ABI 150 Section A - Day 3: Post Field Day Post-its

Our third session welcomes us back to the classroom to reflect and build on the work we did with our first exposure to field sites for our project. Our last session ended with a task of finding literature on an animal we observed within the Yolo Bypass and uploading the resources to our group pages. We revisited this as our jumping off point. 

Discussion:

Our section was divided into two groups. Each of us reviewed the paper we had chosen for 5 minutes prior to sharing with other group members on methods used within the paper, notes about the author, or other interesting connections. Between the two groups we generated topics such as:

  • Black Phoebes and their techniques for catching prey.
  • Impacts of bacteria on Seagulls and possible other waterfowl. 
  • Natural Gas Mining changing Killdeer nesting habitats.
  • Adaptable prey catching in Snowy Egrets based on water depth.
  • Black Neck Stilts' spacial use in response to habitat loss.
  • Status assessment on Long Billed Carloos losing historical range due to urban development.
  • Distribution and preferences of Eastern and Western Meadowlarks.

Activity of the Day:

Following our discussion and getting our minds going, we shifted gears to a new exercise to further our development of skills used in designing an experiment. Primarily using Post it notes, we were guided to answer different prompts over ten minute intervals. It was a slightly anonymous process with no criticism to encourage freedom of any and all thoughts. We remained in the same groups as our previous discussions and were split into "Competitive Interactions" and "Mutualistic Interactions." 

Our first prompt was to jot down as many preliminary thoughts or questions on our topic as possible. We then pasted the sticky notes to the whiteboard for our group to see. 

Our second interval added 4 random words for us to work with on our next prompt, which was to come up with answers to the questions other students had contributed. These were then put back on the board for viewing.

The third go around consisted of creating experimental designs to evaluate the questions and answers already made. Lastly, we took the post it chains and sat down to find literature on the methods used in these types of experiments, looking for similar/repeating authors, or other findings. We also discussed with a partner for a brief period on what it was that we found. Look at all the color we had by the end!


This was the last session with the post its, and we wrapped up with conversations and a vote on our next session's location for field studying.

Between sessions:

  • Please post to Discord your final creation of work from today's session under the "creature report" channel. 
  • The first R Studio assignment was due on the 6th. Please be sure it is completed.
  • Read Chapters 3 and 4 of How to do Ecology.
  • Set aside resources such as plenty of water, a lunch/snack, and clothing that is best suitable. There may be hunters, so adding something with high visibility to your outfit may be helpful, if you have it. Our leaders are currently working on this as well.
  • Keep yourself taken care of and prepared for our second field day!

Next time:

On the next episode of ABI 150 on April 9th, 2026, we as a class decided through a vote on the Oak Savannah Patch as our next destination. General information on our visit includes:

  • Weather
    • The weather accounts for having a cloudy day with a minimal chance of rain. It is anticipated to be around 74 degrees that day.
  • Bathroom Access
    • There will be no access to a bathroom along the trail. Pack extra necessities accordingly.
  • Length
    • The walk will be long (slightly more than a mile) and we will not be taking the vans to checkpoints. Keep your resources with you. 
  • Possible sightings
    • There may be different types of birds and insects. There may also be rattlesnakes and other dangers like hunters. Staying observant will benefit you and the project!

As for our particular visit and as we try to get one step closer to our end result, our day will look something like this.

  • 10:00 AM: Meet in the parking lots 
  • 10:40 AM: Arrive to Oak Savannah Patch + Briefing
  • 10:45-10:50 AM: Head up the trail + Observations
  • 12:30 PM: Lunch together 
  • 1:00 PM: Head back to the vans + Observations + Exercises
  • 2:45 PM: Final thoughts
  • 3:00 PM: Head back to campus

Within this time, we will be trying to make more progress toward which project we would like to complete by continuing to observe and explore. We are only one and a half weeks from proposing a project so be on the curious side and look out for any and everything.

See you all then!


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