Category: Percy Hebert

I think the difficulty in designing the study for this field research project is that I performed the intensive literature review occurs following the completion of the study. I found results in the literature that would have been useful in designing my study. For example, I found a study that showed that fern density decreased closer to a river. It would have therefore been interesting to compare fern density as the distance from the creek increased. The way the study was designed, I was unable to separate the effects of low canopy cover and the presence of water on the variables measured. It would have been good to have been able to identify additional sites with low canopy cover and no water, and high canopy cover and water and measure fern growth at these sites. Following the completion of this study, I have a far greater appreciation of collecting ecological data and the importance of randomization. It would have been much easier for me to identify an area with lots of ferns and just measure the ferns that looked big and healthy which would have biased results. Instead, I had to set up a method to randomly select ferns to measure, and as a result, there was far greater variation in the data collected, but I feel it represents an unbiased sampling of the population. Like the study of any science, bias is very difficult to avoid, especially when you are “looking” for a specific result, so the sampling techniques are so important in generating credible data.

This project was a real challenge for me. I had a very limited window of time between when the ice and snow melted in Whitehorse and when I moved down south, in which I had to make observations, come up with an idea, and gather data. After I had moved I discovered that my sample size was probably too small, but by that time it was too late to gather more samples and I had to make due with what I had recorded.

I made numerous changes to almost every component of my study as I was conducting it. I revised the organism I intended to study, my study site, my sampling methods, my graph layouts, etc. With each revision there was something to be learned, ranging from the need for specificity in order to frame an experiment, to how to convey information most effectively through tables and graphs. I particularly enjoyed my time learning to use Excel, which seems like an extremely powerful program with many applications. I also enjoyed making observations and collecting samples in a beautiful setting. Engaging with living systems as such is a joy.

In future studies, I will take more time to research the species and ecologies relevant to my organism. This will enable me to determine how to go about collecting samples and how many samples to collect. This would also help ensure that I’ve not built a hypothesis or experimental methods on falsehoods.

The process of developing ecological theory now strikes me as a painstaking and labor intensive effort. The sheer volume of data necessary to track certain ecological trends, especially over timescales relevant to long-lived organisms, is daunting. Reading through sections of Clement’s book, I was struck by the life-long dedication required to acquire enough theoretical knowledge and personal observations to bring certain ideas to fruition. In attempting to come up with a hypothesis, I found myself hampered by how little I knew about my local ecosystem. I now appreciate that a prerequisite to insightful questions is often having a relationship with the living systems you’re observing. Conducting this study has been a very informative experience in ways that go well beyond the content of the project itself.

This was my first time designing and performing my own field experiment. I did experience some issues with implementation. First of all, I was unsure whether I would have enough sample units to collect.  However, I was able to find enough rose bushes to sample when I extended the study area.  The quadrat sampling method proved to be more difficult for measuring samples on bushes, because the surface is not flat like the ground.  I had to re-define the sample area in order to make each sample collection the same.

Engaging in the practice of ecology has definitely changed my perspective on the development of ecology theory.  I find myself noticing more patterns within the environment, and designing mini experiments in my head on how I would attempt to explain such patterns.  It has also opened my eyes to just how complicated, intertwined and sophisticated natural ecosystems are.