Lori

27 August 1997: Had to run down to Hebo, OR to Meet Lori. Lori made the T-shirts for the trip this year. Ayesha Gray designed the shirts and Lori put them into print! I also received a package from our corporate sponsor, Annie's that will be opened at the Old Woman Creek Dorm.

The Dorm at Old Woman Creek (OWC)


Ayesha sealing the lights

Bugger Box

This is a journey we have taken before, the endless pursuit of bugs and more bugs, and this year we are expanding and refining and bringing the world along with us. As we travel from wetland to shining wetland we will be posting plant/bug/weather data, journal entries and photographs to the Internet so everyone can join in the bug catching adventure of a lifetime. This is the second of virtual field trips sponsored by The North American Light Trapping Effort. The first was when the team went on an Earthwatch funded trip to Big Bend National Park in Texas. So, here's a big "Welcome Back!" to all those virtual field trippers who are joining us again and "Welcome!" to the first timers!

This year's Ohio Bug Safari has reached a new level of refinement with the addition of radio communications. Five licensed HAM operators are part of this year's team, Ralph (Principal Investigator) KA8ZGM, Jim (Principal Investigator) call sign to be announced, "Scuba" Joe (Official Pilot) N8KEZ, Ayesha (**that's me!) (Grunt worker) N3ZSI, and Anne (Official Nurse) KF6NCW. Radio communications will enable the teams to talk with home base, avoid getting lost and reach help in the event of an emergency.

Tonight we are preparing for the arrival of the famous David Bradsby and the drums from Texas, working on the web pages, anticipating the opening of the surprise package from our proud sponsor Annie's Kayaks of Wheeler, OR and as always Ralph is counting bugs.

Group Orientation
(right to left) Ryan, Valerie, "Scuba" Joe and Jen, Robyn, Kim and Ayesha

Sheldon Marsh

Kim opening of the Bugger Box

David and his brand new Bug Shirt

David made it here this morning with equipment from Texas, hot sauce, tortilla chips and drums. Some of the equipment was damaged in the journey, so Jim and I set out in the pursuit of new lights and buckets. Thanks to Ernie (KA8H), a local HAM, we were able to find a store that sold the lights they needed.
Valerie and Ryan arrived around 3:00p and then "Scuba" Joe, Jen, Robyn and Kim showed up right after. Dr. Jackie Adams joined us right as Ralph was beginning the orientation.
Ralph and Jim introduced the project objective and procedures to the group and then we took a short "Bradsby Cracker" and turnip (the traditional food of bug pickers)
Jim and David preparing the turnips
break before gathering the equipment for the first night of light trapping.

Ralph, Jackie, Kim, David and Robyn went to Sheldon Marsh. David and Kim set the trap in the wetland. It was Kim's first day and she was already up to her neck in muck! I interviewed Kim later in the evening to get her thoughts on that experience.
-----------------------> *click here* for The Interview with Kim, The First Time Bug Tripper

Ryan and Valerie set traps on the beach, the OWC Upland and Boardwalk.
Jim, "Scuba" Joe, Jen, Jackie and I canoed out into the OWC estuary. We found the new upriver site and also set traps at the two sites from previous years. We saw bald eagles, kingfishers, great blue herons, egrets, terns, swallows and many more.

After dinner we opened the Bugger Box sent from our proud sponsor, Annie's Kayaks. It was stuffed full of goodies!
Robyn and Kim showing off the goods
Buttons, whistles, Fruit leather (David has plans for a new fruit leather vest), licorice, herbal tea, sparklers and lots, lots more. Thanks Lorraine!
Finally, we passed out the T-shirts and called it a night. Tomorrow is going to be a big day of bug picking!

Kim and Jackie picking bugs

Jackie, Kim, Robyn and Ralph worked diligently all day picking bugs. Jim, Valerie and Ryan collected plant data. Slowly, but surely the work would be done.... Ralph and I uploaded the pages to the Internet at the research center, we started to notice a change in the weather on the way back to the dorm. I tuned my radio to the NOAA weather station to get the latest information about the approaching storm. "Thundershowers, 30-35 mph winds and hail expected for the Lake Erie coastal counties...." Hmmm, this could be trouble, I thought.

Three teams left to set the traps. Ryan and I went to Sheldon Marsh. On the way out we commented on the black clouds and increasing wind. The forest trap went up with no trouble, but the weather was getting rapidly worse. Frantically, we put together the trap for the marsh and I waded out to set it. It was the lightening that got my attention. Then, the wind. I did my best to secure the trap, but the duct tape came undone just as the light went on. "Ryan, help....this isn't going to work." Ryan heroically dove in and swam out with the duct tape in his teeth. We fashioned duct tape rope; because while an amazing substance, even duct tape will not stick underwater! We finally tied the trap and waited as the wind built to a steady gale. The trap was holding its own, so we waded to shore. By the time we were in the truck the water level was about five inches from the top of the bucket. "I hope it is there tomorrow," I told Ryan. We drove away listening to the radio announce a small craft advisory and 6 - 8 foot break in Lake Erie.

Back at the dorm, the rest of the teams reported similar problems. Ralph and David joked about how easy it would be to collect the traps in the morning as they washed up to the beach. We took our minds off the weather and the bugs with burrito feast and drumming. David set up the recording equipment to capture the Rhythm of the Bug Trippers. The album should be cut by the end of the year.

With all the wild weather I did not get the chance to continue Kim's interview, but stay tuned and we will upload more tomorrow morning!

Dave Drumming -- Click here to see the drum session

Anne arrived today and she is already picking bugs

Well, we just retrieved the traps. Amazingly, they were all up after the storm, and only two were off. It looks like we may be able to do some analysis after all.

This study at Old Woman Creek is part of a larger study. The question we are asking is if different wetlands can be distinguished based on the different kinds of insects that live there. There are many different ways to characterize wetlands. Other methods look at the differences in plant communities and physical characteristics such as water source, water chemistry, substrate, etc. We are proposing that there are detectable differences in wetland communities based on the ecological requirements of adult insects(we use the light traps in order to catch the adults). In order for the insects to survive they must be able to tolerate the ecological conditions imposed by their environment. And different insect groups have different requirements. We look at caddisflies because they are a wholly aquatic group, fill a variety of niches and are found in relative abundance in almost every sample we take. At Old Woman Creek we are building a conceptual model by looking at how this method detects differences along a river to estuary to lake gradient.

Are there any questions? What are niches? Why would there be winged insects in aquatic environments? Do you think there would be more or less insects when the wind picked up like it did last night? What do you think will happen tonight when the temperature drops to around 40 F?

Trap Setting in the OWC Upland - Why do we set traps in the upland if this is a wetland study?