Hi, I’m Zoe, a third-year Geography BSc student at the University of Lincoln. I’m currently on a placement with My Square Metre one day per week, helping Ed with some biodiversity-related projects. I’m particularly interested in ecology and conserving the natural environment and all of the animals and plants within it.
The main project I’m working on is to investigate the terrestrial invertebrate community in My Square Metre’s wildflower meadows. Commonly known as insects (though not all are!), terrestrial invertebrates are animals without a backbone who live on land – for example spiders, beetles, and ants.
Why are invertebrates important?
Invertebrates are the largest group in the animal kingdom – making up around 97% of all animals on Earth and 64% of all species in the UK. They are a key part of biodiversity and are crucial for ecosystems to function properly. Some invertebrates help to pollinate wildflowers and other plants, break down organic matter for nutrient cycling in soils, or can act as pest control in agriculture by feeding on harmful crop-damaging pests. They are also an important part of the food chain as they are a source of food for many larger animals such as birds and bats.
Why is it useful to know which invertebrates are present?
Because of their importance, terrestrial invertebrates can be used as an indicator of the overall health of an ecosystem and monitoring of populations over time can show environmental change.
Recent studies have shown that invertebrate populations are declining across the globe, due to a lot of factors including include habitat loss and pesticide use. Many species are also sensitive to the changes in climate and pollution which humans are causing.
Many of the most threatened species of invertebrate are found in specialised habitats such as ancient woodland, wetlands, and wildflower meadows – which is where My Square Metre come in! By planting wildflowers, My Square Metre is helping to preserve and create habitat for many species including invertebrates and supporting the wider ecosystem.
I am helping My Square Metre to get a better understanding of the current terrestrial invertebrate population in one of their new fields which will be planted with wildflowers next year. By having a baseline of the population before their flowers are sown, we will be able to compare this to a repeat of the study in a couple of years’ time and hopefully see improvements in the amount and diversity of species present. I am also investigating the invertebrates present in My Square Metre’s current wildflower meadow, to find out what great species are already benefitting from the work that has been done so far.
What am I doing to achieve this?
To catch the invertebrates in the meadow, I am using pitfall trapping – a common method in ecological studies which catches small invertebrates that spend most of their time on the ground. The idea is that you bury a container so that its rim is level with the ground, and anything walking past may fall in.
As you can see in the pictures below, I used a plastic pint cup buried into the ground as my container of choice. I used a preservative solution in the traps to stop any carnivorous invertebrates from eating other invertebrates in the trap and ensure the best results as the traps will be left out for four days. All the traps were securely covered with mesh to protect any small mammals from falling into the liquid or drinking it. Finally, I covered each with a clear plastic lid, raised off the ground with small rocks and dirt, to keep rain out of the traps.
I’ll be leaving the traps out for four days, and then returning to collect everything up. All the invertebrates (hoping that the traps are successful!) will then be transferred into a stronger preservative so that I can identify them using a microscope back at the office. Using this data, we will be able to gain insight into the species which are currently present and compare this to what is present in a few years’ time once the next My Square Metre meadow has been planted on the current grassland site. Although it may seem a harsh monitoring method, pitfall trapping is very commonly used across scientific literature and will have little to no impact on the overall populations when performed short term. However, it will generate useful data that can be used to benefit the overall ecosystem.
This is part 1 of a 3-part series that will reveal what creatures call the My Square Metre meadow home, giving us a deep insight into the ecosystem of our meadow and informing our future practices. Look out for part 2 coming soon!
