.
  • Measuring relative basal area is called relative breast height of the tree and is measure at 4.5 feet from the ground up the trunk. To determine if Jackpine growth is different amongst the different terrains.
  • I will also mark my transect lines using flagging tape, each transect line will be 30m ( 100ft) in a quadrant , instead of haphazardly throwing a ball as my center point , the center point will be the middle of the two transects.
  • I think adding the basal area will add more data to the research that may give a better picture of Jack pine growth in the boreal forest.  I also think using the center point of two 30m transects will give more reliable quantifiable results.

 

 

Post 2: Sources of Scientific Information

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This is a scientific article called “The effect of dietary antioxidants and exercise training on the escape performance of Southern Corroboree frogs” published in science direct. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0376635717302164

This is an academic peer-reviewed research paper. This article is an academic paper because it contains in-text citations and a bibliography, and is written by an expert in the field. This article is a peer-reviewed research paper because it contains a methods and a results section. The author did the research.

Post 1: Observations

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I have decided to observe three different areas in nature, and compare them in different aspects. The first area is forested, mainly with coniferous trees and moss, it is an inclined slope of a hillside. This is located in an undeveloped area of Juniper West in Kamloops, B.C. The second area is flat and dry containing mainly sagebrush. This is located in an undeveloped area beside Highland Drive leading up to Juniper in Kamloops. B.C. The third and final area is a marsh strip of land that has a stream leading to it. The vegetation is mainly tall grass and cattails. This area is located in Kenna Cartwright park, a municipal park located in Kamloops, B.C. I have visited all these areas from various walks and hikes in August on a sunny day. It interests me to see a potential reason for the vastly different growth of plants in different natural areas of one city. This could be due to the soil, elevation of the area or amount of available sun. The three questions I formulated from observing these three varying areas include: What aspects of the soil have the greatest effect on the vegetation growing in an area? How does the elevation of an area affect the vegetation that grows there, or if it does at all? All areas seem to have different levels of moisture, how different are the levels of moisture in the soil? And consequently how this affects the vegetation.

Blog post 3

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Blog Post 3

 

  1. Identify the organism or biological attribute that you plan to study.The organism I have chosen to study is the common Jack pine – Pinus banksiana.
  2. 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.

Gradient 1  –  Boreal forest . Many species of plants and moss present. Tree distribution moderately spaced. Trees include , birch, larch, white and black spruce. Jackpines scarce.  Low lying plants include Labrador tea and Crowberry.Soil dry. Low elevation. Some areas slightly elevated with rocky terrain  

Gradient 2- Marsh – Open area. Tall grasses. Larch species and spruce surround waters edge. Jackpines scarcely distributed .

Gradient 3- Open rocky area. Plant life scarce, Jackpine  seem to be scattered along rock face. White spruce and Birch also present.

  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.

Hypotheis :Jack pine of the Northwest Territories grow in open arid areas.

If this is true, then it can be predicted that Jake pine will be found growing in areas of low tree density with exposed substrate.

  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 thiss

Response variable : Jackpine distribution – continuous ( quantitative measurements of Jackpine per areas)

Explanatory Variable: Terrain/substrate – categorical 

 

Blog Post 1

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Blog Post 1

 

The area that I have decided to study is the boreal forest of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories. The boreal forest is in the circumpolar zone –  circling around the northern hemisphere of the globe. Geologically speaking, Yellowknife sits on the Precambrian shield a vast expanse of rocky hills and dense bush. Jack Pine, Spruce, Birch, Larch , Aspen and Poplar are the most common trees here – a mix of coniferous and deciduous. There are many low lying shrubs and lichens; mostly consisting of crustose and fruticose lichens.  Foliage up in the north tend to grow slightly smaller than species in more temperate climates. This is attributed to rocky terrain, permafrost , short growing seasons and cold weather.

 

Location 1) The outskirts of Yellowknife’s golf course ( which is a giant sand pit) is surrounded by thick boreal forest. Common trees in the area are Jack Pine, White/Black spruce and Birch. Common plants include lichens, Uva ursi and Rhododendron sp. There are also small ponds located within surrounding forest. The golf course and surrounding areas are generally flat, with slight elevations in rocky areas.

 

My first observations:

 

Started Sept. 5.18 – 10:00 am

Season: Fall our first frost was this morning. Temperatures have been remaining a steady 7 – 9 C everyday.

Animals: The only signs of land mammals in the area, are squirrel holes at bases of white spruce trees.

Area: I walked an area of approximately 27,089 m2 – a mix of rocky open areas, marsh and dry boreal forest.

 

My three observational questions are :

  1. Trees of the Northwest Territories are much smaller compared to species down south. Are other plants such as Labrador tea also relatively smaller then down south?
  2. Is fungi growth affected in the same way as the plants and trees?

    3) Jackpines seem to be found in the sandy open areas, or on rocky faces. Are they most commonly found alone in arid areas or amongst Boreal canopy?

 

 

 

Blog Post 4

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Blog post 4

 

I chose the Mohen Hill tutorial

 

Haphazard technique – 12 hours 20 min

Systemic technique – 12 hours, 39 min

Random technique – 12 hours , 10 min

Haphazard :

Common species

–  Red maple  T = 403.1 E= 408.3

% error = 1.14%

– White Oak  T= 74.5 E= 75

%error = 0.67 %

Rare species

  • Downy Juneberry T= 9.9 E= 12.5

% error = 26.3 %

  • Striped Maple T= 13.6 E= 25.0

% error = 83.8 %

Does accuracy change with species abundance ? Yes Accuracy changes with species abundance. The % error for the common species was very low compared to the % error for the rare species.

Systemic technique

Common species

  • Red maple T = 403.7 E= 424

% error = 5%

  • White Oak T= 74.5 E= 84

% error = 12.8%

Rare species

  • Black tupelo T= 35.5 E= 4

% error = 88.73 %

  • Downy Juneberry T= 9.9 E= 24.0

% error = 142.4 %

 

Does accuracy change with species abundance? Yes accuracy seems to change with abundance as the % for the common species is again low compared to the % error for the rare species.

Random Technique

Common species

  • Red maple T= 403.7 E= 413.0

% error = 2.3 %

  • White Oak T= 74.5 E= 91.3

% error = 22.56%

Rare species

  • American Basswood T= 1.5 E= 4.3

% error = 186.67%

  • Downy Juneberry T= 9.9 E= 13

% error = 31%

Does accuracy change with species abundance? Accuracy does not seem to change with abundance with this technique. The percent errors are all quite high compared to other techniques – except Red Maple.

 

Comparing the Shannon Weiner diversity indexes – it appears that Haphazard was the most accurate T= 1.8 E= 1.7

 

Random- T= 1.8 E= 1.6

Systematic T= 1.8 E= 1.4

Post 2: Sources of Scientific Information

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The source I have chosen to categorize is:

Liu J, Wang J, Lee S, Wen R (2018) Copper-caused oxidative stress triggers the activation of antioxidant enzymes via ZmMPK3 in maize leaves. PLoS ONE 13(9): e0203612. https:// doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0203612.

I got this source from the online database Ebscohost.  The authors are affiliated with a university so this would denote that they are experts in the field.  The documentation stating this is:

“1 School of Life Science, Shanxi Datong University, Datong, PR China, 2 School of Life Sciences, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou, PR China, 3 Maize Research Institute, Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinzhou, PR China”

There are in-text citations, the numbers in parenthesis are the citations:

“In all eukaryotes, the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade is a universal mod- ule of signal transduction, serving at the center of intracellular signal transduction. Diverse sig- nal pathways use MAPKs to regulate a variety of cellular functions in response to different extracellular stimuli [14–16]. There is abundant evidence that plant MAPKs can be activated by a variety of metals and play an important role in response to the metals such as AtMPK3 and AtMPK6 in arabidopsis [13], four distinct MAPKs in alfalfa, OsMPK3 and OsMPK6 in rice [17–19], and ZmMPK5 in maize [20]. A MAPK, named ZmMPK3 of group A in maize, shares high identity with the above MAPKs.”

The article does have a bibliography:

References

  1. Huffman DL, O’Halloran TV. Function, structure, and mechanism of intracellular copper trafficking pro- teins. Annu Rev Biochem. 2001; 70: 677–701. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.biochem.70.1.677PMID: 11395420
  2. Luo ZB, He J, Polle A, Rennenberg H. Heavy metal accumulation and signal transduction in herbaceous and woody plants: Paving the way for enhancing phytoremediation efficiency. Biotechnology Advances. 2016; 34: 1131–1148. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biotechadv.2016.07.003 PMID: 27422434
  3. Hall JL. Cellular mechanisms for heavy metal detoxification and tolerance. J Exp Bot. 2002; 53: 1–11. PMID: 11741035
  4. Alaoui-Sosse ́ B, Genet P, Vinit-Dunand F, Toussaint ML, Epron D, Badot PM. Effect of copper on growth in cucumber plants (Cucumis sativus) and its relationships with carbohydrate accumulation and changes in ion contents. Plant Sci. 2004; 166: 1213–1218.
  5. Atha DH, Wang H, Petersen EJ, Cleveland D, Holbrook RD, Jaruga P, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ pubmed?term=Dizdaroglu%20M%5BAuthor%5D&cauthor=true&cauthor_uid=22201446etal. Copper oxide nanoparticle mediated DNA damage in terrestrial plant models. Environ Sci Technol. 2012; 46:

These 3 attributes denote that it is academic material, the academic material has been accepted before it was published which means it is peer-reviewed academic material.

“Editor: Ricardo Aroca, Estacion Experimental del Zaidin, SPAIN

Received: March 6, 2018

Accepted: August 23, 2018

Published: September 17, 2018”

There is a methods and results section in the article which means this is academic peer-reviewed research material.

Materials and methods

Plant materials and design

Maize (Zea mays L. cv. Nongda 108) seeds were incubated and grown hydroponically in the square plastic pot (30 cm × 20 cm) filled with 1 L Hoagland solution (0.156 μM Cu2+) in a light chamberunder a light intensity of 200 μmol m-2 s-1 and a 14 h: 10 h (28 ̊C: 22 ̊C) day: night regimes. There are 30 seedlings in each pot. The solution was changed every 2 d.

When the second leaves were fully expanded, the seedlings were exposed to a series of the concentration of Cu2+ solution (0, 10, 50 and 100 μM) respectively, for 24 h at 25 oC under a continuous light intensity of 200 μmol m-2 s-1. Two replicates were prepared for each concen- tration. There are 30 plants in each trait. To test H2O2 level, the roots of the maize seedlings were immersed into 1 mgmL-1 solution of 3,3-diaminobenzidine (DAB) (pH 3.8) for 8 h under light at 25 oC, and then were exposed to 100 μM CuCl2 for 0, 2, 4, 8, 12 and 24 h, respec- tively. To further investigate the effects of antioxidant dimethylthiourea (DMTU, 5 mM) and MAPK inhibitor (PD98059, 100 μM), the seedlings were pretreated with them separately for 8 h and then exposed to 100 μM CuCl2 for 24 h under the same conditions as described above. After Cu2+ treatments, the second leave from each seedling was sampled for analysis.

Results

H2O2 production in the leaves of maize exposed to Cu2+

The reaction of DAB with H2O2 can produce the deep brown polymerization product. DAB stain, a histochemical method for H2O2 detection, was employed to test H2O2 accumulation in leaves of maize plants exposed to Cu2+ stress. It was observed that brown polymerization prod- ucts were barely seen in the base of leave in the control plants, which indicated that the level of H2O2 was low (Fig 1A). Visible H2O2 accumulation was observed in leaves of maize plants exposed to Cu2+ for 2 h, which was obviously seen at 4 h. Cu2+ led to H2O2 production in a time-dependent manner (Fig 1A). H2O2 content in leaves of maize plants were examined using the methods of spectrophotometry.