Biodiversity of Insects Found at a Woodlot and Grassland at York University

The purpose of this experiment was to determine the different kinds of insects found in the natural habitats around York University. The experiment was conducted on September 30, 2014 at 3 p.m. with a temperature of 19°C and an overcast sky in a grassland and woodlot; the grassland was found east of Stong pond (43.770960, -79.506432) and the woodlot was the Saywell Woodlot (43.770280, -79.508262). For this experiment pan traps, in the form of 3 sets of 3 solo bowls, were laid out in each of the grassland and woodlot and were filled 3/4 of the way with soapy water. Each set contained a white, blue and yellow bowl so that different kinds of insects would be attracted to it. The sets of bowls were placed in a triangular pattern so each bowl was touching and the 3 sets were placed approximately 1 metre away from one another. The bowls were left in their respective locations for 1.5 hours after which a count and identification of the species of insects in the bowls was made. A dichotomous key was used in order to identify the order in which the insect belonged to, then more in depth identification was used to determine the specific species.