Ecological principles, biodiversity and identification skills
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UC107731 Ecological principles, biodiversity and identification skills
This Assignment is worth 40% of the total available marks for this module
Produce a scientific report of 750 words based on the information and task below. Word count excludes tables, graphs and references
All reports should be uploaded to Turnitin on Brightspace
Submission deadline 17 April 2020
Penalties for late submission will be applied as per UHI regulations
Information and Task
A highland Local Authority wishes to enhance the biodiversity value of some of its areas of regularly mown recreational grasslands. Both sites are flat homogeneous areas approximately 30m x 30m in full sun, they receive twelve cuts per year and no chemical treatments. An ecologist has carried out a plant surveys of potential sites and collected environmental data. The field data from these surveys are given in Table 1 and Table 2. Your task is too:
1 Identify the site with the highest biodiversity, giving a reason for your decision based on analysis of the field data
2 Consider how the environmental factors may have influenced the biodiversity of the two sites with reference to ecological principles
3 Briefly consider how you could enhance the biodiversity of the site using alternative cutting regimes. Refer to ecological principles to supports your recommendations
Table 1 Plant abundance and environmental data for Site 1
| % cover per quadrat | |||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |
| Rye Grass | 50 | 30 | 40 | 37 | 56 | 48 | 57 |
| Bent Grass | 10 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 6 | 12 | 5 |
| Germander speedwell | 8 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Clover | 9 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 13 | 6 |
| Moss | 10 | 15 | 20 | 10 | 5 | 21 | 9 |
| Bugle | 3 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 |
| Cats Ear | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 1 |
| Dandelion | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Creeping Buttercup | 5 | 36 | 25 | 27 | 14 | 3 | 21 |
| pH | 6.8 | 5.2 | 5.8 | 5.1 | 6.0 | 6.2 | 5.4 |
| Nitrogen | Low | Medium | Low | Low | Medium | Low | Low |
| % Moisture Content | 30 | 52 | 30 | 40 | 30 | 40 | 26 |
Table 2 Plant abundance and environmental data for Site 2
| % cover per quadrat | |||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | |
| Rye Grass | 72 | 70 | 72 | 75 | 66 | 76 | 72 |
| Bent Grass | 13 | 15 | 18 | 12 | 14 | 19 | 15 |
| Germander speedwell | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Clover | 2 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 |
| Moss | 10 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 2 | 5 |
| Bugle | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cats Ear | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dandelion | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Creeping Buttercup | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 3 |
| pH | 6.8 | 6.3 | 6.0 | 5.8 | 6.2 | 5.3 | 6.4 |
| Medium | High | High | Medium | Low | High | Medium | |
| % Moisture Content | 20 | 15 | 20 | 21 | 35 | 10 | 8 |
Report Format, indicative content and marking
| Indicative content | Marks available | |
| Aim | Give a suitable aim. It should be clear, concise and accurate | 2 |
| Method | Describe the method that you would use to collect the above data | 5 |
| Results | Convert the field data to results using appropriate format, clearly labelled | 5 |
| Results Analysis | Analyse your results using appropriate statistical methods | 15 |
| Discussion | Discuss your results with reference to your aims and the task. | 10 |
| References | Appropriate references cited correctly in the text | 3 |
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