Next year's Science Fair project - Invasive Species?

[DawnL]

I posted previously about my daughter's desire to have a phenomenal Science Fair Project next year. This year's project didn't do as well as she expected and instead of giving up, she's doubling down :D

 

She wasn't sure what she wanted to do her project on, though, and didn't know how to go about figuring it out. I had suggested a few things to her and told her she should start documenting tide pool contents in an effort to find a good idea. She's decided she doesn't want to do that now, and instead would like to investigate invasive species.

 

She's started with trying to make a list of invasive species in animal, plant, and insects. She was looking online and was trying to find animals, etc that are invading here, in the Puget Sound area. But she hasn't found a lot so far. She was ready to give up and just find something interesting anywhere in the world, but I've suggested to her that she write a letter. I figure the Woodland Park Zoo, the Point Defiance Zoo, and the Seattle Aquarium will each have staff that know something about some invasive species, right?

 

So am I missing anything I can suggest? Or some direction I can nudge her into? Also, once she finds and interesting invasive species, how can she make that a project? She asked me that already and I told her if she researches it, the question will come, but really, I have no idea! LOL

 

When she proposed this idea, I brought up how, on a National Geographic show we'd recently watched, it showed a mama Owl whose babies hadn't finished all their food. This lead to maggots in the nest, which was a health hazard. The mama went a got a small snake and dropped it in the nest and it ate all the maggots. She said, "Yeah, but that's a symbiotic relationship." ;) Yup! She's right and a little smarty :001_smile:

 

Maybe I should also have her consider who determines that a species is an invasive species? Then she could write them, too.

 

Hmmmmm. I'm kinda thinking out loud here, but also looking for advice and wanting to share in case this thread is helpful to others.

[lewelma]

Well, of course, I am keen to help.

 

She does not want to do something from "anywhere" in the world, or she will only be doing a research project not an investigation. It must be local. I think writing (or calling) is definitely the place to start. There are definitely invasive organisms everywhere.

 

Invaders typically get introduced by humans, so one route would be to consider how the population size varies depending on high vs low human activity. So for example, I see grass (an invasive species in NZ) growing on the tails in the native forest but not 100m in. This is because humans carry the seeds on their shoes. Invaders can also be spread by animals. I know that "cheat grass" in NV is spread through both roads (car tires carry the seeds) and through cattle. So you could compare the amount of cheat grass in those areas vs where there are no roads or cattle in the desert. (ETA: you could even consider WHICH was more important in the spread of cheat grass by considering areas with roads and no cattle vs areas with cattle and no roads vs a control with neither). Weather can also move invaders, so here in NZ invading pine trees are spreading in the desert in the direction of the prevailing wind (wind carries the seeds).

 

She could also consider what kinds of shoes carry the seeds. When you come into NZ they take your hiking boots and clean them for you, because seeds stick in them. We also have a algae invading here and it sticks to boats that then move between rivers carrying the seeds. You could look at what kind of cleaning methodology does the best job of removing the seeds. The government here is pushing boat cleaning, but I have not seen any indication as to what method is the most effective.

 

Well, that is just a few ideas to get you thinking.

 

good luck,

 

Ruth in NZ

Edited June 14, 2012 by lewelma

[Emerald Stoker]

nm

[Karen in CO]

Along the colorado river basin, Tamarisk was introduced on purpose to help with erosion. The story of how it affected the ecosystem and what is being done to try to stop it is really interesting and involves introducing a non-native beetle to control it. There is still a lot of speculation about what the beetle with do once it destroys all of the tamarisk.

[DawnL]

This is north of the Puget Sound, but in the same general neck of the woods...

http://www.goert.ca/

 

Also north, but maybe interesting:

http://www.sararegistry.gc.ca/default_e.cfm

 

 

Thanks! BC is not far at all and most anything that effects them effects us, too. There are a lot of interesting critters at those links.

[DawnL]

What a fun topic...it is close to our hearts as every time we go to look at the beaver dam at the end of our neighborhood we get chased off by invasive nutrias- they are mean suckers! Still haven't glimpsed a beaver;)

 

 

Wow. I've never even heard of a nutria. I had to Google it. You have those in Oregon? The link I pulled up says Louisiana. We'll have to look into those more, too.

 

Thanks for the links. We will check them out!

[Deee]

I'm not going be any help here, other than to say that Australia is a case study in introduced invasive species, many of them brought here for sport (foxes, rabbits), aesthetics (dogs, cats, privet, camphor laurel, cestrum, willow, you name it), work (horses, camels), farming (pigs, deer, loads of plant species) or to control other introduced pests (cane toads). The reasons many of these things have reached plague proportions here are twofold: they have no natural predators and our warm climate allows them to either breed or set seed with greater frequency than their original ecosystems. Perhaps this aspect could be something your daughter could look at.

D

[DawnL]

I'm not going be any help here, other than to say that Australia is a case study in introduced invasive species, many of them brought here for sport (foxes, rabbits), aesthetics (dogs, cats, privet, camphor laurel, cestrum, willow, you name it), work (horses, camels), farming (pigs, deer, loads of plant species) or to control other introduced pests (cane toads). The reasons many of these things have reached plague proportions here are twofold: they have no natural predators and our warm climate allows them to either breed or set seed with greater frequency than their original ecosystems. Perhaps this aspect could be something your daughter could look at.

D

 

 

I think that's very helpful! Once she nails down exactly what she wants to do, it's possible she will need to obtain information from other areas to help her prove or disprove whatever she's doing.

[Heather in WI]

I just read an article the other day about the west coast bracing for a wave of invasive species as debris from the Japanese tsunami comes ashore. Maybe this could be of interest?

 

Unwelcome guests ride debris from tsunami

 

 

In looking for this article, I also came across this which sounds like a neat science fair idea.

 

Unexplained algae blooms have scientists searching for answers

 

Scientists are amazed at the size and number of algae blooms staining the waters of Puget Sound.

 

The Department of Ecology has conducted flyovers of Puget Sound the last two days and what they saw has them searching for answers. They are hoping other agencies will sample and test water from the blooms to determine what they are and maybe where they came from.

 

:D

[GoVanGogh]

I have this book on my wish list and thought it might be of interest to your child:

 

Science Warriors: The Battle Against Invasive Species by Collard

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I would go with governmental agencies rather than the zoos. There should be an agency at the state level that works on invasive species. Is there still a gypsy moth problem or has that battle been lost? Try looking for a Department of Natural Resources at the state level.

 

You may also be able to find local groups working on invasive species cataloging and erradication.

 

She may also find that there are invasive species concerns outgoing as well as incoming. The christmas trees that go to Hawaii come from somewhere in the PNW. There is an annual concern over unnoticed invasive species coming in with the trees and then getting established in the islands. There were non-native wasps and an aligator lizard discovered in the shipments one year that we were there.

Edited June 15, 2012 by Sebastian (a lady)