Albatross Bolus Dissection Lab Worksheet PDF

Preview

Summary

This is just for the document upload credit. do not interpret this as law....

Description

Introduction to Environmental Science Lab

NSCI 126

Name:           Date:           Albatross Bolus Dissection Introduction Albatross parents are incredibly invested in raising their chicks. On the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, adult albatross meet on breeding islands in the late summer and fall. They perform elaborate mating dances as they court and then produce an egg. The egg in laid in a nest on the ground. During this time, two parents take turns keeping the egg warm, allowing the chick inside to develop for two months. Once the chick hatches, it stays on or near the nest for 5-6 months. During this time, the parents take turns flying thousands of miles to gather food for their chicks. Depending on the species, favorite food items include squid, fish eggs, and fish that they catch near the water’s surface. Large albatross cannot dive underwater very far so most of their food comes from the sea surface. Chicks stay at the nest waiting for their meals. As the chicks grow, they lose their fluffy, downy feathers and begin to look more like the adults. They begin testing their wings in the wind and are finally ready to take off to the sea and fend for themselves. Before they leave the nest, or fledge, the chicks regurgitate a mass of undigested material from their stomach in order to become lighter to fly. This mass of undigestable material is called a bolus. Much can be gained by researchers through the dissection of Albatross boluses, including the health of the birds, the health of the ocean, and more. Procedure 1. Hypothesis: A bolus contains materials the Albatross chick is fed that it cannot digest. What kinds of items would you expect to find in the bolus? (1 point)      

2. View the photos provided in the PowerPoint Presentation of a virtual bolus dissection. Included are photos and data of the bolus before it is dissected and photos and data of everything the bolus contained, both natural and unnatural material. 3. Use the data in the photos to complete the Data Table provided and to answer the analysis questions.

1 Albatross Bolus Dissection

Introduction to Environmental Science Lab

Albatross Bolus Dissection Data Table (10 points)

Bolus measurements (before dissection)

Weight (in grams):           Length (in cm):          

List the materials extracted from the bolus

     

Length of a squid beak (in cm)

     

Weight of squid beaks (in grams)

     

Weight of natural non-prey materials such as wood and stones (in grams)

     

Weight of fishing line (in grams)

     

Weight of all plastics (in grams)

     

Weight of unidentified debris

     

Length of the piece of a bottle

     

List other plastic items collected near the bolus location

     

Additional Dissection Data: (8 points) 1. What colors did you find in the bolus?           2. How many pieces of plastic were colored and/or shiny?           3. What percentage of bolus was made of plastic?           4. What percentage was made of prey items?           5. What was the weight of all of the unnatural items combined?           6. What percentage of the total weight of the bolus were the unnatural items?           7. Do you think this bird ate more squid or more plastic? Why?          

2 Albatross Bolus Dissection

NSCI 126

Introduction to Environmental Science Lab

NSCI 126

Analysis 1. Please summarize the ways in which marine debris affects the life and health of the Laysan Albatross. (1 point)      

2. Albatross boluses are ejected by the chick before it takes its first flight. What is the effect on adult albatrosses who are injesting the same things they feed to the chicks? (1 point)      

3. Why would plastics be a problem if ingested by the albatross? (1 point)      

4. Do you think that the bird that regurgitated this bolus felt full? What are the health implications of a bird “feeling full” after eating the materials that were extracted from the bolus? (2 points)      

5. What have you heard about BPAs or other plastic leaching agents? Could these toxic substances create health problems for the albatross? How? Why? (3 points)      

6. Could marine debris and the substances it contains create health problems for other ocean animals? Which ones? What about humans? (3 points)      

7. What is being done to combat the global problem of marine debris? Name and describe at least two things. (4 points)      

8. What can common citizens do to combat the global problem of marine debris? Name and describe at least two solutions. (4 points)      

3 Albatross Bolus Dissection...