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The Field Journal / Naturalist Notebook
Instructions and suggestions on maintaining a scientific
journal of field experiences while in Belize
(take this handout with you to Belize)
Your journal will be needed for two purposes:
1) Your final paper explaining observed trends in the distribution of
organisms and ecosystems.
2) Your final synthesis in the journal relating land use practices of
various Belizean cultures to observed and potential environmental
impacts on marine ecosystems (see below).
What you will need
The notebook should be sturdy, bound, and hard-covered; it maybe lined or
un-lined depending on your preference. Bookstores sell blank journals and
ledgers. Un-lined bound notebooks are sold at art supply stores. This
notebook should be neat and organized (it does not have to be chronological).
The information from your field observations should be recorded to this
journal as soon as possible (i.e. in the field, in the bus, or back at the field
station in the late afternoon). We will issue underwater writing slates for
taking notes while snorkeling, but be sure to transcribe this information to
your journal.
At the very least, you will need in the field a pencil and easer (mechanical
pencils eliminate the need for a sharpener). In addition, you may incorporate
other media such as waterproof ink pens (fine tip markers) and color pencils
or a field watercolor kit (colors can add important information). Write on
only one side of the page to reduce smearing.
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Types of information to be recorded in the notebooks:
 Required Field notes for each field site visited:
 Habitat Description including date, location, type of habitat, location of
habitat relative to front (eastern edge of barrier reef), weather
conditions, water clarity, substrate size, size of waves, strength of
currents, etc. Include anything else that might be of interest to you or
others (e.g. non-visual information, observations on local culture, land
practices, etc.) Be creative and observant. Great insights and
understanding in science have arisen by bringing together disparate
observations
 A crude map or diagram of study site is useful in summarizing much of
the above information.
 List of important organism, for example dominant organisms and/or
organisms that indicate something about the environment. Describe at
least one representative organism that you have not previously
described. Underline genus and species names with straight lines
(capitalizing the former) and put squiggly lines under common names.
 Daily synthesis of information, at least one separate paragraph, for
each system visited. Describe how the physical environment and
biological communities changed spatially across the site. Describe
how the physical environment and biological communities observed at
this site compare with those from habitats or sites? Don’t be afraid
to speculate. This may be especially helpful in initiating thoughts relevant
to your final paper. You may also include questions that arise from your
observations but are not immediately answerable from the data at hand.
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 The observations and their interpretation from your individual project.
 A final synthesis section relating observations on cultural practices to
potential and actual environmental impacts on marine ecosystems. Contrast the
impacts of traditional Belizean cultural practices to those associated with the
rapid modernization of Belizean society. Indicate which of the habitats we
visited might be most susceptible to these impacts, and explain how these
impacts might affect specific organisms in these habitats. Include in your
synthesis a discussion of how tourism might be a good thing and a bad thing for
Belize, and make recommendations on practices that would make ecotourism
more sustainable.
Location-specific suggestions for your journal
(roughly in
chronological order):
 Land use, culture, and vegetation during our bus rides on the mainland,
particular with regard to topography.
 Color, salinity, and transparency of water along the boat ride from the coast
to the reef.
 Differences in the marine environment on the ocean and landward sides of
the caye during our wading hike and snorkel around the island.
 Horizontal and vertical changes within sites around the barrier reef.
Differences may include:
 Specific species or broader groups of organisms
 Growth forms and size of corals (branching, head, plate, and soft
corals), sponges and other organisms within and among habitats
snorkeled.
 Relative abundances of multicellular photosynthetic organisms within
and among habitats snorkeled.
 Distribution of live coral versus dead (rubble)
 Subjective estimates of species diversity
 etc.
 Benthic surfaces exposed to light versus cryptic habitats.
 Zonation of invertebrates with depth on mangrove roots and with distance
from edge of forest. Differences in epiphytes on mangrove prop roots that
touch the sediment to those that don’t.
 Any other original observation on the distribution and abundance of an
organism within and among habitats. Keep you eyes and mind open!
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Criteria used in grading notebooks
Your journal must contain relevant scientific information both in drawings and
writings. Specifically the journals will be graded for:
 Completeness, accuracy, neatness, organization, and clarity (show me you
made an effort).
 Observation ability – make some original observations
 Synthesis of observations and thoughts - be thoughtful and creative.
You should use both written descriptions and drawings, though the degree to
which you use either will depend on whether you prefer expressing information in
written form or more graphically. Use complete sentences in your writing. Feel
free to be artistic with such things as page layouts and lettering. Drawings should
be labeled as to what they are, their scale (e.g. 2x), and with relevant structures
and other information. Be Creative. Not all observations need to be immediately
relevant to the study subjects (great ideas in science often arise from incidental
observations).
Why keep a field journal?
The goal of the field journal is to help you develop a broader
understanding of the natural history of marine systems. ‘Natural
history’ requires extensive observation as its raw material and yields
meaningful and expansive synthesis as a final product. For centuries
the naturalist’s journal has been a tool to accomplish this goal.
In this course, your journal will be critical in developing and supporting ideas for
your final paper. Not only will this practice force you to improve your powers of
observation, but it will also be a place to document observations for future
reference and begin to synthesize your thoughts on changes along gradients across
marine ecosystems.
Some tips on field sketches:
Because time is limited in the field, you may wish to make partial field sketches
then add detail upon return to the van, camp, or home. Quick notes on colors,
textures and detail along side partial sketches will make this easier upon your
return. However, often a quick field sketch alone will suffice in conveying
information. For drawings of organisms, you may not have to draw the whole thing,
perhaps just the part that illustrates and important adaptation to that
environment.
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Sketches may have to be very rapid and hence very simple. Seek out the lines that
immediately jump out at you.
A scribbling stroke is also a useful technique for rapid sketches in the field. The
image on the right is enlarged from the ‘hawks in the tree’ drawing on a previous
page. Note the pencil has rarely been lifted from the page in parts of the picture.
Also note that the pencil was lifted when drawing
finer branches, though in reality all branches on
the tree are connected, it is not necessary (or
even desirable) to do this in the drawing.