Island Biogeography by Jordyn

Post date: Apr 18, 2016 2:56:22 PM

In this lab we were observing the distribution of species on islands. Since we obviously do not have islands anywhere near Tahoe, we did this by drawing islands on asphalt outside.

Next we stood at one location outside of the islands representing the “mainland” and threw birdseed with our eyes closed. The bird seed representing species biodiversity.

By measuring the island sizes and distance from the mainland, the class observed that the smaller the island and farther away it was from the mainland, the less species it contained. This example holds true for other ecosystems which resemble islands such as wildlife areas surrounded by human activity.