Mowed and Unmoved grasslands

The sweep net experiment using transects was conducted on a sunny but breezy Wednesday afternoon (September 30th at 2:30 pm) in the mowed and unmowed areas of the Danby grasslands. The purpose of this experiment was to lay out 20 transects of 30 meters each and collect data on the total number of insects found within the length, as well as the number of unique species found (RTU - recognizable taxonomical unit). 10 transects were randomly placed in the mowed parts of the grasslands (GL), closer to the Chimneystack road and 10 transects were randomly placed in the unmowed parts of the grasslands (GL). The randomization of the transect placement was determined by flying a yellow colored plate and observing where it lands. Wherever the plate landed, that is where the next transect data was collected. The abundance and RTUs for the experiment were collected through careful observation of the net after each sweep and were recorded as integers. Sweeps were carried out for 15 counts. After each 15 count sweep, the net was analyzed for insects. The unique species collected during the experiment were leaf hoppers, grasshoppers, ants, flies, beetles, mosquitoes and an unidentifiable green insect. There were many instances throughout the experiment when spiders and snails were found, however since these organisms are not classifed as insects, the number was not included in the official count for insects. Group members: Alana, Murtuza, Chris