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How Many Critters Live In This Leaf Litter?
Problem How many different arthropods and how many of each species live in leaf litter? Hypothesis Procedure Materials: Berlese funnel, table lamp with 20 – 40 Watt bulb, 5 Petri dishes, magnifying glasses, leaf litter Directions 1. Build Berlese funnel – see directions below 2. Wearing rubber gloves, collect about 2 cups of leaf litter. Look for it under bushes or shady areas where dry leaves have collected. Remove the surface leaves to find those that are moist. Collect litter down to the soil but try not to collect any soil. Store your sample in a zip lock baggie and label it with date, time, location and weather conditions. 3. Place the leaf litter in the Berlese funnel and direct the lamp over the litter. Leave it on for about 24 hours. The heat will dry out the litter, driving the moisture loving arthropods down until they fall through the wire mesh. 
4. Remove the leaf litter, return it to where you collected it and check to see what arthropods have fallen into the bottom. Sort them by species into the Petri dishes. Observe with the magnifying glass and record and draw your observations.  5. Return the arthropods to where you collected the litter or keep them in a terrarium for future observation. 6. Repeat this procedure, collecting the leaf litter from a different location or from the same location during different weather conditions. Results Conclusion Constructing a Berlese Funnel 1. Materials: Two 2-liter plastic bottles, clear if possible, ¼ inch wire mesh, scissors, wire cutters, pliers, marker, white tissue, long rubber band. 2. Cut one bottle just below the curved part of the top. Place the white tissue, folded, into the bottom of the bottle. Use the top part upside down as a funnel and place into the top of the bottle. 3. Trace the size of the bottom of the bottle onto the wire mesh with a marker. Using the wire cutters, cut out the circle and with pliers, bend up the sides just enough to make it fit snugly into the funnel. 4. Cut the top and bottom off of another 2-liter bottle and then cut it lengthwise. Place around the top part of the Berlese funnel and secure with a rubber band. Use this as a sleeve to keep the litter from falling out. This activity is adapted from the Jason Project 2003. |
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