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Guidelines for the final research paper
The research papers will be based on your observations and the data recorded
during the trip. These are individual projects so all writing should be original. In
this paper you will examine and explain spatial variation in biological/ecological
parameters in responses to the physical environment. During our field experiences
we will have encountered several gradients in the physical environment.
There are 2 papers, each paper will be turned in over 2 consecutive weeks
through Turnitin.com (class ID and the enrollment password are provided in the
syllabus):
Paper #1: Ecological trends from the river to the open ocean based on
qualitative data from your field journal. In the “Description of Trends”
section describe the aquatic environments from river to fore reef:
 Blue Hole, a Sibon River headwater
 Sibon River near Monkey Bay
 Coastal waters in the lagoon near Dangriga
 The cove in Tobacco Range
 The area adjacent to the northwest side of Tobacco Caye (where
we did our check-out snorkel the first day)
 The rubble zone adjacent to the west side of the reef crest
 The area adjacent to the east side of the reef crest (i.e. the
fore reef facing the Caribbean)
For each of the six sites listed above, first describe physical aspects
(depth, water appearance, wave and/or current energy, slope, etc.). Second,
indicate the dominant biological group at each site (e.g. seagrass, hard coral,
phytoplankton, soft coral, mangrove, macro-algae, etc.) and if possible two or
so organisms that were common in each of these environments. In the
“Interpretation of Trends” section, explain why these organisms dominant
each site based on the physical characteristics of each site. Your lecture
notes should help in constructing these arguments.
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Paper #2: The distributions of organisms based on quantitative date
from the Tobacco Caye transects surveyed in the group project. This
data should be presented in graphs, as well as written form. Your analysis
should attempt to describe and explain the differences in the communities
both along and among the transects.
Format of Paper:
Each paper should be organized into two sections each with a heading clearly
labeled. Clearly label each section as “Description of Trends” and “Interpretation
of Trends”.
Paper #1: Ecological trends from the land to the open ocean based on
qualitative data from your field journal.
A. Description of Trends”
B. Interpretation of Trends
Paper #2: The distributions of organisms based on quantitative data
from the Tobacco Caye transects.
A. Description of Trends”
B. Interpretation of Trends
Do NOT include either an Introduction or Material and Methods section. Each
paper will be turned in separately over two consecutive weeks (see syllabus for
dates).
Description of Trends
Your descriptions should be detailed and based on your field observations from
your field journal for Paper 1, and from the quantitative transect date post on our
website for Paper 2 (i.e. not those in the scientific literature)
Interpretation of Trends
Explain why differences in the physical environment could produce biological
patterns that you observed. In other words, explain how the observed patterns
reported in your “Description of Trends” section relate to gradients in the physical
environment. Use information (from lecture and the scientific literature) on
feeding strategies, abilities to cope with physical changes such as wave stress,
methods of dispersal, etc. to explain how the physical environment exerts its
influence on observed biological patterns.
Literature Cited
List in alphabetical order by last name of first author the literature cited in your
paper. Cite at least 2 sources in each paper from the primary literature (i.e. a
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refereed scientific journal). You can find your own sources and/or use sources
from the list of potentially useful references linked to our class webpage.