BIOL 170 Exploring Biology

FeederWatch Analysis Activity 12/08

Introduction:

During the last few weeks we have been collecting data on bird species and their group size at the bird feeding station at the MSUMRegionalScienceCenter’s Buffalo River Site. The Center is a member of the United States and Canada FeederWatch Network operated by Cornell University Ornithology Lab and Bird Studies Canada. The network includes thousands of FeederWatch reporting sites in our two countries. Data from these sites has been collected since the 1988-1989 counting season. MSUMRegionalScienceCenter has been collecting data since the 2001-2002 counting season. The counting season starts in the third week of November and ends in the first week of April each year.

Your experience gathering the data has given you an important understanding of how the data is collected and what the numbers (mean group size and percentage of feeders visited) mean. This is very important! Numbers on a page have little meaning to students unless they have some direct experience determining similar numbers.

Activity Directions:

You will work in small groups during this activity. Each group will be given a set of data taken from the FeederWatch data base to be analyzed as described in one of the following analyses (I-V). Your product will be a group report made up of individually produced products. This report will be worth up to 20 points each (and will be added to the 5 points per observation each of you made at the BRS feeding station earlier).

References to use:

FeederWatch Website:

The Sibley Guide to Birds, David Allen Sibley, 2000. (We have four copies in class.)

Before you get to work:

After you have been assigned your specific analysis group, you must get organized to share the work load. Your instructor has attempted to size the groups so that each student has about the same work to do. Prepare a record sheet with the following information and hand in by the end of the class period:

a. Name of analysis assigned: Analysis I-V.

b. Names of each student in the group

c. For each part of the analysis and the report writing, name the student

responsible for completing it.

Group I (4-6 students)

Purpose:For this analysis you will compare the class’s observations at the BRS

feeders with the average observations at the BRS feeders of the RSC Volunteers.

Procedure:

1. Prepare a data table of bird species (down the left side) and dates observed

(across the top) recorded by our class during the last few weeks.

2. In each cell record the group size for each bird seen on that date (if more than

one counting period per day per species, use the mean value for that day).

3. Show the data table to your instructor. He will identifythe four-six species to

focus on for the rest of this analysis.

5. Your instructor will provide you the official data tables for these birds for

counting seasons: 01-02 to 06-07 as prepared by RSC volunteers. From this

data, prepare asecond datatable including the average number of birds over

the six seasonsfor each counting date for each bird species selected.

6. Prepare two column graphs for each bird. One column graph of the volunteer

data and one column graph of the class data. In both column graph the

sampling dates areon the x-axis and number of each bird at the feeders are on

the y-axis.

Analysis:

Compare the number of birds at the feeders from the volunteer column graph

with those from our classcolumn graph. Describe any similarities and/or differences.

Proposereasons for any differences between the two sets of column graph

plots.

Note: Fall semester students: Remember that your counting period leads up

to the RSC volunteer counting period.

Note: Spring semester students: Remember that your counting period is included

in the RSC volunteer counting period.

Study report write-up Format

Your group report should consist of the following:

Title (analysis number your group did)

Name the student responsible for completing each part of the analysis and the report writing.

Introduction

Put the purpose of the analysis here.

Analysis organization details

For each part of the analysis and the report writing, name the student responsible for completing it.

Analysis

Table(s) and column graph(s) only

Discussion and Conclusions

Your group’s answers to analysis questions. Each question’s answer should be a separate paragraph.

BIOL 170 Exploring Biology

FeederWatch Analysis Activity 12/08

Introduction:

Activity Directions:

You will work in small groups during this activity. Each group will be given a set of data taken from the FeederWatch data base to be analyzed as described in one of the following analyses (I-V). Your product will be a group report made up of individually produced products. This report will be worth up to 20 points (and will be added to the 5 points per observation you made at the BRS feeding station earlier).

References to use:

FeederWatch Website:

The Sibley Guide to Birds, David Allen Sibley, 2000. (We have four copies in HA 404.)

Before you get to work:

a. Name of analysis assigned: Analysis I-V.

b. Names of each student in the group

c. For each part of the analysis and the report writing, name the student

responsible for completing it.

Group II (5 students)

Purpose: In this analysis we will examine the changes in the population

of selected birds during the counting season from November to April as well

as any variation among several counting seasons.

Procedure:

Your group will be given MSUM data sets for each of the following years of study: 01-02, 02-03, 03-04, 04-05, 05-06, 06-07.Your four study birds will beBlack-capped chickadee, White-breasted Nuthatch, Common redpoll and Dark-eyed junco.

1. Prepare a column graph of the selected set of birds (one color per bird).

You will graph sampling dates on the x-axis vs. number of each bird at the

feederson the y-axis.Each student will graph data for the counting season

for one of the yearsprovided. All column graphs should have the same y-

axis scale for easier comparison.

2. Show your column graph to your instructor and then continue.

Analysis:

Answer the following questions to analyze your group’s collective data:

a. For each bird, describe how the number of birds at the feeder changed

over the counting season you were assigned.

b. Compare/contrast these seasonal changes in birds at the feeders among

the counting years

c. What might cause any differences found in (b) above?

Study report write-up Format

Your group report should consist of the following:

Title (analysis number your group did)

Name the student responsible for completing each part of the analysis and the report writing.

Introduction

Put the purpose of the analysis here.

Analysis organization details

For each part of the analysis and the report writing, name the student responsible for completing it.

Analysis

Table(s) and column graph (s) only

Discussion and Conclusions

Your group’s answers to analysis questions. Each question’s answer should be a separate paragraph.

BIOL 170 Exploring Biology

FeederWatch Analysis Activity 12/08

Introduction:

Activity Directions:

You will work in small groups during this activity. Each group will be given a set of data taken from the FeederWatch data base to be analyzed as described in one of the following analyses (I-V). Your product will be a group report made up of individually produced products. This report will be worth up to 20 points (and will be added to the 5 points per observation you made at the BRS feeding station earlier).

References to use:

FeederWatch Website:

The Sibley Guide to Birds, David Allen Sibley, 2000. (We have four copies in HA 404.)

Before you get to work:

After you have been assigned your specific analysis group, you must get organized to share the work load. Your instructor has attempted to size the groups so that each student has about the same work to do. Prepare a record sheet with the following information and hand in by the end of the class period:

a. Name of analysis assigned: Analysis I-V.

b. Names of each student in the group

c. For each part of the analysis and the report writing, name the student

responsible for completing it.

Group III(4 students)

Purpose:In this analysis we will examine the changes in the population of

selected birds over five sampling years.

Procedure:

Your group will be given MSUM data sets for each of the following years of study: 01-02, 02-03, 03-04, 04-05, 05-06, 06-07. Your four study birds will be Black-capped chickadee, White-breasted Nuthatch, Common redpoll and Dark-eyed junco.

1. A set of column graphs will be prepared, one for Black-capped

chickadee,one forWhite-breastednuthatch, one for Common redpoll and

one for Dark-eyed junco. You will graph sampling year (x-axis) vs. the

number of birds counted per year (y-axis). This will give you fourcolumn

graphs(one per bird). You will graph all years on one column graph, one year

per colored column.

2. Show your column graphs to your instructor and then continue.

Analysis:

Answer the following questionsto analyze your group’s collective data:

a. How does the trend in the number of birds at the feeders vary among the

years on your column graph?

b. What might cause any differences found in (b) above?

c. Compare/contrast these changes in birds at the feeder among the

birds analyzed by your group.

Study report write-up Format

Your group report should consist of the following:

Title (analysis number your group did)

Name the student responsible for completing each part of the analysis and the report writing.

Introduction

Put the purpose of the analysis here.

Analysis organization details

For each part of the analysis and the report writing, name the student responsible for completing it.

Analysis

Table(s) and column graph(s) only

Discussion and Conclusions

Your group’s answers to analysis questions. Each question’s answer should be a separate paragraph.

BIOL 170 Exploring Biology

FeederWatch Analysis Activity 12/08

Introduction:

Activity Directions:

You will work in small groups during this activity. Each group will be given a set of data taken from the FeederWatch data base to be analyzed as described in one of the following analyses (I-V). Your product will be a group report made up of individually produced products. This report will be worth up to 20 points (and will be added to the 5 points per observation you made at the BRS feeding station earlier).

References to use:

FeederWatch Website:

The Sibley Guide to Birds, David Allen Sibley, 2000. (We have four copies in class.)

Before you get to work:

After you have been assigned your specific analysis group, you must get organized to share the work load. Your instructor has attempted to size the groups so that each student has about the same work to do. Prepare a record sheet with the following information and hand in by the end of the class period:

a. Name of analysis assigned: Analysis I-V.

b. Names of each student in the group

c. For each part of the analysis and the report writing, name the student

responsible for completing it.

Group IV(4 students)

Purpose:In this analysis we will use a set of birdsthat we have learned to identify and see how the population of each bird changes within its range during the FeederWatch counting season based on data collected from hundreds of sites in selected states ofeach bird’s range.

Procedure:

You will have access to data tables of percent feeders visited fortwo states in the bird’s range.You will have access to paper copies in class or digital data tables at the FeederWatch website.Each student will do one selected bird whose range you will analyze: Black-capped chickadee, American Robin, Chipping Sparrow and American Goldfinch. For this analysis you will need to look at range maps found in the Sibley book (see above) and maps found at the FeederWatch website.

1. Using the data tables provided for each bird, prepare one column graph showing averagepercentage of feeders visited for five counting seasons (y-axis) vs. counting date (x-axis) for each of the twostates provided in the bird’s range (one state per color). The five counting seasons are: 94-95, 97-98, 00-01, 02-03, 04-05.

Black-capped chickadee: Illinois and Pennsylvania

American Robin: Illinois and Georgia

Chipping Sparrow: New York and Florida

American Goldfinch: Georgia and Illinois

2. Show each column graph to your instructor and then continue.

Analysis:

Answer the following questions to analyze your group’s collective data:

a. Using each bird’s column graph, describe the change in percentage of

feeders visited over thecounting season for each of the two states in the

bird’s range.

b. Look at theregional map for your bird on the FeederWatch website.

Explain how each histogram shows the same or different trends in bird

populations throughout the counting season as the FeederWatch maps.

c. Look at the range maps in The Sibley Guide to Birds. Describe how

your individual graphs agree or disagree with the Sibley range maps.

d. Describe how each column graph supports any seasonal migration of