Damselfly Methods Day - ABI 150 Section 2

Yesterday was a successful first day of methods!! Shout out to Eric for planning an amazing day 👏

9:50 - Everyone started to meet in the Mann Lab parking lot, making small talk while Marshall pulled up with supplies. As Jessica, Jay, Caelan, Mario, and Kendall looked through everything, they realized we didn't have enough acrylic markers for each group... which obviously meant a Target run was necessary. 

10:10 - Before heading off to Target, Marshall and Crystak went over the ABI 150 Code of Conduct, reminding everyone to be mindful of how we communicate and to remember that we're all in this together, as High School Musical would say. 

If you forgot what the Code of Conduct was ... don't worry, just keep reading and act like you remember😊

After that, Eric gave us a quick rundown of the plan for the day:

- Measuring sample area

- Capturing and Marking 

10:20 - We headed to Target, but Marshall was the only one running in and grabbing 5 packs of acrylic markers. Once secured, we made our way to the Yolo Bypass Lot F

On the drive, Marshall reassured everyone in the van that the missing walkie-talkie had finally been found. So all walkies are safe and accounted for (for now)

11:03 - We arrived at Lot F, where Mia, Jay, and Kayl had already been exploring. Within minutes, they made a discovery: half a skull. 

Naturally, everyone reacted with equal parts of excitement and fear, immediately guessing what animal it could be. The final (and very confident) conclusion: an oppossum... probably 🤷

11:12 - Eric gathered everyone to go over how we'd divide the area. After some discussion, we decided on 2 quads, each with 4 subsections (50 meters each), making each quad 200 meters, for a total of 400 meters. Flags were placed every 10 meters to keep track

11:20 - We all split into 2 groups: 

• Yellow = Aja, Jay, Jessica, Eric, Caelan, Kendall, Mario, and Marshall
•  Pink = Cristal, Arianah, Alan, Jennifer, Alejandra, Mia, Kayla, Rosie, and Crystal. 

Our goal: Finish flagging quads and sections, and start making damselflies

Also, thank you, Jessica, for making a map that saved us all 💕

The Yellow group measured and flagged the semipermanent area, while the Pink group handled the permanent area. 

11:27 - Everyone officially split off to start flagging and creating subsections 

12:30 - Both groups finished measuring and flagging. After all that work, everyone was starving, so it was time for lunch.

Right before lunch, Mia and Kayla captured two beautiful beetles and put them in a sauce container. Unfortunately, the beetles made a poor life choice and bit Kayla, so their situation quickly escalated from "temporary holding" to "maximum security prison". After serving a 3-hour sentence, they were released on bail. Trial pending. No legal representation at this time. 

12:54 - Eric brought us all back together to explain how capturing and marking would work. We split into pairs, each assigned a section, subsection, and color. There was also a collective realization that calling everything "quads" was confusing everyone, so we collectively decided to... stop doing that.

1:03 - Everyone headed out in pairs to their assigned areas and started capturing and marking damselflies. Some people were thriving, some were struggling, and some were just hoping the damselflies would cooperate for once. 

2:10 - We regrouped to compare results. Most groups caught around 10 damselflies, with the highest being about 20 (I think). The most common species was the fork-tailed male. 

Some groups also caught a bright green damselfly that didn't match the usual ones. Later, it was identified as a Western Forktial. 

2:20 - A well-deserved 10-minute break. It was super hot, the sun wasn't dimming, and the van became everyone's safe space. 

2:34 - Everyone got back together - unlike 1 Direction, the only group that truly never reunited😭- and continued collecting

3:10 - Final group meeting of the day. We shared how many damselflies we caught in the last round, and Eric thanked everyone for their hard work. 

Then I (Aja) got the floor to give a quick preview of Tuesday - no pressure at all. 

3:20 - Vans were packed, and we headed back to campus

3:45 - We made it back, some people helped put materials away, some went home, and others went to Lawntopia to live their best lives watching Dominic Fike perform

Things to do before Tuesday, 5/5

• R5 (the last one 😁) due 11:59pm
• Write down what did and didn't go well on Friday
• Enter data into the Google Doc (thanks to Jay and Mario)
• Be ready to discuss vegetation near damselflies
• Input availability into the Excel spreadsheet (thanks, Kendall) for out-of-class data collecting

Extra important info

Don't forget to fill out Marshall's Google Form for the half-point meetup in Hutchison Hall 488. DOn't forget. This is your warning. 

Tuesday Schedule (may vary)

10:05 - Discuss what worker/didn't (may not or may start in groups before sharing with the entire class, it'll be a surprise 😏) 

10:30 - Set in stone our methods  

10:50 - Review and analyze collected data 

11:20 - Organize out-of-class data collection + drivers

11:40 - Alan's time to shine 🌟(no pressure)