F i r s t Year o f E c o l o g y M o n i t o r i n g a t Hack l e y Wrap s Up
This year Tessa Johnson’s Ecology students began to set up a long term ecology monitoring program at Hackley. In the fall students began a study of the local flora and fauna of the region. We heard from guest speakers and formulated a plan for data collection. In the spring we began the data collection that will continue every spring and fall. We began bimonthly water quality data collection at Deer Pond and Salamander pond. Next year the large pond by the upper field will also be included in the data collection. Oxygen, temperature, nitrates, pH and alkalinity measurements were taken. Students also examined 2 sets of leaf packs from Deer Pond and one from Salamander pond for macro invertebrates. The signs of spring were documented, such as when plants began flowering and when the forbs and ferns were first seen. Two arrays of boards were placed for the NPS Searching for Salamanders program. One in between Deer and Salamander pond and one by the upper field. The boards need at least 3 months settling time so data collection will begin in the fall for this project. It was a fantastic start to the program. Students were in the field as often as 4 days a week. Highlights included gearing up in our new set of class waders to indentify and collect eggs from the ponds. In fact we even found a few marbled salamander larvae which are a species of special concern in NY. Students also enjoyed raising wood frogs in the classroom. Simon Lai, an Ecology student, said he was jealous of next year’s classes because they had had so much fun setting everything up and he wanted to continue collecting data. Next year’s students will continue the collection, set up a camera trap to start taking pictures of the more reticent animals in our woods, and start mapping locations of trees by the ponds. —Tessa Johnson, Science Department
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