From the Bayous of Louisiana to the Gulf of Alaska:Bringing Real-World Science into the Classroom: Earthwatch Live from the Field and NOAA Teacher at Sea Fellowships

Earthwatch:Live From the Field

2008Hunting for Caterpillars

The Expedition

0The team consisted of:0 7 teachers 0 The principal

investigator, Dr. Lee Dyer

0 Our expedition leader, Rebecca Hazen

The Research

0We studied the effect of extreme weather events on “tritrophic relationships0 Extreme weather events

=hurricanes0 Tritrophic relationship =

plants, caterpillars and parasitoids (wasps, and flies that lay their eggs in caterpillars)

The Procedure

0 First we sampled plots of land in the Pearl River Wildlife Management Area.

0 Every caterpillar possible was collected.

0 Back at the lab the caterpillars were identified, photographed and catalogued.

0 The caterpillars were then cared for until they formed chrysalids and hatched into moths or died.

The Importance of this Research

0 Caterpillars are one of our main agricultural pests.

0 The concern is that extreme weather events may decrease the population of the parasitoids.

0 If the population of parasitoids decreases, then the caterpillar population should increase.

0 This could cause increased deforestation and crop damage.

The Classroom Connection

0We kept in touch with our classes through blogs and videoconferencing.

0You can access my blog at: http://www.earthwatch2.org/LFF/rodriquez/

Hunting for Caterpillars with Students

Designing investigations0Use a variable wheel to

develop Research question

Other possible independent variables0Season0Distance from river

Number of caterpillar

s

Hunting for Caterpillars with Students

0Sampling Plots0Using GPS0Using Beat

SheetsNumber of caterpillar

s

Cloud cover

Temperature

Type of trees

Elevation

Height from

ground

Precipitaion

Experimenting in the Classroom

0 Investigating environmental factors that affect the growth of caterpillars Growth of

caterpillars

Experimenting in the Classroom

0 Investigating environmental factors that affect the growth of caterpillars

0Create a variable wheel 0Students groups pick one

to investigate

Growth of caterpilla

rs

Amount of light

Amount of space

Population

density

Humidity

Amount of food

Type of light

Community Connection

0Students worked with seniors to plan and build a butterfly garden at the Willington Senior community Center

NOAA Teacher at Sea:Researching Pollack in the

Gulf of Alaska

THE EXPEDITION

0Ecosystem and Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations (FOCI) Late Larval Survey

0Dutch Harbor, Alaska to Kodiak Island, Alaska

0May19 – June 2, 2010

The Researchers

THE RESEARCH0What - Ichthyoplankton

survey and process studies0Where – Gulf of Alaska

from Shumagin Islands to Shelikoff Straits

0Why - To estimate the abundance, transport, and factors influencing the survival of young Pollock larvae.

ALASKAN POLLOCK (THERAGRA CHALCOGRAMMA)

0Also known as Walleye Pollock

0Member of Cod family0Lives in the North Pacific and

Bering Sea0Mid-water to bottom

dwelling fish0Lifespan is up to 17 years. 0Young feed on plankton and

small fish; older Pollock feed mostly on fish

0Main predator is the Stellar Sea Lion

The Importance of this Research

0 Research is part of the management program for a commercially important fishery

0 Researchers are creating a model to show future abundance of adults based on larval survival rates.

0 Will compare to actual population numbers obtained from fisheries researchers who sample the adult harvest

0 Pollock is declining – possible causes are predation by Arrowtooth flounder on juveniles and changes in water temperature

Sampling

With

Bongo

Nets

Deploying the CTD Sampler

The Gulf of Alaska

The Classroom Connection:

0Students accompanied me on my journey through the use of my blog

0Each day they would read the newest post and then complete their challenge activity and post their questions for my to answer

0You can access my blog at: http://websrv.willingtonct.org/wordpress/lrodriguez/

Experimenting in the Classroom and Outside

Investigating the Health of Long Island Sound1. What is the Long Island

Sound (LIS) ecosystem like? 2. How do scientists monitor

water quality? 3. What affects the amount of

dissolved O2 in water? 4. How healthy are the

Fisheries in LIS?5. How can we help protect

LIS?

What is the Long Island Sound (LIS) ecosystem like?

0 Students research the LIS ecosystem and create charts of plants and animals then count the number of different species that live in Long Island Sound and describe the level of biodiversity of the Sound.

0Great Resource: “Living Treasures: The Plants and Animals of Long Island Sound” by Nancy Balcom, Connecticut Sea Grant for Long Island Sound Study

How do scientists monitor water quality?

0Student groups conduct real time data project on water quality of Long Island Sound

0MYSound website: http://mysound.uconn.edu/index.html

What affects the amount of dissolved O2 in water?

0 Student groups conduct inquiry activities in the classroom

Amount of

Oxygen

Pollution

Amount of

plants

pH

Salinity

Temperature

Number of Fish

How healthy are the Fisheries in LIS?

0 Students research 6 important fisheries species in LIS; Bluefish, Striped bass, Summer Flounder, Winter Flounder, Tautog, and Scup. And graph the change in the catch amounts of these six fish from 1981to 2008:

0 “A study in Marine Recreational Fisheries” by the State of Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection http://www.ct.gov/dep/lib/dep/fishing/general_information/f54r2008report.pdf

0  

Bluefish

0 Striped Bass

Community ConnectionHow can we help protect LIS?

0Go to Long Island Sound Study website: http://longislandsoundstudy.net/get-involved/what-you-can-do/ to learn about what students can do to help protect the Sound.

0 International Coastal Clean-up

Benefits of Teacher research Experiences

0 NOAA and Earthwatch gain motivated volunteers to help carry out their projects

0 Increases students’ exposure to knowledge of scientific and marine careers.

0 Promotes a greater awareness of the need to understand and protect the world's wild places and their resources.

0 In the News: A groundbreaking study out of Columbia University shows that teacher research experience, such as that offered by Earthwatch and the NOAA TAS program, positively impacts student achievement

Would I Like to do this?NOAA TAS

0 Who May Apply: K-12 teacher or administrator

0 Types of Cruises 0 Time commitment – 1 week to 1

month (average cruise is 10 -12 days

0 Costs - $00 Obligations

0 submit 2-3 logs per week0 1 lesson plan on research 0 1 lesson plan on ocean careers0 Give a presentation or submit an

article

Would I Like to do this? Earthwatch

0 Who May Apply: K-12 teacher or administrator – You do not need to be a science teacher

0 Types of Expeditions: Summer Fellowships and Live From the Field during the school year

0 Time commitment – 1- 2 weeks0 Costs - $00 Obligations

0 Keep a journal during the expedition0 Submit 1 lesson plan or a

community plan0 Submit a final report to share with

others

How to follow along

0You can access this power point, my blogs and resources at my 7th or 8th grade Wikis

0http://sciencerocks8.wikispaces.com0http://yeah-science7.wikispaces.com

Earthwatch Live From the Field and NOAA Teacher at SeaBring the Science Home