Curriculum Packets

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In order to engage student groups in long-term educational and research projects and data sets, BFREE’s Education Committee created scientific curriculum packets. The goal has been to identify questions that are principal to BFREE’s mission – to conserve the biodiversity of Belize – and are amenable to the development of field activities and research for student groups.

The original two studies (Small Mammal Community Survey and the Fruit Phenology Study) utilize two comparison plots, a managed cacao plantation and an unmanaged forest habitat.  These studies strive to produce a better understanding of the ecological differences between cacao and unmanaged forest habitats. Because these projects are focused on the comparison of agroecosystems to natural habitats, they serve as a good example to students of the importance of integrating human needs and concerns in the disciplines of ecology and conservation biology.

Small Mammal Community Survey                     Fruit Phenology Study 

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Avian Monitoring

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BFREE Avian Technicians focus much of their efforts on monitoring wild Harpy Eagles

Integrated Community-based Harpy Eagle and Avian Conservation Program

Between 2006 and 2014, BFREE and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington established and implemented an intensive Harpy Eagle and avian monitoring program onsite in the BFREE private reserve and in the Bladen Nature Reserve.

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BFREE Mapping

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BFREE is beginning to realize a long time dream; creating a multi-layered, standardized base mapping system of the entire 1,153-acre property! Under the guidance of Alexis (Lex) Thomas, Director of the GeoPlan Center at the University of Florida and the BFREE Science Committee, the project is well underway. The large-scale mapping project will culminate in a spatial database of the diverse habitats, natural features, and research sites at BFREE. In essence, the BFREE property will be viewed and managed as one large research plot.

The project employs the military grid referencing system (MGRS), which is made up of nested cells to allow for simplification, comprehensiveness, and consistency. A canopy and ground cover classification system was developed for the entire property and was tailored to the characteristics of Belize’s tropical lowland rainforest.

Through the project, the property has been broken down into 100m2 grids. To put this in perspective, if two (densely forested) football fields were side by side, they would include 100 of these smaller 100m2 plots. There are approximately 46,660 of these 100m2 plots on the BFREE property, so initial sampling focused on the approximately 460 – 100m * 100m (1 hectare) grid squares.

Sipriano Canti, BFREE’s head ranger, was trained specifically for the project and has been collecting these data points since October 2014. To collect the data, Canti walks to the center point of each grid, hammers a PVC post with a numbered metal tag into the ground, determines which of the ten habitat/cover classification best describes the plot, takes digital images in the four cardinal directions, then estimates the height of the canopy, and takes note of any unusual characteristics or features. We expect it will take several years to complete this extensive project.

The most immediate and utilitarian impacts of such a comprehensive map are that it will allow researchers to keep track of where ongoing research is being carried out, provide a visual tool to understand the characteristics and natural resources within the property, create a method to reference less frequented areas, and will allow future researchers to pick out potential research sites before they even arrive at BFREE.

More broadly, this initiative puts BFREE in a good position to monitor and document environmental changes over time—information that is crucial for BFREE and its researchers, as well as Belize and the world, especially in the face of climate change. A standardized base map of BFREE within the context of a large research plot will be a valuable contribution to science on a global scale.  For more information on this project and participating, contact Jacob Marlin at jmarlin@bfreebz.org.

 

Ant Foraging Behavior: A field exercise for student groups studying leaf cutter ant behavior at BFREE

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Author, Amy Treonis, Department of Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA

Introduction

Leaf cutter ants are unmissable denizens of the rainforest, and a visit to BFREE is not complete without spending some time observing their activities. Leaf cutter ants live in complex, agrarian societies. They harvest leaves, bring them back to their underground nests, which can host millions of ants, and feed the leaves to a cultivated, specialized fungus. The ants feed on the swollen tips of fungal hyphae, called gonglydia. The fungi live in obligate mutualism with the ants. Bacteria are also cultivated on the ants that produce antibiotics that help that keep foreign microbes out of the fungus culture.

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A field activity for student groups studying the Bladen River at BFREE and beyond

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Author, Amy Treonis, Department of Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA

Map of Monkey River Watershed, showing potential study sites

Introduction: The Bladen River is one of the most spectacular features of the BFREE field station, offering countless opportunities for ecological research.  The Upper Bladen watershed flows through the tropical broadleaf forest of the Bladen Nature Reserve, arriving at BFREE in a remarkably pristine state.  From there, the river flows downstream into the Monkey River and ultimately empties into the Caribbean Sea at Monkey River Town. The river flows through a landscape that is a mosaic of protected and agricultural lands, including cattle pastures, banana plantations and subsistence farms (i.e., milpa). Replacement of riparian vegetation with agriculture has destabilized soils in many places, resulting in increased erosion and sedimentation throughout the watershed. Ultimately, this impacts both wildlife and people that depend on the river’s health.  The river’s course has also been affected by natural events, such as Hurricane Earl in 2016.

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Field exercises for student groups studying small mammal communities at BFREE

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Mouse opossum photo by Dan Dourson

As part of BFREE’s initiative to enhance field experiences for student groups, members of the education committee have designed field exercises focused on small mammals at BFREE. In January 2015, two permanent small mammal trapping grids were established in two habitats at BFREE: cacao agroforestry and tropical broadleaf forest. These permanent grids will facilitate the study of small mammals by student groups and will allow a better understanding of the differences in biodiversity between cacao and unmanaged forest habitats. Because this project is focused on the comparison of agroecosystems to natural habitats, it will also serve as a good example to students of the importance of integrating human needs and concerns in the disciplines of ecology and conservation biology.

Dr. Sara Ash and Audrey Ash weigh one of the small mammals trapped in the forest grid.

We recognize that instructors have limited time to invest in these field exercises. As such, we have written exercises that require varying levels of engagement, thus allowing for flexibility for instructors (Table 1). While all exercises focus on small mammal species living on BFREE’s property, the Gold exercise requires trapping on both grids, and the data collected from this exercise, when compiled with other groups, will have potential management implications.

Click here for links to further instruction including video demos.

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