Three of the labs contained on the site use bean beetles as a model organism. These labs can be conducted separately or combined in multiple ways. One method is outlined below.
Combining Population Statistics, Inducing Evolution in Bean Beetles, and Mark-Recapture (for 6 1.5 hour sessions)
- Day 1
- Overview of Population Statistics and Inducing Evolution in Bean Beetles labs
- students should leave understanding evolution concepts, null and alternatively hypotheses, experimental design, and histograms
- and how these go together for next week!
- Day 2
- Sample beetle cultures following sampling protocol on Population Statistics lab
- Make sure all cultures are marked!
- Students use data to construct histograms to be used in dividing beetles for Evolution experiment in next lab
- Day 3
- Use data collected in day 2 to set-up experimenal cultures for bean beetle evolution experiment
- Day 4
- Review use of confidence intervals using collected data
- How good are our estimates of weight?
- Students use data to both compare impacts of sampling size on estimates (as noted in lab)
- Catch up if needed
- Day 5 (after beetles emerge)
- Collect data on all cultures to be used in examining difference among treatments
- Mark ~20 collected beetles from one or more cultures and return them to their cultures
- Day 6
- Review mark-recapture technique
- Re-sample marked cultures to demonstrate mark-recapture technique
- Day7 (optional)
- Presentations on bean beetle data