Teacher/Lecturer 1 of 3

Practical 5.1 Looking for patterns

Purpose
To carry out a study on the ecology of a habitat.

Safety
Teachers/lecturers must follow their LEA/school/college policy and local rules for off-site visits, especially with regard to identification of hazards and risk assessments. Additional information is available in the DCSF guidance Health and Safety of Pupils on Educational Visits on the Teachernet website. The hazards will vary depending on the site chosen. Risk assessments will identify the risk.

Notes on the procedure

Students need to carry out a study on the ecology of a habitat to produce valid and reliable data (including the use of quadrats and transects to assess the abundance and distribution of organisms and the measurement of abiotic factors). This activity outlines how to approach a fieldwork investigation. It briefly mentions some techniques that might be used. It does not attempt to provide detailed accounts of the techniques. Additional details are provided on the Student Practical support sheet Ecological sampling (page 26) and there is a wealth of information on the British Ecological Society student 161 education web pages about sampling techniques. There are also examples of projects with data and virtual tours of the rocky shore and sand dune habitats. The Field Studies Council website also has online resources for students including information on different urban ecosystems. The methods used will depend on the habitat and factors under investigation. Any suitable methods could be used that give students the opportunity to have first-hand experience of field data collection. The school/college grounds can be a valuable resource. Other activities could be covered in a fieldwork context; for example, feeding relationships and the transfer of energy through ecosystems, or succession, could be investigated through a specific habitat. Fieldwork can be used as students investigation for A2 coursework. Teachers/ lecturers and students should ensure that the proposed investigation meets the assessment criteria. When planning coursework for Unit 6 there is a full description of the requirements illustrated with exemplars in the Tutor support material for Unit 6 on the Edexcel website.

Select a site carefully

The site selected should show some clear relationships. Some examples where transects can be used: a playing field or grassy area from an area of high trampling to an area of low trampling. The Field Studies Council online resources include a case study on the distribution of ribwort plantain and greater plantain in trampled and non-trampled areas.

Edexcel practical materials created by Salters-Nuffield Advanced Biology, University of York Science Education Group.

2 of 3 Teacher/Lecturer

Practical 5.1 (cont.)

Looking for patterns

a woodland margin passing from a field or other example of grazed or mown grassland, through brambles into a wood. The key gradient is likely to be light intensity but it may not be the only one. a sand dune system from the shore across dunes into grassland and scrub as you go further inland. In this case the key factors could be soil moisture, soil stability and organic matter, although succession is also involved here. a rocky shore from the low tide mark to the top of the beach. The key factor is the proportion of time a part of the shore is left exposed to the air and to desiccation when the tide is out. a geological boundary between two types of rock, such as between limestone and millstone grit. Some examples where two sites can be compared: grazed and ungrazed grassland mowed and unmowed grassland trampled and untrampled grassland fertilised and unfertilised lawns shaded and sunny sites fast- and slow-flowing streams chalk and sandy soil sites understories of beech and oak woodlands. The two sites could be compared by random sampling.

Identification dont panic!

Identification is not as big a problem as you may think. The only species students need focus on are those which would support the hypothesis under investigation. Trying to identify each species in a quadrat down to the tiniest piece of moss can be a poor use of time and can actually prevent students from seeing the wood for the trees. A transect at a woodland margin could be successfully done recording only tree cover, grass, brambles, nettles, ivy, bare ground, wild garlic (with give-away smell) and bluebells, together with good light meter readings and soil pH (often showing no pattern), especially if you start to consider something like leaf surface area of brambles at the same time. But the principles are: select a site where students can cope with the species identification before teaching students to identify another species, ask yourself What is the ecological point of teaching this? make use of expert help if available this could include a Field Study Centre. The Field Studies Council produces excellent laminated cards to aid with field identification in particular habitats. The students will be relying on you for identification so careful preparation is important. You may like to produce a record sheet that includes the species you want to focus on.
Edexcel practical materials created by Salters-Nuffield Advanced Biology, University of York Science Education Group.

Teacher/Lecturer 3 of 3

Practical 5.1 (cont.)

Looking for patterns

Class organisation
Students can work in groups if they are not using this investigation for their A2 coursework. The smaller the group the more ownership by individuals, whilst the larger the group the more quadrats can be recorded and the bigger and statistically more meaningful the picture that can be produced. A good group size is six working as three pairs. It helps if the whole group can have access to a computer as soon as possible after collecting the data and to a full set of equipment during data collection. Waiting to borrow equipment from other groups wastes a lot of time and loses momentum. Pace is also important it is possible to be too slow and nit-picking about accuracy, in which case the students become bored and lose sight of the bigger picture. It is also possible for the students to feel it is somehow efficient to get the job done as quickly as possible, subsequently data are produced that are so inaccurate and incomplete that they do not produce reliable results.

FieldWorks: an invaluable IT resource

FieldWorks is available on CD and produced by Interpretive Solutions, Hallsannery Field Centre, Bideford, Devon EX39 5HE. It benefits from having grown out of the learning experiences of many students. Students can enter their own data, and present these using kite diagrams or other formats. It also contains information about species and habitats including rocky shores, sand dune, salt marsh, moorland, woodlands and fresh water. The data can be subjected to statistical analysis using correlation coefficients (Pearsons parametric or Spearman rank non-parametric), particularly useful with transects. The programme can also calculate species diversity indices and carry out t-tests and z-tests. Other statistical packages are available for use in ecology from software companies and other suppliers.

Useful references
Jones C. (1998) Fieldwork sampling animals. Biological Sciences Review, 10(4), 2325. Jones C. (1998) Fieldwork sampling plants. Biological Sciences Review, 10(5), 68. Williams G. (1987) Techniques and fieldwork in ecology. London: HarperCollins. Field Studies Council identification sheets and booklets are very good. These can be obtained from: FSC Publications, Preston Montford, Montford Bridge, Shrewsbury SY4 1HW.

Edexcel practical materials created by Salters-Nuffield Advanced Biology, University of York Science Education Group.