Header photo credit Annabella Waterbury.
It’s been a while since we had a rough-skinned newt encounter, but we spotted a little one this week on the way to Plot #3.
We were down two explorers this week due to illness, but there was plenty to do to keep the forest science projects moving. Bella had put serious thought into which trees should be measured again to check for accuracy and solve some mysteries such as: do we really have a 4+ foot diameter tree in the plot?
We split the group into three teams of two, and she handed each team a rite-in-the-rain notebook with their assigned trees listed. With our missing explorers, I got to be on a team and measure trees! It’s a treat to get a chance to participate in activities since normally I’m just managing and assisting.
After looking over the results, Bella determined that the unreasonably large tree measurements were most likely the result of reading the wrong side of the tape measure. We use diameter tapes, where one side is 3.14 times the other, and it’s an easy mistake to make.
Ruani’s forest science project is focused on herpetofauna (reptiles and amphibians) and he’s hoping to find some by using artificial cover objects (ACOs.) We have a collection of Doug-fir bark left over from a friend’s firewood stash, and Ruani is using it as his ACOs. Each plot will have eight pieces, two near each corner, with half the boards placed directly on the forest floor as-is, and the other half having the duff cleared so the ACO makes contact with the dirt.
Meanwhile, Terran and I measured soil moisture and temperature near the locations in Plot #3 where he collected soil samples. We were happy to learn that both Vernier sensors could connect to the phone via Bluetooth at the same time, allowing us to read both measurements at once.
For skill time, we had our first go with compass courses- a game to practice taking and following a bearing. Each student got a stack of colored laminated cards and a dry-erase marker. The idea is you set up a course where each card indicates the direction to the next card. After everyone makes a course, they return to the center and attempt someone else’s course. Reading the bearing on the card, you set the compass, follow it, and hopefully find the next card, which guides you in a different direction.
It takes a little practice to set up a course that maximizes fun: not too hard, not too easy.
We had some time left after all that, and Ru made the first fire in our basecamp for Plot #3 while some of us practiced feathersticks, and others made more compass courses.
If our plans come together, next week will be our first field trip of the year!