Rocky Shore Experiment
The Rocky Shore Experiment
Research Question: How does type of substrate affect the variation of species and vegetation as you move away from the seashore at a Rocky Shore?
Hypothesis: As we get further away from the seashore, there would be a decrease in the number of species and vegetation found. Also, the type of substrate will have a major affect on the biodiversity.
Background Information:
A rocky shore is an intertidal area of seacoasts where solid rock predominates. Rocky shores are biologically rich environments, and make the ideal natural laboratory for studying intertidal ecology and other biological processes. Because they are so accessible, they have been studied for a long time and their species are well known.
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a large number of factors that favor the survival of life on rocky shores. Temperate coastal waters are mixed by waves and convection maintaining adequate availability of nutrients. Also, with the effect of the tides, the sea brings plankton and broken organic matter in with each tide. The high availability of light and nutrient levels means that primary productivity of seaweeds and algae can be very high. Human actions can benefit rocky shores with nutrient runoff.
Regardless of the factors that favor life on rocky shores, there are a number of challenges those marine organisms, which use them as their habitat, must face. Generally, the distribution of its benthic species is limited by salinity; wave exposure, temperature, desiccation and general stress. The constant threat of desiccation during exposure at low tide can result in dehydration which many creatures have developed strong adaptations to prevent such as production of mucous layers and shells. Many species use shells and holdfasts to provide stability against strong wave actions. There are also a variety of other issues such as varying temperature fluctuations due tidal flow, changes in salinity and various ranges of illumination which can make life very difficult for rocky shore organisms. This can be coupled with predation from birds and from other marine creatures and also the vast effects of pollution.
Many animals and plants live on rocky shores in the area between high and low tide called the intertidal zone. These organisms must be able to cope with problems of not one environment, but two. They are pounded by waves, exposed to extremes of temperature and salinity, and flooded by seawater and exposed to drying air twice every 24 hours. They also have to avoid being eaten by birds, molluscs and crabs at low tide, and by fish and other marine life at high tide. Several distinct habitats exist in rocky shores, each with its own survival challenges for plants and animals living there.
As well as providing homes for many animals, rocky shores are also an important nursery area for many fish and crustacean species. Some of these species like to shelter by rocky shores, in areas where stands of seaweeds break the waves ' power.This habitat also provides lots of food for fish. The commercially important fish found around rocky shores include blackfish, yellow fin bream, snapper, tarwhine, trevally, yellowtail and sampson fish.Algal beds of this habitat are an important food source for rare and threatened species like marine turtles. And at low tide, wading birds love to feed on crabs and limpets on exposed rocks.
Splash Zone (above Highest Astronomical Tide):
The very highest zone on the shore is called the splash zone, and as the name indicates this zone is not directly flooded with the rising water. Therefore, it has more in common with terrestrial habitats, although some of the animals move down to the sea to discharge their eggs or young at the highest spring tides. The dominant fauna is a few species of lichens, which are fed on by two very small species of winkle.
Upper Shore Zone (around Mean High Water Springs):
This zone is only immersed by the spring tides, and then only for a short time. Two brown seaweeds, the Channelled Wrack, Pelvetia canaliculata, and the Spiral Wrack, Fucus spiralis, have adaptations to prevent drying out and can survive when the tide is out. Acorn Barnacles settle in this zone.
Middle Shore Zone (around Mean Tide Level):
For half the day the tide will be in, even during the period of neap tides. The common brown wrack of this zone is the Bladder Wrack, Fucus vesiculosus. Mussel beds will form and both limpets and periwinkles will graze the rocks. Beadlet Anemones are resident and Shore Crabs will be found from spring to autumn.
Lower Shore (around Low Water Neaps):
For most of the day the sea will cover this part of the shore, so that the rockpooler will need to consult his tide tables to ascertain when the shore is accessible. This will be longest during the spring tide period. The important brown seaweed is the Serrated Wrack, Fucus serratus, which straddles large areas where there are suitable attachments. The range of crabs, molluscs, small fish and prawns is much greater in this zone.
Independent Variable: The different distances (every 5 meters) as we get further away from the seashore. This would be measured with a transect line of 50 meters.
Dependent Variable: The variety of species and vegetation found at every 5 meters along a 50-meter transect line. This would be determined by counting the number of species and vegetation found per quadrat.
The types of substrate found under the 50 meter transect line at 5-meter intervals.
Control Variables:
Same distance measured away from the shore (5 meters) with the help of flags and a transect line. If the distances were not kept the same, then my results would be unreliable and inaccurate. I would control this by using a 50m transect line and placing a flag after every 5 meters accurately.
Same sized quadrats used for all measurements of the species as different size of the quadrat would mean that our counting of species would be different for all distances, which would result in unreliable data. I would use the same quadrat with 100 squares, in which each square would equal 1%.
Same individual identifying the substrate type and counting the number of species found per quadrat as if different people count and identify the species and substrate type then the human error rate would increase and affect the results as different people have different interpretations thereby only one individual is suitable.
Use the same bearing device (compass) and the same individual to find the correct bearing for the transect line to be placed as if there are different people doing it, then there are higher chances of human errors to occur.
I have to make sure that the same equipment is being used including the compass, 50m transect line (+/-cm), quadrat and 10 flags as different equipment will give different results, making them unreliable.
Risk Assessment:
Dehydration due to high sunlight and not enough intake of water
Sun Burn can be caused due to the sunrays, which can also lead to sunstroke and fainting.
Getting stung or affected by the organisms present at the rocky shore that can be harmful and can also cause death.
Safety Precautions:
Wear snickers and no flip flops to avoid any scars caused by branches or species
Distinguish the species, using an identification sheet before touching them as they can be harmful
Wear gloves to avoid any sort of contamination
Wear full pants or long socks in order to avoid any stings by different species
Wash your hands with soap and water at the end. And sanitize them as well
Drink a lot of water and apply sun block to keep safe from sun burn and dehydration.
Apparatus Used:
Transect Line (50 meter long)
2 quadrats (100 squares in each)
Compass
10 flags
Pen and a clip board with paper
Results table
Species and Vegetation identification sheet
Method:
Use a compass and find the right bearing to make sure that the transect line would be placed straight on the shore (going up the shore) and not curved.
Untangle the transect line and lay it straight on the shore according to the bearing found.
Place a flag at 0 meters and the next one at 5 meters. Do this for every 5 meters until you reach 50 meters.
Place the quadrat in such a way that the flag is in the first box of the quadrat and the quadrat is placed on the right side of the transect line.
Create a results table with a column each for distance, substrate type, species and vegetations.
Count and identify the number of species and vegetation found in each square using identification sheet and write the results in a table. Also, write the type of substrate found.
Each square of the quadrat represents 1% of the total number of species or vegetation found.
Now do this with every flag placed on the transect line.
The method will be repeated at least 5 more times in order to get 5 sets of results in order to get a suitable mean to form a bar graph with error bars.
Now create a kite diagram, in order to identify any patterns shown.
Wash your hands with soap and water and sanitize them after the experiment.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species found at the Rocky Shore along with the Substrate type.
Group 1 (Myself and another class mate)
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover
(ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 11%
Littorina Obtusata 8 Rocky 5m Algae 15%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 1 30
1 Rocky 10m Algae 16%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata 1 20
Rocks under water 15m Algae 20%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 1
2
Rocks under water 20m Algae 30%
Littorina Obtusata 10
Rocks under water 25m Algae 8%
Littorina Obtusata 35 Rocky 30m Algae 5%
Littorina Obtusata 25 Rocky 35m Algae 3%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 10
2
Rocky and dead rubble corals 40m
Littorina Obtusata 5
Rocky and dead rubble corals 45m
-Littorina Obtusata
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
12
2
Rocky and pebbles 50m
Nerita chamaeleon 4
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was a diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
D= diversity
Σ= the sum of
Simpson 's Diversity Index is a measure of diversity. In ecology, it is often used to quantify the biodiversity of a habitat. It takes into account the number of species present, as well as the abundance of each species. With this index, 0 represents infinite diversity and 1, no diversity. That is, the bigger the value of D, the lower the diversity.
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 147
Littorina Saxatiliss= 6
Chameleon Nerites= 16
Prosobranchias= 2
Total number of species found= 171
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-147(146)+6(5)+16(15)+2(1) / 171(170)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.728 which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species along with the Substrate type found at the Rocky Shore by my peers.
Group 2:
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover
(ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 17%
Littorina Obtusata 10
Rocky under water 5m Algae 15%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
22
1
Rocky under water 10m Algae 16%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata 1
20
Rocky under water 15m Algae 22%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 2
12
Rocky under water 20m Algae 19%
Littorina Obtusata 17
Rocky under water 25m Algae 8%
Littorina Obtusata 20
Rocky
30m Algae 2%
Littorina Obtusata 25
Rocky
35m Algae 1%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 10
6
Rocky and coral rubble 40m
Littorina Obtusata 3
Rocky and coral rubble 45m
-Littorina Obtusata
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 8
19
3
Rocky, pebbles and small rocks 50m
-Nerita chamaeleon 7
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 147
Littorina Saxatiliss= 12
Nerita chamaeleon = 26
Prosobranchias= 3
Total number of species found= 188
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-147(146)+12(11)+26(25)+2(2) / 188(187)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.058, which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species along with the Substrate type found at the Rocky Shore by another group of people.
Group 3:
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover
(ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 16% -Littorina Obtusata 9
Rocky
5m Algae 17%
--Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 2 26
2
Rocky
10m Algae 16%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Saxatilis 3 28
Rocky under water 15m Algae 16%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 4
10
Rocky under water 20m Algae 36%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Holothuria Atra 10
1
Rocky under water 25m Algae 30%
-Littorina Obtusata 29
Rocky under water 30m Algae 18%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Holothuria Atra 29
2
Rocky
35m Algae 10%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 13
5
Rocky and coral rubble 40m
-Littorina Obtusata 9
Rocky and coral rubble 45m
-Littorina Obtusata
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
19
2
Rocky, pebbles and small rocks 50m
Nerita chamaeleon 20
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
D= diversity
Σ= the sum of
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 155
Littorina Saxatiliss= 13
Nerita chamaeleon = 39
Prosobranchias= 5
Holothuria Atra= 3
Total number of species found= 215
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-155(154)+13(12)+39(38)+5(4)+3(2) / 215(214)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.48, which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species along with the Substrate type found at the Rocky Shore by other classmates.
Group 4:
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover (ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 19%
Littorina Obtusata 10
Rocky
5m Algae 15%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 4 30
3
Rocky
10m Algae 16%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata 4 20
Rocks under water 15m Algae 20%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 4
4
Rocks under water 20m Algae 30%
Littorina Obtusata 20
Rocks underwater 25m Algae 10%
Littorina Obtusata 35
Rocky
30m Algae 10%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 5
19
Rocky and coral rubble 35m Algae 3%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 10
3
Rocky and coral rubble 40m
- Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 9
3
Rocky and boulders 45m
-Littorina Obtusata
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
12
2
Rocky and boulders 50m
Nerita chamaeleon 19
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
D= diversity
Σ= the sum of
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 159
Littorina Saxatiliss= 20
Nerita chamaeleon = 31
Prosobranchias= 8
Total number of species found= 218
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-159(158)+20(19)+31(30)+8(7) / 218(217)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.502, which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species along with the Substrate type found at the Rocky Shore by others.
Group 5:
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover (ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 20%
Littorina Obtusata 20
Rocky
5m Algae 19%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 1
31 1
Rocky
10m Algae 19%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata 1 20
Rocks under water 15m Algae 20%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata
-Holothuria Atra 1
2
3
Rocks under water 20m Algae 30%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Holothuria Atra 10
1
2
Rocks under water 25m Algae 10%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 35
3
Rocky
30m Algae 2%
Littorina Obtusata 25
Rocky and coral rubble 35m Algae 2%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 10
7
Rocky and coral rubble 40m Algae
-Littorina Obtusata
-Nerita Chamaeleon 5
5
Rocky and boulders 45m
-Littorina Obtusatas
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
12
2
Rocky and boulders 50m
Nerita chamaeleon 17
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
D= diversity
Σ= the sum of
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 160
Littorina Saxatiliss= 14
Nerita chamaeleon = 24
Prosobranchias= 1
Holothuria Atras=5
Total number of species found= 234
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-160(159)+14(13)+24(23)+1(0)+5(4) / 234(233)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.453, which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Average Mean and Standard Deviation of the Animal Species found at the Rocky Shore:
Littorina Obtusatas:
To find the mean, add the total number of Littorina Obtusatas found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups.
147+147+155+159+160 / 5 = 157.6
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number of Littorina Obtusatas identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
147-154, 147-154, 155-154, 159-154, 160-154
= -7, -7, 1, 5, 6
(-7)2, (-7) 2, (1) 2, (5) 2, (6) 2
= 49+49+1+25+36
=160/4
= 40 (square root)
Standard Deviation = 6.32
Littorina Saxatiliss:
To find the mean, add the total number of Littorina Saxatiliss found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups.
6+12+13+20+14 / 5 = 13
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number of Littorina Saxatiliss identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 5
Prosobranchias:
To find the mean, add the total number of Prosobranchias found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups. 2+3+5+8+1 / 5 = 3.8
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number Prosobranchias identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 2.78
Nerita chamaeleon:
To find the mean, add the total number of Nerita Chamaeleon found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups.
24+31+39+26+16 / 5 = 27.2
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number Nerita Chamaeleon identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 8.53
Holothuria Atras:
To find the mean, add the total number of Holothuria Atras found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups. 5+0+3+0+0 / 5 = 1.6
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number Holothuria Atras identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 2.30
Average Mean and Standard Deviation of the vegetation found at the Rocky Shore.
Algae:
Total amount of Algae found per group:
Group 1=105
Group 2= 100
Group 3=159
Group 4=123
Group
5=122
To find the mean, add the total percentage of Algae found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups. 105+100+159+123+122 / 5 = 122
For the standard deviation, subtract the total Percentage of Algae identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 23.1
Conclusion:
My prediction was very correct as the amount of species decreased in number as I moved away from the shore and also, I found a variety of species depending on the substrate type.
Through my whole experiment and my results I found out that Littorina Obtusatas was the only species that was found in profusion (mean = 157.6) due to its adaption capabilities. But I also found out through my raw data (Group 1) that the Littorina Obtusatas were most found near water or under water and also near large amounts of Algae, which was at 10m – 20m along the transect line. ‘They prefer to stay as close to the water as possible so they are found in the lowest reaches of the lower intertidal, often under the canopy of algae. It is able to survive some extremes of exposure and temperature, but it is not nearly as well adapted to being out of the water as the rough and common periwinkles.’This was mainly due to the Littorina Obtusatas adapting best to such an environment as they hide under the water as they can get easily damaged due to their sensitive structure and ‘they have gills (like a fish) and they "breathe" oxygen in the water and must stay in the lower intertidal zone, (which can be clearly seen in the kite diagram) where it is more often covered by water. It can look a lot like the vesicles (bladders) on Bladder Wrack or Knotted Wrack and is often found hiding there.’ ‘Also, they stay around the Algae because they can camouflage in with the color of the Algae and save themselves from the Predators and it is like their habitat’.
The Standard Deviation of the Littorina Obtusatas was 6.32 and this suggests that I was not that accurate with the mean value. This could have been due to the basic human errors such as counting error and identification error.
I also discovered from the results of the other 2 groups that Holothuria Atras were the least amount of species found (mean = 1.6), this was because ‘they are really hard to maintain, due to their sensitive structure. They need the right amount of temperature and pH of water in order to survive. They need a good temperature between 72 – 74 degrees Fahrenheit and a pH between 8-9. Because there was no sand found along my transect line, I did not spot any cucumbers, which suggests that the groups found some amount of sand in other areas of the rocky shore which is the reason why they were able to spot the Holothuria Atras. They are found near reef type marine area with sand in order for survival as they feed on the sand and also burrow in it to hide from the predators or any external harms.’
The standard deviation of the Holothuria Atra was 2.30, which was more than the mean value, which suggests that there were high amounts of inaccuracies in the experiment conducted by the other groups.
Overall, there were a few other species found like Nerita chamaeleon, Prosobranchias and also Littorina Saxatiliss and their amounts varied due to their adaptation capabilities. Most of these species were found near rocks and boulders because they are strongly structured and can stay out of the water, unlike the Littorina Obtusatas. This can also be seen in the kite diagram as it shows the presence of these species above and their substrates, Most of the above species were spotted at 35m – 40 m, which is the area with the rocks and boulders.
Also, I found out that the amount of species and vegetation found decreased as I went further away form the sea shore. Algae need water to grow and that is why it was found in abundance in 0m – 30m (mean = 122) and this has been illustrated in the kite diagram and this is because there was a lot of water present and small rocks, being the perfect environment for them to grow. But at 35m-40m, there was hardly any water present and there were only large amounts of rocks and rubble so the Algae could not grow. This can clearly be spotted in the kite diagram as after 35m, the Algae percentage dropped to 0. The ACFOR scale was used in the Kite Diagram to show the vegetation found.
‘In the quadrats, which can be up to a square meter (we had a quarter that size) you had to decide on the extent to which each plant appeared, and make a note according to how abundance the vegetation type was: an abundance scale. This could be done by working out rough percentages, but we used a scale whose name is an acronym of the various levels.’
A = ABUNDANT (greater than / equal to 30%)
C = COMMON (20-29%)
F = FREQUENT (10-19%)
O = OCCASIONAL (5-9%)
R = RARE (1-4%)
The standard deviation of algae was 23.1,which suggests that our mean was not very accurate and this was due to human errors. It is incredibly tough to count algae with naked eye as they are extremely tiny and proper scientific probes are required in order to get the accurate measurement.
The Littorina Obtusatas also need water so they were present the most in 10m – 20m. The remaining species were scattered along but were mainly around the rocks and boulders. The high amount of Littorina Obtusatas cross over the tiny amounts of other species found, therefore as I went further away from the shore, the Littorina Obtusatas decreased, thereby decreasing the whole number of species found.
The Simpson’s Diversity Index of the result’s entire table suggests that there was no diversity found, as there was hardly any variation found. Littorina Obtusatas were the most number of species found and in total, there were only 5 species spotted.
Evaluation:
I did manage to get five sets of data from different locations across the Rocky Shore. The overall quality of the method used for data collection was adequate to gain a decent set of results. But there were a few limiting factors like the area of the Rocky Shore to work with. The groups and I had a very tiny area amongst the rocky shore and within that area there was a construction site with heavy amounts of pollution, which would have made it tough for the survival of many species, thereby not providing me with the accurate amount of biodiversity present at the Shore. For the further improvement of my experiment, I would prefer having a larger area of the rocky shore with clean and natural surroundings, so that the groups can split up and work at a variety of different areas rather than sticking to just one area. This would also help me find different substrate types, thereby helping me spot a variety of biodiversity.
My results could have been influenced by a systematic error.
Percentage errors for the 50m transect line used for the experiment. (+/-1)
1cm=0.01m
0.01/50 = 0.0002 multiplied by 100 to get a percentage
Percentage error = 0.02%
This value is not that high, so it could not really have a key affect on the results.
Random errors could also have occurred due to my counting of the species. I could have possible missed to count specie or added one on by mistake as a result of hurry. Because I had a really short period of time, I was unable to recount the species in order to be more accurate and it was a similar case with the other groups. To improve this experiment, I would make sure that at least 2 people would be counting the number of species next time, in order to get more accurate results and to avoid random errors of this sort.
There could have also been a random error in identifying the species from the identification sheet as many of the species look alike. This would have had a great impact on the results. Also, I was not permitted to touch the species, as they could have been harmful to me, which made it incredibly tough for me to identify the specie correctly. Therefore, next time I would get 2 or 3 people to identify the species to be more accurate with the results. I would even aim to get an identification sheet with particular species and their variety in order to make it easier for me to distinguish them easily.
Furthermore, there could have been many inaccuracies in getting the exact percentage of the Algae found; therefore I would use an Electronic Particle Counter to gain precise percentage of the Algae for my results, in the future.
Bibliography
ACFOR SCALE. (n.d.). Retrieved 04 03, 2012, from GEOGRAPHY PAGES: http://www.geographypages.co.uk/coastal2.HTM
Barcelona Field Study Center. (2011, 02 26). Retrieved 03 29, 2012, from Geography Field Work: http://geographyfieldwork.com/Simpson 'sDiversityIndex.htm
Holothuria Atra. (n.d.). Retrieved 04 3, 2012, from Fresh Marine: http://www.freshmarine.com/black-cucumber.html
British Marine Life Study Society . (n.d.). Retrieved 03 29, 2012, from Glaucus.org.uk: http://www.glaucus.org.uk/Zones.htm
Environment and Resource Management . (2003, 11 28). Retrieved 03 29, 2012, from DERM.QLD.GOV.AU: http://www.derm.qld.gov.au/environmental_management/coast_and_oceans/marine_habitats/rocky_shore.html
Lower Intertidal. (-, - -). Retrieved 04 3, 2012, from Bigelow.ORG: http://www.bigelow.org/mitzi/lower_13.html
Rocky Shore. (2012, 03 29). Retrieved 03 29, 2012, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_shore
Rocky Shore and Marine Life. (2012, 03 29). Retrieved 03 29, 2012, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_shore
Simpson 's Diversity Index. (-). Retrieved 03 29, 2012, from Countrysideinfo: http://www.countrysideinfo.co.uk/simpsons.htm
Littorina Obtusata. (-). Retrieved 4 3, 2012, from GMRI.ORG: http://www.gmri.org/upload/files/VS_Littorina_obtusata.pdf
Research Question: How does type of substrate affect the variation of species and vegetation as you move away from the seashore at a Rocky Shore?
Hypothesis: As we get further away from the seashore, there would be a decrease in the number of species and vegetation found. Also, the type of substrate will have a major affect on the biodiversity.
Background Information:
A rocky shore is an intertidal area of seacoasts where solid rock predominates. Rocky shores are biologically rich environments, and make the ideal natural laboratory for studying intertidal ecology and other biological processes. Because they are so accessible, they have been studied for a long time and their species are well known.
There are …show more content…
a large number of factors that favor the survival of life on rocky shores. Temperate coastal waters are mixed by waves and convection maintaining adequate availability of nutrients. Also, with the effect of the tides, the sea brings plankton and broken organic matter in with each tide. The high availability of light and nutrient levels means that primary productivity of seaweeds and algae can be very high. Human actions can benefit rocky shores with nutrient runoff.
Regardless of the factors that favor life on rocky shores, there are a number of challenges those marine organisms, which use them as their habitat, must face. Generally, the distribution of its benthic species is limited by salinity; wave exposure, temperature, desiccation and general stress. The constant threat of desiccation during exposure at low tide can result in dehydration which many creatures have developed strong adaptations to prevent such as production of mucous layers and shells. Many species use shells and holdfasts to provide stability against strong wave actions. There are also a variety of other issues such as varying temperature fluctuations due tidal flow, changes in salinity and various ranges of illumination which can make life very difficult for rocky shore organisms. This can be coupled with predation from birds and from other marine creatures and also the vast effects of pollution.
Many animals and plants live on rocky shores in the area between high and low tide called the intertidal zone. These organisms must be able to cope with problems of not one environment, but two. They are pounded by waves, exposed to extremes of temperature and salinity, and flooded by seawater and exposed to drying air twice every 24 hours. They also have to avoid being eaten by birds, molluscs and crabs at low tide, and by fish and other marine life at high tide. Several distinct habitats exist in rocky shores, each with its own survival challenges for plants and animals living there.
As well as providing homes for many animals, rocky shores are also an important nursery area for many fish and crustacean species. Some of these species like to shelter by rocky shores, in areas where stands of seaweeds break the waves ' power.This habitat also provides lots of food for fish. The commercially important fish found around rocky shores include blackfish, yellow fin bream, snapper, tarwhine, trevally, yellowtail and sampson fish.Algal beds of this habitat are an important food source for rare and threatened species like marine turtles. And at low tide, wading birds love to feed on crabs and limpets on exposed rocks.
Splash Zone (above Highest Astronomical Tide):
The very highest zone on the shore is called the splash zone, and as the name indicates this zone is not directly flooded with the rising water. Therefore, it has more in common with terrestrial habitats, although some of the animals move down to the sea to discharge their eggs or young at the highest spring tides. The dominant fauna is a few species of lichens, which are fed on by two very small species of winkle.
Upper Shore Zone (around Mean High Water Springs):
This zone is only immersed by the spring tides, and then only for a short time. Two brown seaweeds, the Channelled Wrack, Pelvetia canaliculata, and the Spiral Wrack, Fucus spiralis, have adaptations to prevent drying out and can survive when the tide is out. Acorn Barnacles settle in this zone.
Middle Shore Zone (around Mean Tide Level):
For half the day the tide will be in, even during the period of neap tides. The common brown wrack of this zone is the Bladder Wrack, Fucus vesiculosus. Mussel beds will form and both limpets and periwinkles will graze the rocks. Beadlet Anemones are resident and Shore Crabs will be found from spring to autumn.
Lower Shore (around Low Water Neaps):
For most of the day the sea will cover this part of the shore, so that the rockpooler will need to consult his tide tables to ascertain when the shore is accessible. This will be longest during the spring tide period. The important brown seaweed is the Serrated Wrack, Fucus serratus, which straddles large areas where there are suitable attachments. The range of crabs, molluscs, small fish and prawns is much greater in this zone.
Independent Variable: The different distances (every 5 meters) as we get further away from the seashore. This would be measured with a transect line of 50 meters.
Dependent Variable: The variety of species and vegetation found at every 5 meters along a 50-meter transect line. This would be determined by counting the number of species and vegetation found per quadrat.
The types of substrate found under the 50 meter transect line at 5-meter intervals.
Control Variables:
Same distance measured away from the shore (5 meters) with the help of flags and a transect line. If the distances were not kept the same, then my results would be unreliable and inaccurate. I would control this by using a 50m transect line and placing a flag after every 5 meters accurately.
Same sized quadrats used for all measurements of the species as different size of the quadrat would mean that our counting of species would be different for all distances, which would result in unreliable data. I would use the same quadrat with 100 squares, in which each square would equal 1%.
Same individual identifying the substrate type and counting the number of species found per quadrat as if different people count and identify the species and substrate type then the human error rate would increase and affect the results as different people have different interpretations thereby only one individual is suitable.
Use the same bearing device (compass) and the same individual to find the correct bearing for the transect line to be placed as if there are different people doing it, then there are higher chances of human errors to occur.
I have to make sure that the same equipment is being used including the compass, 50m transect line (+/-cm), quadrat and 10 flags as different equipment will give different results, making them unreliable.
Risk Assessment:
Dehydration due to high sunlight and not enough intake of water
Sun Burn can be caused due to the sunrays, which can also lead to sunstroke and fainting.
Getting stung or affected by the organisms present at the rocky shore that can be harmful and can also cause death.
Safety Precautions:
Wear snickers and no flip flops to avoid any scars caused by branches or species
Distinguish the species, using an identification sheet before touching them as they can be harmful
Wear gloves to avoid any sort of contamination
Wear full pants or long socks in order to avoid any stings by different species
Wash your hands with soap and water at the end. And sanitize them as well
Drink a lot of water and apply sun block to keep safe from sun burn and dehydration.
Apparatus Used:
Transect Line (50 meter long)
2 quadrats (100 squares in each)
Compass
10 flags
Pen and a clip board with paper
Results table
Species and Vegetation identification sheet
Method:
Use a compass and find the right bearing to make sure that the transect line would be placed straight on the shore (going up the shore) and not curved.
Untangle the transect line and lay it straight on the shore according to the bearing found.
Place a flag at 0 meters and the next one at 5 meters. Do this for every 5 meters until you reach 50 meters.
Place the quadrat in such a way that the flag is in the first box of the quadrat and the quadrat is placed on the right side of the transect line.
Create a results table with a column each for distance, substrate type, species and vegetations.
Count and identify the number of species and vegetation found in each square using identification sheet and write the results in a table. Also, write the type of substrate found.
Each square of the quadrat represents 1% of the total number of species or vegetation found.
Now do this with every flag placed on the transect line.
The method will be repeated at least 5 more times in order to get 5 sets of results in order to get a suitable mean to form a bar graph with error bars.
Now create a kite diagram, in order to identify any patterns shown.
Wash your hands with soap and water and sanitize them after the experiment.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species found at the Rocky Shore along with the Substrate type.
Group 1 (Myself and another class mate)
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover
(ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 11%
Littorina Obtusata 8 Rocky 5m Algae 15%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 1 30
1 Rocky 10m Algae 16%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata 1 20
Rocks under water 15m Algae 20%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 1
2
Rocks under water 20m Algae 30%
Littorina Obtusata 10
Rocks under water 25m Algae 8%
Littorina Obtusata 35 Rocky 30m Algae 5%
Littorina Obtusata 25 Rocky 35m Algae 3%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 10
2
Rocky and dead rubble corals 40m
Littorina Obtusata 5
Rocky and dead rubble corals 45m
-Littorina Obtusata
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
12
2
Rocky and pebbles 50m
Nerita chamaeleon 4
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was a diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
D= diversity
Σ= the sum of
Simpson 's Diversity Index is a measure of diversity. In ecology, it is often used to quantify the biodiversity of a habitat. It takes into account the number of species present, as well as the abundance of each species. With this index, 0 represents infinite diversity and 1, no diversity. That is, the bigger the value of D, the lower the diversity.
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 147
Littorina Saxatiliss= 6
Chameleon Nerites= 16
Prosobranchias= 2
Total number of species found= 171
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-147(146)+6(5)+16(15)+2(1) / 171(170)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.728 which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species along with the Substrate type found at the Rocky Shore by my peers.
Group 2:
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover
(ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 17%
Littorina Obtusata 10
Rocky under water 5m Algae 15%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
22
1
Rocky under water 10m Algae 16%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata 1
20
Rocky under water 15m Algae 22%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 2
12
Rocky under water 20m Algae 19%
Littorina Obtusata 17
Rocky under water 25m Algae 8%
Littorina Obtusata 20
Rocky
30m Algae 2%
Littorina Obtusata 25
Rocky
35m Algae 1%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 10
6
Rocky and coral rubble 40m
Littorina Obtusata 3
Rocky and coral rubble 45m
-Littorina Obtusata
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 8
19
3
Rocky, pebbles and small rocks 50m
-Nerita chamaeleon 7
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 147
Littorina Saxatiliss= 12
Nerita chamaeleon = 26
Prosobranchias= 3
Total number of species found= 188
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-147(146)+12(11)+26(25)+2(2) / 188(187)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.058, which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species along with the Substrate type found at the Rocky Shore by another group of people.
Group 3:
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover
(ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 16% -Littorina Obtusata 9
Rocky
5m Algae 17%
--Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 2 26
2
Rocky
10m Algae 16%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Saxatilis 3 28
Rocky under water 15m Algae 16%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 4
10
Rocky under water 20m Algae 36%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Holothuria Atra 10
1
Rocky under water 25m Algae 30%
-Littorina Obtusata 29
Rocky under water 30m Algae 18%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Holothuria Atra 29
2
Rocky
35m Algae 10%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 13
5
Rocky and coral rubble 40m
-Littorina Obtusata 9
Rocky and coral rubble 45m
-Littorina Obtusata
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
19
2
Rocky, pebbles and small rocks 50m
Nerita chamaeleon 20
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
D= diversity
Σ= the sum of
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 155
Littorina Saxatiliss= 13
Nerita chamaeleon = 39
Prosobranchias= 5
Holothuria Atra= 3
Total number of species found= 215
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-155(154)+13(12)+39(38)+5(4)+3(2) / 215(214)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.48, which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species along with the Substrate type found at the Rocky Shore by other classmates.
Group 4:
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover (ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 19%
Littorina Obtusata 10
Rocky
5m Algae 15%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 4 30
3
Rocky
10m Algae 16%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata 4 20
Rocks under water 15m Algae 20%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 4
4
Rocks under water 20m Algae 30%
Littorina Obtusata 20
Rocks underwater 25m Algae 10%
Littorina Obtusata 35
Rocky
30m Algae 10%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata 5
19
Rocky and coral rubble 35m Algae 3%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 10
3
Rocky and coral rubble 40m
- Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 9
3
Rocky and boulders 45m
-Littorina Obtusata
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
12
2
Rocky and boulders 50m
Nerita chamaeleon 19
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
D= diversity
Σ= the sum of
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 159
Littorina Saxatiliss= 20
Nerita chamaeleon = 31
Prosobranchias= 8
Total number of species found= 218
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-159(158)+20(19)+31(30)+8(7) / 218(217)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.502, which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Raw Results- Table to show the different plant and animal species along with the Substrate type found at the Rocky Shore by others.
Group 5:
Distance (+/-1cm)
Vegetation
Percentage Cover (ACFOR scale) Species Number (+/-1)
Substrate Type 0m Algae 20%
Littorina Obtusata 20
Rocky
5m Algae 19%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 1
31 1
Rocky
10m Algae 19%
-Prosobranchias
-Littorina Obtusata 1 20
Rocks under water 15m Algae 20%
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Littorina Obtusata
-Holothuria Atra 1
2
3
Rocks under water 20m Algae 30%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis
-Holothuria Atra 10
1
2
Rocks under water 25m Algae 10%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 35
3
Rocky
30m Algae 2%
Littorina Obtusata 25
Rocky and coral rubble 35m Algae 2%
-Littorina Obtusata
-Littorina Saxatilis 10
7
Rocky and coral rubble 40m Algae
-Littorina Obtusata
-Nerita Chamaeleon 5
5
Rocky and boulders 45m
-Littorina Obtusatas
- Nerita chamaeleon
-Littorina Saxatilis 2
12
2
Rocky and boulders 50m
Nerita chamaeleon 17
Rocky and boulders
To find out whether there was diversity on the rocky shore or not, I used the Simpson’s Diversity Index:
In this formula: n= the number of a particular type of species
N= the total number of all the species
D= diversity
Σ= the sum of
Working out:
I found out the total number of
Littorina Obtusatas= 160
Littorina Saxatiliss= 14
Nerita chamaeleon = 24
Prosobranchias= 1
Holothuria Atras=5
Total number of species found= 234
Then I put the figures above in the formula:
D= 1-160(159)+14(13)+24(23)+1(0)+5(4) / 234(233)
Simpson’s Diversity Index = -0.453, which suggests that there was no diversity found.
Average Mean and Standard Deviation of the Animal Species found at the Rocky Shore:
Littorina Obtusatas:
To find the mean, add the total number of Littorina Obtusatas found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups.
147+147+155+159+160 / 5 = 157.6
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number of Littorina Obtusatas identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
147-154, 147-154, 155-154, 159-154, 160-154
= -7, -7, 1, 5, 6
(-7)2, (-7) 2, (1) 2, (5) 2, (6) 2
= 49+49+1+25+36
=160/4
= 40 (square root)
Standard Deviation = 6.32
Littorina Saxatiliss:
To find the mean, add the total number of Littorina Saxatiliss found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups.
6+12+13+20+14 / 5 = 13
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number of Littorina Saxatiliss identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 5
Prosobranchias:
To find the mean, add the total number of Prosobranchias found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups. 2+3+5+8+1 / 5 = 3.8
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number Prosobranchias identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 2.78
Nerita chamaeleon:
To find the mean, add the total number of Nerita Chamaeleon found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups.
24+31+39+26+16 / 5 = 27.2
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number Nerita Chamaeleon identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 8.53
Holothuria Atras:
To find the mean, add the total number of Holothuria Atras found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups. 5+0+3+0+0 / 5 = 1.6
For the standard deviation, subtract the total number Holothuria Atras identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 2.30
Average Mean and Standard Deviation of the vegetation found at the Rocky Shore.
Algae:
Total amount of Algae found per group:
Group 1=105
Group 2= 100
Group 3=159
Group 4=123
Group
5=122
To find the mean, add the total percentage of Algae found by each group and divide it by the total number of groups. 105+100+159+123+122 / 5 = 122
For the standard deviation, subtract the total Percentage of Algae identified by each group by the mean value. Then square the values found after the subtraction and add them all. Then divide the total number by a number less than the number of groups. Square root the value found and that will give you the standard deviation.
Standard Deviation = 23.1
Conclusion:
My prediction was very correct as the amount of species decreased in number as I moved away from the shore and also, I found a variety of species depending on the substrate type.
Through my whole experiment and my results I found out that Littorina Obtusatas was the only species that was found in profusion (mean = 157.6) due to its adaption capabilities. But I also found out through my raw data (Group 1) that the Littorina Obtusatas were most found near water or under water and also near large amounts of Algae, which was at 10m – 20m along the transect line. ‘They prefer to stay as close to the water as possible so they are found in the lowest reaches of the lower intertidal, often under the canopy of algae. It is able to survive some extremes of exposure and temperature, but it is not nearly as well adapted to being out of the water as the rough and common periwinkles.’This was mainly due to the Littorina Obtusatas adapting best to such an environment as they hide under the water as they can get easily damaged due to their sensitive structure and ‘they have gills (like a fish) and they "breathe" oxygen in the water and must stay in the lower intertidal zone, (which can be clearly seen in the kite diagram) where it is more often covered by water. It can look a lot like the vesicles (bladders) on Bladder Wrack or Knotted Wrack and is often found hiding there.’ ‘Also, they stay around the Algae because they can camouflage in with the color of the Algae and save themselves from the Predators and it is like their habitat’.
The Standard Deviation of the Littorina Obtusatas was 6.32 and this suggests that I was not that accurate with the mean value. This could have been due to the basic human errors such as counting error and identification error.
I also discovered from the results of the other 2 groups that Holothuria Atras were the least amount of species found (mean = 1.6), this was because ‘they are really hard to maintain, due to their sensitive structure. They need the right amount of temperature and pH of water in order to survive. They need a good temperature between 72 – 74 degrees Fahrenheit and a pH between 8-9. Because there was no sand found along my transect line, I did not spot any cucumbers, which suggests that the groups found some amount of sand in other areas of the rocky shore which is the reason why they were able to spot the Holothuria Atras. They are found near reef type marine area with sand in order for survival as they feed on the sand and also burrow in it to hide from the predators or any external harms.’
The standard deviation of the Holothuria Atra was 2.30, which was more than the mean value, which suggests that there were high amounts of inaccuracies in the experiment conducted by the other groups.
Overall, there were a few other species found like Nerita chamaeleon, Prosobranchias and also Littorina Saxatiliss and their amounts varied due to their adaptation capabilities. Most of these species were found near rocks and boulders because they are strongly structured and can stay out of the water, unlike the Littorina Obtusatas. This can also be seen in the kite diagram as it shows the presence of these species above and their substrates, Most of the above species were spotted at 35m – 40 m, which is the area with the rocks and boulders.
Also, I found out that the amount of species and vegetation found decreased as I went further away form the sea shore. Algae need water to grow and that is why it was found in abundance in 0m – 30m (mean = 122) and this has been illustrated in the kite diagram and this is because there was a lot of water present and small rocks, being the perfect environment for them to grow. But at 35m-40m, there was hardly any water present and there were only large amounts of rocks and rubble so the Algae could not grow. This can clearly be spotted in the kite diagram as after 35m, the Algae percentage dropped to 0. The ACFOR scale was used in the Kite Diagram to show the vegetation found.
‘In the quadrats, which can be up to a square meter (we had a quarter that size) you had to decide on the extent to which each plant appeared, and make a note according to how abundance the vegetation type was: an abundance scale. This could be done by working out rough percentages, but we used a scale whose name is an acronym of the various levels.’
A = ABUNDANT (greater than / equal to 30%)
C = COMMON (20-29%)
F = FREQUENT (10-19%)
O = OCCASIONAL (5-9%)
R = RARE (1-4%)
The standard deviation of algae was 23.1,which suggests that our mean was not very accurate and this was due to human errors. It is incredibly tough to count algae with naked eye as they are extremely tiny and proper scientific probes are required in order to get the accurate measurement.
The Littorina Obtusatas also need water so they were present the most in 10m – 20m. The remaining species were scattered along but were mainly around the rocks and boulders. The high amount of Littorina Obtusatas cross over the tiny amounts of other species found, therefore as I went further away from the shore, the Littorina Obtusatas decreased, thereby decreasing the whole number of species found.
The Simpson’s Diversity Index of the result’s entire table suggests that there was no diversity found, as there was hardly any variation found. Littorina Obtusatas were the most number of species found and in total, there were only 5 species spotted.
Evaluation:
I did manage to get five sets of data from different locations across the Rocky Shore. The overall quality of the method used for data collection was adequate to gain a decent set of results. But there were a few limiting factors like the area of the Rocky Shore to work with. The groups and I had a very tiny area amongst the rocky shore and within that area there was a construction site with heavy amounts of pollution, which would have made it tough for the survival of many species, thereby not providing me with the accurate amount of biodiversity present at the Shore. For the further improvement of my experiment, I would prefer having a larger area of the rocky shore with clean and natural surroundings, so that the groups can split up and work at a variety of different areas rather than sticking to just one area. This would also help me find different substrate types, thereby helping me spot a variety of biodiversity.
My results could have been influenced by a systematic error.
Percentage errors for the 50m transect line used for the experiment. (+/-1)
1cm=0.01m
0.01/50 = 0.0002 multiplied by 100 to get a percentage
Percentage error = 0.02%
This value is not that high, so it could not really have a key affect on the results.
Random errors could also have occurred due to my counting of the species. I could have possible missed to count specie or added one on by mistake as a result of hurry. Because I had a really short period of time, I was unable to recount the species in order to be more accurate and it was a similar case with the other groups. To improve this experiment, I would make sure that at least 2 people would be counting the number of species next time, in order to get more accurate results and to avoid random errors of this sort.
There could have also been a random error in identifying the species from the identification sheet as many of the species look alike. This would have had a great impact on the results. Also, I was not permitted to touch the species, as they could have been harmful to me, which made it incredibly tough for me to identify the specie correctly. Therefore, next time I would get 2 or 3 people to identify the species to be more accurate with the results. I would even aim to get an identification sheet with particular species and their variety in order to make it easier for me to distinguish them easily.
Furthermore, there could have been many inaccuracies in getting the exact percentage of the Algae found; therefore I would use an Electronic Particle Counter to gain precise percentage of the Algae for my results, in the future.
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