ACORN LAB

What is a Pest? A plant, animal, or microorganism that has a negative effect on another organism.

Background Information Acorns are an important winter food for squirrels, blue jays and woodpeckers. Many insects feed on the nuts of North American trees, including acorns, the nuts produced by oaks. Some nut insects destroy so many nuts that it is difficult for trees to reproduce. Acorn insects play important ecological roles as food for insect-eating animals or as pioneers that hollow out acorns for other insects to use as homes.

Common Acorn Insects Acorn Moth Acorn Weevil (Snout Beetle)

Acorn Weevil Short-Snouted Weevil Long-Snouted Weevil Snout is one-half or less than its body length. Feed on acorns lying on the forest floor. Bite off bits of acorn meat from between cracks in the shells. Females lay eggs between cracks in the shells. Long-Snouted Weevil Snout is equal to or greater than the length of its body. Feed on acorns still attached to oak trees. Can chew or drill into the shells to feed on the meat inside. Females lay eggs in the holes drilled into acorns during feeding.

Acorn Moth Identification Season Food forewing gray to grayish-brown with pale line bordered distally by dark band (sometimes absent); black dots on forewing; hind wing shiny gray with dark veins and fringe of long hair-like scales Season adults fly from April to September Food larvae feed inside acorns and chestnuts

Insect Larva Acorn Weevil Acorn Moth short fat no legs white grub-like long thin has legs yellowish caterpillar-like

Larva Photos

Acorn Weevil in Action http://www.natgeoeducationvideo.com/film/492/acorn-weevil http://www.arkive.org/acorn-weevil/curculio-glandium/video-00.html

The Scientific Method 1. Problem/Question 2. Research 3. Hypothesis 4. Experiment 5. Conclusion 6. Report Results

Problem / Question Which content; moth larva, weevil larva, mold/fungus, feces, or untouched meat will be most common in acorns?

Research We will be using our prior knowledge, past experiences, and present knowledge of pests to determine which content may be the most common in acorns.

“I think”, “I predict” or “My hypothesis is”! What do you expect to find most often in the acorns and why? Sample: Untouched meat will be the most common content inside the acorns. The acorns were collected in September before many of the adult insects began lying eggs in them. DO NOT START A HYPOTHESIS WITH . . . “I think”, “I predict” or “My hypothesis is”!

The Experiment Independent Variable: Acorns Dependent Variable: Contents Constants: What was kept consistent/same? List at least 5 factors. Control Group: Untouched Acorns Experimental Group: Infested Acorns

Other Experimental Factors Materials How much? Use metric units. Procedure List numerically. Be detailed. Results: Data Table Used to organize data. Results: Graph Used to visualize and analyze data. Bar/column graph, line graph or pie chart

Data Collection Data Table: Characteristics of Acorns and Their Content Acorn Drawing & Description of Length of Acorn (cm) Circumference of Acorn (cm) Mass of Acorn (g) Float? (Yes or No) Contents 1 2 3 4 5

Data Analysis (Sample Data Table) Acorn Contents Moth Larva Weevil Larva Mold Fungus Feces Untouched Meat Individual % 15 8 60 33 20 Period % 18 10 54 21 45 Team % 6 2 75 25

Data Analysis (Sample Graph)

Analysis & Conclusion Make a statement revealing whether the data collected provided support for or against the hypothesis. Explain the data collected including specific numerical or observational data from the experiment. Provide a reasonable explanation for the data and attempt to make connections based on the data collected. What future experiments could be done based on the data collected or how could the experiment be extended to collect more data?