Students camp in Shenandoah Valley to study ecosystems
Last spring, biology professor Jeremy Weisz took his ecology class on a one-night camping trip to Shenandoah National Park. The eleven students, all biology and environmental studies majors, had been learning about ecosystems in the classroom and the end-of-the-semester trip to the Shenandoah was a perfect setting to apply their knowledge to real life.
“I wanted the students to have a chance to be out in nature,” Weisz said. “Getting out in the woods is the ideal way to observe the principles of an ecosystem in action.”
The group spent time hiking to the park’s most popular waterfall, the 70-foot Dark Hollow Falls, to look at how water quality parameters change with altitude and how this connects with the health of an ecosystem.
“The national park itself was beautiful and fascinating,” Christina Marion, ’12, said of the hike. “It was a wonderful opportunity to explore the environment from a scientific viewpoint.”
On another hike, they passed through a prairie that had been scorched with a controlled burn. From an outlook at the top of the trail, they looked at landscape scale patterns and compared agricultural land with harvested land.
“Comparing the various landscapes while out in the woods was a good learning tool to see the different ways that the park’s land is being used,” Weisz said.
During a late-afternoon search for salamanders, Weisz encouraged his students to make note of where they saw organisms interacting and whether they noticed competition or predation.
“I thought the trip was a great experience, especially the field tests where we got the chance to interpret and analyze results immediately,” said Carolyn Doherty, ’11.
“The trip was important in solidifying the connection between our classwork and the biological methods we need to know in the field,” said Matt Castelli, ’11.
The group closed the day sitting around a campfire and making and eating s’mores.
“I had never been camping before, so that part was definitely a new experience for me!” said Doherty.
“Not only did we learn a lot but I really enjoyed the time getting to know my classmates better,” said Kelsey Rdzanek, ’10. “I would love to do something like this again!”