Kids
help bio-diversity
inventory in Forest Park
Lila
Wahidi |
Lila Wahidi and
her brother, Jason, last month were among the thousands of
St. Louisans in Forest Park. But, they were there to work,
not to play.
Fourteen-year-old
Lila and 12-year-old Jason were taking part in a unique "24-hour
biological exploration of Forest Park." The goal was
to identify all the bugs, birds, animals and plants in the
huge urban park.
The effort was
called the Forest Park BioBlitz. It was held in a 24-hour
period from Friday afternoon to Saturday afternoon, Sept.
10-11.
(For more information
about Forest Park and other outdoor areas, see a list of websites
below. Also, you can read another outdoor article by going
to the Stream Team story elsewhere in this YSL.com
edition.)
The Wahidi kids
from Creve Coeur are members of St. Louis' Junior Science
Academy. Their team of kids and scientists was checking on
aquatic life in a stream near the Muny.
Jason
Wahidi |
Other teams of
kids and adults were spread all over Forest Park. Some were
checking on animals and birds. Others were identifying trees
and plants in the park.
Forest Park is
undergoing a $100 million worth of renovation and improvements.
Park officials feel they can manage the park better if they
know what's living there now.
Some of the biggest
improvements in Forest Park deal with its lakes and streams.
Before the renovation,
most park lakes and ponds stood by themselves. There was virtually
no circulation between the bodies of water.
Now, many of the
lakes are connected by flowing streams.
Nick
(left) and Matt Shafer-Skelton |
Water in the stretch
of stream that Lisa and Jason's team was checking moves over
a series of rock ledges. These riffles help water can pick
up additional oxygen. Officials feel better oxygenated water
will help streams and lakes sustain more aquatic life.
Jason Wahidi said
he found a small fish, a crayfish, tadpoles and "a few
mussels." His sister, Lila, said she was able to identify
dragon fly larvae.
Twin brothers,
Matt and Nick Shafer-Skelton of University City, also were
in the team checking the moving stream water. Matt said they
found "a few bugs." One of them was a member of
the shrimp family.
Using
a curtain screen to collect specimens |
But, their team
leaders, Pete and Mistti Ritter, said the variety of aquatic
life in that stretch of the stream wasn't a large as elsewhere
in the park. After checking the water quality, she said there
seemed to be more ammonia in the water there.
Ammonia in stream
or lake water can be a bad sign. It's often indicates some
sewage pollution. Park officials will take the BioBlitz information
and check out any bad signs.
Matt and Nick
admitted their parents insisted they take part in the BioBlitz.
They said they usually like to stay home with their computer
games.
Matt said, "I
usually don't want to go anywhere. But, when I do, it's fun."
Nick seconded that. He said, "I go because I have fun
every time."
Nick admitted
that part of the fun was getting "wet and muddy."
The kids got into the stream while using their nets to capture
the aquatic life.
Both Nick and
Matt said they had done similar water quality checking on
the Meramec River. That was a Missouri Stream Team activity.
Picking
out individual specimens |
Most of the kids
walked in the water with the same shoes they wore to the park.
But, Lila was one who had special wading boots that reached
almost to her knees.
All kids said
their families used Forest Park for recreation. But, this
was the first time they'd been there to do scientific work.
Lila and Jason
Wahidi and Nick Shafer-Skelton were Junior Science Academy
members. Matt said, "I'm filling out my application so
I'll be a member soon."
The kids like
science classes in school and have entered Science Fair projects.
Matt said he "mostly
likes space science." Nick said he likes any type of
science.
At BioBlitz, the
kids first collected the aquatic specimens with nets. Then,
they used tweezers to pick out individual animals and put
them in separate containers.
In some cases,
they used identification charts to determine scientific names.
Things they couldn't identify, they sent to a team of scientists
that was analyzing all data.
Mistti Ritter
said all the inventory sheets and specimens will provide a
"foundation study" of things now living in Forest
Park. There will be a series of follow-up samples to check
if the variety of living things increased or goes down.
Matt, Nick, Lila
and Jason aren't scientists. But, their help in the September
BioBlitz will help scientists keep Forest Park in tip-top
shape for the rest of us.
Other
neat outdoor websites
Here are some
websites that will give you changes to find out more about
interesting outdoor activities.
