Moisture vs Species Abundance

Data was collected twice over two weeks to determine if moisture levels in the woodlots and grassland effected species abundance. Group members included Taylor, Amena, Antoni and Keerthana. Data collection began on Monday October 19, 2015 between 2:50 pm - 5:00 pm the weather was 14 degrees Celsius, partly cloudy with winds of 26km/hour southeast and the humidity at 49%. Data collection continued on Monday October 26, 2015 between 2:50 pm - 5:00 pm the weather was 9 degrees Celsius, scattered clouds with winds of 14 km/hour southeast and humidity was 57%. Dambi Woods located on York Campus was the location of the data collection as there was both grassland (limited canopy) and woodlot (denser canopy). The grassland area had high grass with scattered tree cover and the woodlot area was a forest with more tree cover. Starting point was a specific tree located at the entrance of the grasslands and a tree located at the entrance of the woodlots. Using a random number generator, the number of steps between each quadrant was determined. 60 quadrants ( 1 m x 1 m) were laid out in the grassland area and 60 quadrants were laid out in the woodlot area. Each quadrant was observed for 5 minutes for insect (species) activity. Some insects that were spotted were red ants, flies, spiders, beetles, and grasshoppers. An overall species count was noted and then a breakdown of the species observed was noted.