Instructions for Aquatic Biodiversity Notebooks



The Field Journal

Instructions and suggestions on maintaining a scientific journal of field experiences

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Why keep a field journal?

The goal of the field journal is to help you develop a broader understanding of the natural history of aquatic organisms. ‘Natural history’ requires extensive observation as its raw material and yields meaningful and expansive synthesis as a final product. For centuries the naturalist’s journal has been a tool to accomplish this goal. For example, Charles Darwin would surely not have conceived his theory of natural selection had he not documented his voyage in detail. Benefits of keeping a field journal include:

➢ increasing powers of observation (“It would take a lifetime to explore your own backyard”; Brown 1983)

➢ improving retention of experiences Noss (1996) states that “scientific abstraction and fancy technologies are no substitutes for the wisdom that springs from knowing the world and its creatures in intimate, loving detail”.

➢ documenting observations for future reference by yourself (An old Chinese proverb states that the palest ink is better than the best memory) and by others (Thomas Jefferson commanded Lewis and Clark to keep journals and make multiple copies in case of loss, and he instructed that their observations ” be taken with great pain and accuracy” (Herman 1980)).

➢ providing opportunity to be creative and to use skills from other disciplines

➢ providing opportunity to synthesize your observations and to integrate this synthesis with your knowledge from other fields of biology and from other disciplines outside of biology. Over the last century, disciplines within science have become more splintered and specialized, where researchers obtain the bulk of their observations from narrowly focused publications. Throughout this trend in specialization, the importance and preservation of the naturalist approach has continued to be advocated (e.g. Noss 1996).

In technical work a man of this age must specialize, but in a reconnaissance of a part of the earth’s face, whether soil or sea, I want my comprehension, like that of Charles Darwin, to be able to interpret the underlying significance of clouds, hailstones, argillaceous rock, hot springs, cacti, land planarians, ice-bourne boulders, carrion beetles, wingless flies, graminivourous birds, nest-building fish, viviparious reptiles, dodders, omnivourous rodents, sessile-eyed crustaceans, insect-eating plants, and foraminiferous protozoans!”

Robert Cushman Murphy, in Logbook for Grace (1947), from a journal on a voyage to the Antarctic in 1912 (Herman, 1980)

Why draw and write?

Drawings are extremely useful even if you have no artistic ability. Drawing enhances observation and retention. To draw requires attention to both detail and overall composition. The tactile act of transferring this to paper forces one to use different sets of neural pathways that enhance the learning experience (kinesthetic learning). An organism or landscape drawn re-enforces a memory far better than does snapping a photograph. In addition, drawing captures large amounts of information (the old cliché ‘ a picture is worth a thousand words’). An example might be a simple sketch of topography that might otherwise be difficult to describe in few words. A quick sketch of key morphological characteristics of an unidentified organism is often useful upon return where more reference materials and keys are available, particularly if the organism is not collected or if key characteristics are lost in preservation.

Like drawing, writing (paragraphs with complete sentences) allows you to use additional parts of your brain. One must re-live the experience when writing, improving retention. People who study how humans learn suggest that most of us don’t learn effectively from experience alone. In order to learn from our experiences we have to do something to help make sense of them. Writing is a particularly effective way to make an experience our own and to learn from it. Much of our thinking and communicating is, after all, through language. Writing typically requires association of the experience with past experiences and knowledge, providing opportunity for synthesis. You will find that new thoughts occur to you as you write your notes. Further, the field experience and writing of one day can become the raw material for even more significant insights, when you have many such days.

Instructions for the Aquatic Biodiversity Field Journal

You will produce two notebooks:

1) The Notebook - rough draft notes (a small pocket-sized spiral notebook) for observations and data collected while in the field (and lab). I will not grade this notebook, so this notebook can be messy and disorganized to some degree. However, it must be complete and organized enough so that you can transcribe the information in it to your final notebook.

2) The Journal - final draft version (a bound notebook) to be turned in for grading. The information from your field notebook and your head should be transcribed to this journal as soon as possible (i.e. in the van, at camp in the evening, or upon returning home) for two reasons. One, your memory will be fresher; details are lost quickly. Two, you will turn this notebook in on the Wednesday class date following selected fieldtrips. This notebook should be neat and organized (it does not have to be chronological). The notebook should be sturdy, bound, and hard-covered; it maybe lined or un-lined depending on your preference. Bookstores sell blank journals and ledgers. Un-lined bound notebooks are sold at art supply stores such as Dick Blick on Busbee. Do not purchase cheap lab notebooks such as used in chemistry labs.

Types of information to be recorded in the notebooks:

First of all, don’t try to record everything!!! Be selective, noting things that might potentially be related to the study at hand or a particular set of observations of interest to you.

➢ Field notes (the first four items are an absolute necessity):

➢ date, location (relative to nearest town, identifying county and state), type of habitat, weather conditions, …

➢ descriptions of habitat and microhabitats

➢ list of taxa collected and observed. Do as best as you can but it is likely that you will not be able to document all species we encounter; I suggest comparing your taxa lists with fellow classmate in the van or around the campfire. Underline genus and species names with straight lines (capitalizing the former) and put squiggly lines under common names. Include collection identification number (if done).

➢ A crude map of the stream, lake, or wetland indicating where we sampled and any other relevant information.

➢ description of collection techniques

➢ behaviors of animals in the field

➢ information espoused by your brilliant instructors (but don’t over do this; i.e. this is not a place to take lecture notes in the field)

➢ quick sketches concentrating on topography, habitats, behaviors, etc. (see Appendix A), recognizing that organisms collected can be sketched back at the lab

➢ non-visual information (sounds, smells, textures)

➢ information from laboratory examination of specimens is optional, but the main focus of the notebook is field observations. You may wish to enhance field drawings from closer observations made in the field.

➢ anything else that might be of interest to you or others (be creative/observant). This might also include observations on local culture, land practices, etc. Great insights and understanding in science have arisen by bringing together disparate observations. In your writing, you may add some ancillary materials (outside natural history). For example, “Dr. D, flooded his waders again”, but to get too personal (“My boyfriend and I got in a big fight last night…”).

➢ Synthesis of information on at least one separate page for each field trip (not each site). For example: How could any observed structures and behaviors be explained by the environment/habitat from which the organisms were collected? How do the taxa collected in one environment compare with those from another habitat, site, or region? How do particular sampling sites differ one another in topography, geology, etc. Don’t be afraid to speculate. This may be especially helpful in initiating thoughts relevant to your final paper.

You should use both written descriptions and drawings, though the degree to which you use either will depend on whether you prefer expressing information in written form or more graphically. Use complete sentences in your writing. Feel free to be artistic with such things as page layouts and lettering.

Criteria used in grading notebooks

Your journal may end up anywhere along a three-way continuum from the ‘scientific’ record (see Herman, 1980), to the ‘artistic’ journal, to the ‘literary’ book. That is your decision and it is likely that the journal will evolve as the semester progresses (and hopefully though out your career). However, regardless of your finished product it must contain relevant scientific information both in pictures and writings. Specifically the journals will be graded for:

➢ 25% - Completeness, neatness, organization, and clarity (show me you made an effort).

➢ 25% - Accuracy

➢ 25% - Observation ability – make some original observations

➢ 25% - Synthesis of observations and thoughts - be creative.

Due Dates

o 20 September – includes local wetland trip and south Georgia weekend trip

o 11 October – includes local stream trips and local weekend trip

o 25 October – includes north Georgia weekend trip

Late penalty:

Because it is critical that you keep up with your notebook while ‘the material is fresh’, notebooks must be turned in at the beginning of class on the due date. There will be a 5% deduction per 24 hours after the due date!

We hope that you will produce something you will be proud of and can use in the future to find, recognize and better understand critters in this region.

Literature Cited

Brown, T. 1983. Tom Brown’s Field Guide to Nature Observation and Tracking. The Berkley Publishing Group, New York.

Herman SG. 1980. The Naturalist’s Field Journal: A Manual of Instruction Based on a System Established by Joseph Grinnell.

Noss RF. 1996. “The naturalists are dying off”. Conservation Biology 10:1-3.

Appendix A – Ideas for Drawing in Journals

First of all, don’t get discouraged. Drawing has purposes other than to produce a masterpiece. Drawing enhances observation and retention. To draw requires attention to both detail and overall composition. In addition, drawing captures large amounts of information. For example, a simple sketch of topography can easily convey what otherwise would be difficult to describe in a few words.

Drawings should not necessarily be of whole organisms. For example, you might sketch:

➢ an outline of the organism

➢ an unusual or distinguishing part of an organism

➢ traces let behind such as tracts or nests

➢ stick figures representing a behavior

➢ a diagram of the sampling device

➢ aspects of the habitat

➢ topography (e.g. the shapes of boulders, treelines, ridges, and mountain tops)

➢ a map of the study site (a carefully labeled map can tell a story)

➢ conceptual diagrams that composite observation (e.g. a cross-section of the dune plant community).

Drawings should be labeled as to what they are, their scale (e.g. 2x), and with relevant structures and other information. I suggest using pencil for the field notebooks. Write on only one side of the page to reduce smearing. Be Creative (however, no smashed bugs between the pages, please). Not all observations need to be immediately relevant to the study subjects (great ideas in science often arise from incidental observations).

From a Lewis and Clark journal, a white salmon trout, taken from a creek near the shores of the Pacific Ocean

Examples of field journal sketches and illustrations

Because time is limited in the field, sketches of parts of organisms and quick outlines capture information efficiently.

Maps are important both for future reference and because they can convey an experience or process.

The organism itself often does not tell the whole story. Indirect traces of organisms abound in the field. An organism place within its habitat should also be noted.

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Not everything you draw must be “as you see it”. Observations can be synthesized in conceptual illustrations that summarize information.

Not everything in your journal must be directly biological. Observations from outside of biology may lead to understanding of biological systems, as well as making you a more rounded person.

Finally, you do not have to a great artist (note the sketch to the right and its author).

OPUNTIA GALAPAGEIA (from )

Some tips on field sketchs:

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Drawing Media

At the very least, you will need in the field a pencil and easer (mechanical pencils eliminate the need for a sharpener). In addition, you may incorporate other media:

➢ Permanent ink pen (fine tip)

➢ Ink wash using a cheap water-soluble (‘flair’) pen and a small brush

➢ Color pencils

➢ Field water color kit (water colors and color pencils can add important information).

Because time is limited in the field, you may wish to make partial field sketches then add detail upon return to the van, camp, or home. Quick notes on colors, textures and detail along side partial sketches will make this easier upon your return. However, often a quick field sketch alone will suffice in conveying information.

An example of ink washes where a quick field sketch with a flair pen is improved upon return from the field with an equally quick brush and water touch up. Depth is given to the subject by wetting and smearing the pen strokes near areas that should be darker.

A scribbling stroke is also a useful technique for rapid sketches in the field. The image on the right is enlarged from the ‘hawks in the tree’ drawing on a previous page. Note the pencil has rarely been lifted from the page in parts of the picture.

Also note that the pencil was lifted when drawing finer branches, Though in reality all branches on the tree are connected, it is not necessary (or even desirable) to do this in the drawing.

Take advantage of lighter spaces and lack of clear edges. Your mind spends a lot of effort in interpreting edges that in many cases your eyes do not see. By leaving light space and subtle edges blank, time is saved in the field sketch and often the sketch appears more “realistic”. Avoid continuous lines. You’ll be surprised.

Note on the leave drawing (left) that detail on veins is only drawn on part of one leaf, yet the drawing conveys the needed information. Time was also saved because this drawing was made by laying the leaf on the paper and lightly tracing the outer margin. An ink pen was used later to add detail.

Appendix B –Ideas for Writing in Journals

Basically, the journalistic formula can apply here. Answer simple questions such as who, what, when, where, why and how. Some of these will be more obvious. Identifying the study site and locating it relative to other landmarks, describing the environmental conditions as well as the time and date are easy (if we remember to do them). Why and how type questions may be more speculative, as you note such things as the relevant relationships between organisms and the environment or the evolutionarily adaptive nature of structures, behaviors or relationships.

Specific rules for writing are those shared by other writing situations, but warrant mention, because some of them may be especially challenging in the field.

• Use the most precise language you can.

• Use abbreviations carefully

• Generally, your writing style will be straightforward, simple declarative sentences. Full sentences are best, except where a list or other such convention is appropriate.

• Your personal reactions may also be useful in recalling the experience. But try to transform the aesthetic reaction... “Great sunset…” of your field notebook into several more descriptive lines in your journal. That will make it more meaningful to you and others. Later, you may even discover that the sunset you described is actually characteristic of atmospheric conditions that are meaningful to your fieldwork.

• Asking questions is one of the generative activities of science, and your field journal is the place to record your questions. While many questions may arise during the field experience, many of them can and should be answered by further observations or by consulting field guides or other resources. You may also want to leave some room in the field journal so you can respond further to those questions as you have additional experiences and insights.

Some additional points to think about as you begin your field journal-

• Unless you are already very familiar with the ecosystems and organisms you study, you may be faced, as the first explorers in any new land are, with sensory overload. This parallels the contemporary information overload we can experience while surfing the Internet. In the field, as on the Internet, you will need to be selective. So think about what you want to accomplish on each day’s study. Be open to all that may be relevant, but be selective. And write about why you are selecting what you do, and the criteria for your collecting just some of all the potential observations you might make.

• As your understanding and experience grows, you will be increasingly able to notice that which you do not see directly, but might expect. In one of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, Holmes remarks on the barking of the dog at the scene of the crime. When his colleague Dr. Watson responds, “…what barking? None of the witnesses mentioned the dog barking,” Holmes clarifies his insight. The absence of barking from the dog when the crime was committed is the pivotal clue in solving the mystery (i.e. it was an inside job).

• Finally, remember that what you are doing is important. If you do it right, you can be confident that your observations and your records of these are worthwhile. It’s easy to believe that everything worth knowing is available on the Internet, or that the system you study today will be the same next month, or over the next several years. The first claim is certainly not true, and the second may or may not be. Another misconception is that genetic and other technologies have made careful direct fieldwork unnecessary. Remember that while DNA analysis, for example, may be a fundamental tool for identifying organisms and their genetic relationships, these technologies don’t tell us much about the functional interrelationships and ecology of organisms and their environments. For that we need the human mind, with its capacity for making the observations that lead to insights and connections, and that may go on, as Wilson suggests, to concoct new patterns of thought.

“The best of science doesn’t consist of mathematical models and experiments, as textbooks make it seem. Those come later. It springs fresh from a more primitive mode of thought, wherein the hunter’s mind weaves ideas from old facts and fresh metaphors and the scrambled crazy images of things recently seen. To move forward is to concoct new patterns of thought, which in turn dictate the design of the models and experiments.”

--E.O. Wilson

The Diversity of Life, 1992

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