Chapter 8. Observing Succession in Aquarium Microcosms

Equipment and Materials

You’ll need the following items to complete this lab session. (The standard kit for this book, available from www.thehomescientist.com, includes the items listed in the first group.)

Materials from Kit

  • Goggles

  • Coverslips

  • Methylcellulose

  • pH test paper

  • Pipettes

  • Slides, flat

  • Stain: eosin Y

  • Stain: methylene blue

  • Thermometer

Materials You Provide

  • Gloves

  • Aquarium microcosms (from preceding lab)

  • Particulate masks, N100 (see text)

  • Pond life reference material(s) (see text)

  • Watch or clock with second hand

Background

Succession, a fundamental concept in ecology, is the process by which a community progressively transforms itself from an arbitrary starting point to the steady-state equilibrium of ...

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