Terrarium project
Objective:
Our goal is to be able to create a self sustained environment with living organisms. We are going to have a beta fish,rolly pollys, and worms. The plants we are going to put in are Scotch moss, Viola, Gloriosa daisies, and Dragon root. Our little ecosystem will contain four producers, two consumers, and one decomposer.
Materials:
-sand
-rocks
-charcoal
-dirt
-Scotch moss
-Dragon root
-Viola seeds
-Gloriosa daisy seeds
-beta fish
-rollypolly
-worms
Procedure:
First, we added rocks to our terrarium. Then, we put charcoal and sand in it. We added dirt and then planted the seeds and the already sprouted plants. Then we put in the worms and rolly pollys. We watered it everyday and recorded our observations below.
Results:
Day 0- We built our terrarium and added the dirt and plants.
Day 1- We added the fish in the terrarium.
Day 2- We added the worms in the terrarium.
Day 3 thru 9- We fed the fish, and watered the plants. No obvious signs of growth. All animals still alive.
Day 10- The Scotch moss and dragon root are getting bigger. The Viola and Gloriosa daisies still haven't sprouted yet. The beta fish is still alive and living happily. The rolly pollys and worms are alive, but usually unable to see.
Week 2- The flowers started to sprout and the moss and dragon root are still growing. The worms are alive and so are the rolly pollys.
Analysis:
Limiting factors have effected our terrarium over time. The abiotic factors have shaped it much more than the biotic factors, since we watered it everyday and feed and cleaned the fish. All the organisms lived and all of the plants did too. Our terrarium got a lot of sun and that helped the plants grow faster. The plants had enough space, so there was no competition.
Water cycle- We watered the terrarium and the water seeped into the dirt. From there, the water went into the roots of the plants. Some of it evaporated as well. Since our terrarium isn't outside, it didn't receive rain so the water cycle wasn't fully complete.
Carbon cycle- Plants intake the carbon in the air. The plants start to decompose, where the worms come and eat the decomposed plants. Then the carbon is put back into the air through respiration.
Nitrogen cycle- Nitrogen is taken in from the atmosphere by the plants. Then it goes into the soil where the worms eat it. The nitrogen goes through the organism and released back into the atmosphere.
Our goal is to be able to create a self sustained environment with living organisms. We are going to have a beta fish,rolly pollys, and worms. The plants we are going to put in are Scotch moss, Viola, Gloriosa daisies, and Dragon root. Our little ecosystem will contain four producers, two consumers, and one decomposer.
Materials:
-sand
-rocks
-charcoal
-dirt
-Scotch moss
-Dragon root
-Viola seeds
-Gloriosa daisy seeds
-beta fish
-rollypolly
-worms
Procedure:
First, we added rocks to our terrarium. Then, we put charcoal and sand in it. We added dirt and then planted the seeds and the already sprouted plants. Then we put in the worms and rolly pollys. We watered it everyday and recorded our observations below.
Results:
Day 0- We built our terrarium and added the dirt and plants.
Day 1- We added the fish in the terrarium.
Day 2- We added the worms in the terrarium.
Day 3 thru 9- We fed the fish, and watered the plants. No obvious signs of growth. All animals still alive.
Day 10- The Scotch moss and dragon root are getting bigger. The Viola and Gloriosa daisies still haven't sprouted yet. The beta fish is still alive and living happily. The rolly pollys and worms are alive, but usually unable to see.
Week 2- The flowers started to sprout and the moss and dragon root are still growing. The worms are alive and so are the rolly pollys.
Analysis:
Limiting factors have effected our terrarium over time. The abiotic factors have shaped it much more than the biotic factors, since we watered it everyday and feed and cleaned the fish. All the organisms lived and all of the plants did too. Our terrarium got a lot of sun and that helped the plants grow faster. The plants had enough space, so there was no competition.
Water cycle- We watered the terrarium and the water seeped into the dirt. From there, the water went into the roots of the plants. Some of it evaporated as well. Since our terrarium isn't outside, it didn't receive rain so the water cycle wasn't fully complete.
Carbon cycle- Plants intake the carbon in the air. The plants start to decompose, where the worms come and eat the decomposed plants. Then the carbon is put back into the air through respiration.
Nitrogen cycle- Nitrogen is taken in from the atmosphere by the plants. Then it goes into the soil where the worms eat it. The nitrogen goes through the organism and released back into the atmosphere.
Find a solution project
For our "Find a solution" project, we chose to focus on Miwok park. It is a community park with a creek and playground. It is managed by the city of Novato and has many different organisms.
Humans have impacted Miwok in many ways. There are many people there who preserve the land and try to keep it clean. However, the creek is filled with litter and has garbage in the water. This affects the organisms and causes pollution, which isn't healthy for them. Also, Miwok is always occupied by people who are walking around and disturbing the environment. Kids go in the creek and play in there, which isn't always good for the organisms there.
Our solution is to have volunteer groups come and pick up trash so the environment is clean. We could also fence off the creek so people don't come in and destroy the habitats. This will keep the ecosystem healthy and happy. We contacted the people working at the museum at Miwok and asked about human impacts on the park. They said that the Miwok Indians used to prune the trees, but people today don't so they aren't as healthy as they used to be. They also said people have parties there, which means a lot of trash. There is trash from balloons in the trees and that is really bad, because there is no way to get it down. They have a few people who come and pick up trash on their own time, but it isn't enough. Humans have also killed many plants and animals that used to live there, because they are building playgrounds and park benches.
We think that having volunteer groups come and help prune the trees and pick up garbage would be a good idea. Species of organisms are dying from the pollution and garbage in the park. The trees are becoming unhealthy since they aren't receiving proper care. This would help keep the ecosystem clean and healthy.
Humans have impacted Miwok in many ways. There are many people there who preserve the land and try to keep it clean. However, the creek is filled with litter and has garbage in the water. This affects the organisms and causes pollution, which isn't healthy for them. Also, Miwok is always occupied by people who are walking around and disturbing the environment. Kids go in the creek and play in there, which isn't always good for the organisms there.
Our solution is to have volunteer groups come and pick up trash so the environment is clean. We could also fence off the creek so people don't come in and destroy the habitats. This will keep the ecosystem healthy and happy. We contacted the people working at the museum at Miwok and asked about human impacts on the park. They said that the Miwok Indians used to prune the trees, but people today don't so they aren't as healthy as they used to be. They also said people have parties there, which means a lot of trash. There is trash from balloons in the trees and that is really bad, because there is no way to get it down. They have a few people who come and pick up trash on their own time, but it isn't enough. Humans have also killed many plants and animals that used to live there, because they are building playgrounds and park benches.
We think that having volunteer groups come and help prune the trees and pick up garbage would be a good idea. Species of organisms are dying from the pollution and garbage in the park. The trees are becoming unhealthy since they aren't receiving proper care. This would help keep the ecosystem clean and healthy.
Reflection
In the ecology unit, I learned about different ecosystems and the ecology of different plants and animals. My favorite activity in this unit was the find a solution video because we got to go to a park and research ways to help it. I like helping the environment so it makes me happy to know I can help Miwok park. My least favorite activity was the terrarium lab because it wasn't very exciting and it became very stressful having a fish. I will change my behavior to help the environment by caring about it more and doing everything I can to keep it clean and healthy, because the environment is very important.