User talk:Ashish Bhattarai/Notebook/Biology 210 at AU

01/25/2015 Observing a Niche at American University and seeing the biological lives that live in certain American University Niche

Purpose: The main purpose of this experiment is to observe a certain environment within American University and see all the biological lives that exist in this community. This experiment also goes along with looking at the dependence of certain living organisms as small as bacteria, protists to insects, bugs and squirrels. We are also looking at how certain disturbances such as human interactions and natural disasters are responsible for some changes in the niche.

Hypothesis:

Materials/ Methods: A 20 X 20 transect is marked with popsicle sticks. There are 5 transects with in American University. The transects vary on their characterization. There are transects which is manicured grassland and other which is a marshland and three others. Our group was assigned with the manicured grassland. As the transects were also labeled with number, the transect that we were assigned is transect #5. This particular experiment required us to do nothing more than inspect and observe the niche we were assigned to. We identified our niche and started looking at everything present within the 20 X 20 transect. We also collected sample of everything that was in the transect. The sample we collected was a mini version of the transect itself. A sterile 50ml conical tube is used to obtain the sample. Other materials that were needed to conduct this experiment were popsicle sticks (four) and the transect itself.

Data/ Observation: The location of this transect is around the Eric A Friedham Quadrangle seating area in the main quad of American University. The transect is looking at Batelle with back towards Hurst building. To the right of transect is Kay Spiritual Center. The transect includes a small part of the seating area itself. When looking at Batelle with back towards Hurst, the transect is to the right of the middle of the seating area that is lead by a path. The transect is to the right. The transect incorporates dead bushes and shrubs with wilted leaves lying on the grassy manicured land. The shrubs are growing on the mulch which is one of the features of the transect itself. The mulch area looks fertile and promises a lot of microbes and bacteria.There are two different kinds of bushes.

The biotic (living) factors of the transect are as follows: 1: Grass (Manicured grassland) 2: Shrubs/Bushes : There are two kinds of shrubs and one kind is prickly as it is covered with thorns all along its stem. 3: Leaves : (More likely that they fell down from tree that is nearby 'the tree does not fall inside the transect assigned'. The leaves are all wilted) 4: Squirrels : (Not there at the time of observation because it is winter now but I have seen many squirrels running around in that area during fall) 5: Insects / Bugs

There are some abiotic factors in the transect and they are as follows: 1: Mulch (There are some wood pellets.) 2: Soil (The soil looks fertile and promises home for some of the living organisms and a good source of nutrients for the shrubs planted in it) 3: Snow and water (Being winter, there is some snow on the ground) 4: Stone benches (act as one of the possible disturbance to the natural environment of the transect) 5: Air (Air is everywhere, but it also includes air coming from the human breath from the people who walk along the area going to and fro classes and of those who sit on the benches for getting some fresh air)

Some other features of the transect are the already built seating area. There was also some wastes lying on the area of transect. There was a fork lying down on the ground. Not only that, there were some human footsteps/ prints which means that people and other animals are walking by it. It promises for disturbances caused by the interaction of human to the environment.