Diario de logant653

It is crazy how fast this semester has gone by! I've very much enjoyed my lab experience this semester and am grateful for the difficulty as it has helped me learn so much about biology, biodiversity, the scientific method, and myself.

In this final lab period, we spent the time analyzing the contents of our dug-up biocubes. We collected a lot of mud from the bottom of the swamp, some water, some twigs, and grasses near where our biocube was originally placed before it was viciously attacked. We also collected several different bugs and worms that we were able to look at under the dissecting microscope. We were able to use the motic cam to take pictures of the bugs and upload them to iNaturalist for identification. We found a few different beetles and fly larvae. These insects make up a large portion of the biodiversity of the swamp so it was nice that we were able to capture some of these small organisms that are difficult to see with the naked eye. I was also able to view some of the earthworms that we collected. We also looked at the swamp water we collect under a microscope to observed any microbes present. Using my identification skills from the previous lab unit, I was able to identify many different types of protists and algae. It was a very good reminder that protists are found everywhere, especially in a wetland swamp.

I had a really nice time visiting Foxcroft Farm this week. I am sad that it was my last time; I will surely miss the swamp.

The weather was the nicest it had been for all of our adventures. For a little while, it lightly rained. The rain made me excited because I know that is when many organisms will choose to come out and explore.

We made it to the location that we’ve observed during the previous trips. Immediately I noticed the strong scent of skunk cabbage. The cabbage had grown a lot. The entrance to our swamp area was covered with it. It was a beautifully lush, green color. It was very interesting to see the development of these skunk cabbage. They started as a deep purple color and with each week they got larger, greener, and less purple. The smell also became more pungent over time (perhaps it was just me recovering from sickness). Using the garden tools, I dug up one of the mature skunk cabbage plants to see some of its roots. While doing this, I saw many different organisms in the mud. We found so many earthworms and other insects that we hope to identify later. It wasn’t easy to dig up the cabbage because it had many roots set in the ground. Next week in the lab I hope to analyze these root structures in preparation of the species paper on skunk cabbage.

However, we did not have a replacement biocube to set down. We observed the area where our biocube was originally placed. We didn’t see any fish or large aquatic organisms swimming in the water. The water was pretty clear which made it easy to see to the bottom. However, once we walked around for a bit, the mud would be disturbed from the bottom of the water and cause the water to be a murky brown color, obstructing our view. We did see a lot of different insects in the water and bugs that would land on the surface of the water. We were able to collect many of these organisms we saw with our net and place them in jars for later identification. We used the shovel and rake to dig up some plants and dirt to place in our Tupperware container for later analysis. We got a wide variety of plants and insects and other microbes in the dirt that we may be able to view under a microscope. We collected water samples as well. I’m curious to see what is present there and how it compares to our protist samples in the preview unit.

During our fifteen minutes of silence, we had something truly amazing happen. We were watching the water and listening to the sounds of different birds calling across the farm. There were many different calls. Sometimes I thought I could hear water splashing or rustling in the grasses. However, I was unable to find anything upon further investigation. Two geese flew down into the stream of the swamp area. It was quite amazing how just being silent and one with nature can be enough to make humans less scary to other animals. They definitely saw us and kept their distance but they knew that we going to be kind. They continued down the stream as we took videos and listened to their dialogue consisting of quacks and head dunks.

After our moments of silence and the geese passed by, we decided to check out a new area. It was our last time in the field and we wanted to see what other biodiversity would be in other locations. We walked past the bike path, past the conifer forest and crossed over to where the beaver dams are. We went down by the water and into the swamp areas. We tried a couple more moments of silence to see what we could hear but we couldn’t locate any organisms there. We were able to get some nice photos of some plants that we didn’t encounter in the previous area, however. We even ran into the conifer forest group and they showed us some of their ecosystem and some of the organisms they had. It was cool to see how different the areas were.

I am very thankful for this experience in field biology. I enjoyed it a lot and can definitely see myself continuing in the future.

The Swamp team had a somewhat less successful trip this week. Let's dive in:

The weather was a little bit colder than the previous week. The sun was out, however, and there was still a lot of wind that felt really nice and refreshing. It's always great to get outside of UMass and head into nature for a few hours. Upon arrival to the swamp, we noticed that the area we had placed our biocube was covered with a thin layer of ice. This was saddening because we thought it meant that we wouldn't see many organisms in the water. As we go to find our biocube, we were surprised to find that it had been completely destructed. We had secured our biocube on a branch last week so we were shocked that not only was the biocube no longer secured, it was broken apart. There were bend marks in the biocube metal poles with marks that could look like teeth indents. Also, some of the green paint had fallen off. These signs point to the idea that something had attacked the biocube. Margaret Riley, our professor and owner of Foxcroft Farm, suggested that it could have been in a snapping turtle. During my research of the swamp food chain, I did read that snapping turtles can be found in swamps so this may be a likely explanation. We will build another cube and place it in the same location. Perhaps we will be able to set up a camera to see if the same organism comes to destroy our biocube again.

Our group took another 15 minutes of silence in our swamp this week. It was very nice to be still and listen to the surroundings. I find that being in nature really clears my head and diminishes most of my problems. I heard so many different bird calls. I felt like I was eavesdropping on conversations between a few different species. The calls were so distinct and loud. I remember myself thinking about how it makes sense for them to have such powerful calls which can be heard by other birds over large distances. I heard the wind moving the branches of the trees which made a hollow cracking sound. I heard the straw-like grass flowing in the wind and brushing up against other grass. I did not hear any water splashing from organisms coming to the surface. I heard a duck fly into the water on the other side of the swamp, quacking as it swam around probably in search of food.

Our ecosystem looked pretty similar to last week. The skunk cabbage that grows around the swamp turned a more green color rather than the purple color we had seen the previous week. We also saw many different types of mosses which we had not noticed earlier. There was still a strong, earthy smell of mud around our ecosystem. It smelled like nature-- it was great. I noticed some spiders crawling around in the grass. There were small, white insects flying that would occasionally land on the surface of the water. As I pulled the straw-like yellow grass apart, I saw new green blades growing in. This makes me think that the yellow color of the grass means the plant is dead. As we were unable to find any organisms swimming in the color water, we started using our nets to collect samples from the bottom of the water. This method was very effective. We were able to find a lot of different types of bugs that we hope to catalog and identify later after they die in the container we put them in. Sadly, we did not find any frogs or crayfish this week.

The swamp team had a great time out in the field this week. Only one person fell in this time. Hopefully as the weather continues to get warmer, more organisms will come out and start to swim in the swamp water rather than hiding in the mud at the bottom. Looking forward to our next adventure!