Document: JAC-3-28-27

The campus ecosystem: Temperatures.

JACK HAYES, D.*

Paine College, Augusta, GA 30901-3182 USA ¹

Abstract:
As part of its funded project (UNCF/Mellon/ESA) on Strategies for Ecology Education, Development and Sustainability (SEEDS), Paine College uses sites on its campus for ecological studies by students. For the present study, paired air and soil thermometers were set out at five sites around the Walker Science Building on 11 January 2000, and monitored through 27 January. Average air temperatures dropped from 24.4 C. on 12 January to -3.6 C. on 27 January. Matching average soil temperatures dropped from 11.7 C. to 1.7 C. in the same period. On 12 and 13 January, air temperatures exceeded soil temperatures. On 26 and 27 January, the pattern was reversed. In terms of niches for organisms living at these sites, organisms could be - and were - active in the air on 12 and 13 January, but not on 26 and 27 January. Various predators were present, associated with aphids that feed on Spirea bushes. Students gained experience with not only data collection at replicate sites, but also contruction of graphs using Cricket Graph software. The basic approach can be readily extended to studies of other ecosystems.

Keywords: ecosystem, temperature, niche, ecology education

This abstract is being presented at: 3:30 PM in session:
Poster Session #3: Education.