Wilson's Snipe, #176, Data, and Placobdella ornata video

#176

Sunday the total number of turtles in the Dairy Drainage grew to sixteen with the capture of number one hundred and seventy-six, a large female. She was free of leeches but missing a toenail. This very dour turtle had a few remains of a crayfish in her stomach and was otherwise unremarkable.

The most remarkable event is that I began doing some quantitative analysis of my data. One of the interesting things to do is look at numbers from different perspectives. For example, when I compare the total number of samples on a month-by-month basis, it appears that July is remarkable. However, if I factor in the total number of days I trap compared to the results I get then May is remarkably higher in success. Specifically, I get more turtles and a larger variety of stomach food resources in their stomachs in this month. Further, even though I am part way through August and the total number of samples is low, my results match those of June and July.

Interestingly, I often think I am less interested in numbers when compared to colleagues who are doing theoretical research, but that is clearly not the case. I am surprised how automatically I began playing with the data and creating charts when I wanted an answer about my trapping success rate. Even more shocking is the fact I automatically gather data and create table as I work - without even thinking about it. I suspect this is the sign of a true analytical person - my friends and family will not be shocked.

The above display of the data shows that in May I get more stomach content samples with less effort. Further,  regardless of the amount of trapping effort I put forth the results are largely proportional between the other months. For example, in June and July I have set out traps more often compared to my work in August that is still ongoing. However, the success rate stays the same. To see the total trapping effort by month see the table below.

In this table it looks like the month of July is most productive because I have more samples and August is less productive. However, the previous table is a more accurate way to display the data. It is an example of one of the most confounding things about doing research - how to accurately display the data. As you can see here, I am showing the data in both forms rather than "cherry picking" the results that please me. It is more honest to display all the data and assess if my conclusions seem reasonable. 

Above is a preliminary summary of food items I found in stomach content samples. Note that there are two non-food items, thereby making the title inaccurate. Plant and substrate material (soil and gravel) are listed as by-catch; meaning they were caught while the turtle was in the process of capturing prey.

Placobdella ornata - the turtle leech

Next, as promised a video of Placobdella ornata the freshwater turtle leech and a close up of number one-seventy five’s rear leg where it was holding on. These simple elegant creatures fascinate me.

Number 175!

A self-portrait of the bicycling biologist ready to take #175 home.

AFTER FOUR DAYS AND NINE HOURS OF BICYCLE RIDING I FINALLY CAUGHT A TURTLE!

This male Western pond turtle is sleeping quietly just before I administer the reversal medication status post gastric lavage. As you can see the turtles a quite relaxed and not aware of the procedure. Ten minutes later it was wide awake and twenty minutes later he was ambulating.

Here he is twenty minutes later moving his foot (left) and smiling.

The cool thing is that this is another turtle that I have not caught before and that means there are 13 turtles in this drainage ditch that is about 100 meters long. So, it should be easy to catch them, or so it seems. After spending three hours with my radio telemetry unit I found out they are living in the dense bulrushes where the crayfish and Odonate naiads are feeding. 

After this year's work of examining the ecosystem for food resources I can identify discrete  body parts and determine what they ate. The picture below shows what I face when I am examining stomach contents. Two years ago it was baffling, last year somewhat confusing, but now it is an interesting forensics like exploration. 

Odonate tissue near the end of
the digestion process.

Certainly this kind of work is not for everybody. However, I am fortunate that body fluids and parts do not bother me. It allows me to do this kind of work and also helped me earn my way through university doing nursing, ER, and Trauma Center work. 

One interesting thing in the photograph below is that I find pieces of the bank soil and vegetation their food resources cling to. Many researchers in the past mistakenly thought the Western pond turtles eat these items. I know this is the substrate the prey live on and that turtles take a big bite and get the prey and anything nearby. Often scientists like everybody else are myopic and their focus it too narrow and this leads to mistakes. 

The light brown is part of a plant and the darker material is soil from the bank that is ingested.

That's it for now. Tomorrow a cool video of a leech and more.

A MONTH OF SUSTAINABLE RESEARCH

Today is the first day of my last month of research. Since I ride my bike and rarely use an automobile, I decided to take a better approach to my fieldwork in an urban setting. It would be easy to climb into my automobile and drive to my study site BUT I am making the choice to ride my bike. I have little patience with folks who talk about sustainable living but go no further AND make excuses for not doing so.

If you think about it, I get much needed exercise and save fuel – nothing is better! Most of all, it demonstrates I follow words with deeds.

And, yes it took three and one-half hours and I was hot and sweaty. Nonetheless, as you can see, I was smiling and having fun as usual!

Cheers,

Nicole