About This Project
I will collect insects in the boreal forests of Northern Manitoba and the deciduous forests and short-grass prairies of North Dakota The insects collected from these understudied areas will become the basis for a study and research collection to serve students of Noble International University. Insects have a multi-billion dollar impact on our economy, and a strong collection will help students qualify for more potential jobs.Ask the Scientists
Join The DiscussionWhat is the context of this research?
The communities of the northern boreal forests and of the tundras of the north remain understudied. We know little about the insect that inhabit these regions that are so critical to the health of our planet. The boreal forests remain a treasure trove for new information about insect diversity and adaptation.
Currently, Noble International University does not have a comprehensive insect collection for use with their students. I propose to use the insect collected in the boreal forests and short-grass prairies to develop our first teaching and research collection for our students at NIU. An on-line data base of images will make this collection also available to our on-line students.
What is the significance of this project?
I propose to develop a collection of insects from North Dakota and Manitoba. These insects will be used for teaching and research with the students of Noble International University.
Because insect collections from northern boreal forests are less common than those from the Midwestern states and southern Canada, NIU will also gain be able to increase their collection by exchanging specimens with researchers at other universities. These recipients will likewise increase their collections. It is a win-win situation for all institutions and students involved.
Economic entomology has a multi-billion dollar impact on our economy each year. This collection can better prepare our students for these many careers touched by the largest and most diverse clade of animals on our planet.
What are the goals of the project?
I will start by scouting for insects in North Dakota and along the Interlake Manitoba route to Thompson MB. This path gives a longitudinal collection, through different habitats. i will then focus on obtaining specimens from the boreal forest and muskeg (acidic bogs) of northern Manitoba, especially between Thompson and Flin Flon.
Over the coming academic year, I will sort and classify the insects from each of the sampled habitats. I will photograph many of these insects and begin to develop a collection of images for on-line study. These will supplement the physical collection and make the boreal collection available to international students. Digitization will allow more students access to these material, and encourage more study of these northern regions.
Budget
The funding requested will help me to bridge what I can do on my own with the funds necessary to complete the project. We have no funding for this research, and we are dependent upon you and upon our own personal savings. I set the initial target goal far lower than the cost of the expedition because every little bit will help.
- The initial funding goal covers the base costs of collecting equipment and the unit trays to organize the collection.
- Additional funds raised will be dedicated to housing, transportation, and the purchase of California Academy Drawers and cabinets.
Additional funds would be used to expand the range of habitats explored during this study and to increase our storage capacity, and possibly to obtain a 3-d scanner to make 3-d models of the larger insects for use on-line.
Meet the Team
Team Bio
Educational Background:University of Toronto: Doctor of Philosophy, Zoology, (graduated with honors)
ART Training: Morton Arboretum (Botanical Drawing), College of DuPage, Toronto Technical School
Presently Teaching: Northeastern Illinois University and Noble International University.
Teaching focus: General biology, entomology, invertebrate zoology and systematics, and animal behaviour; development of on-line curricula.
Interests: nonlinear models and cell cycles; issues of human behavioral evolution, especially violence, pacifism, and power structures.
Recent Work:
Rationalizations for War or Peace: A Comparison of Philosophies and Cultural Orientations. Journal of Environmental Peace Target date: Fall, 2914 (Presented: Netaji Institute for Asian Studies, Kolkata, 2011).
Dynamic Models of Cell Generation-Time Genealogies. Target date for submission: mid 2015. (Presented at: International
Colloquium on Global Environmental Protection, Vijaywada, 2011).
Additional Information
Snout Beetle, Stratford, Ontario.
More than any other type of land organism, insects have succeeded and diversified. Although large vertebrates capture the imagination of the public, insects often act as accurate bellwethers (indicator species) of environmental conditions.
Below: Bumble Bee on a yellow cone flower, Milton Ontario.
More so than larger animals, small invertebrates also tend to function as keystones of their environments. They pollinate plants (e.g., bees and moths), decompose dead organisms (e.g., burying beetles), and form mutualist relationships (e.g., pastoral ants with aphids and bees with flowers).
Below: Two beetles and an ant on a prairie rose. (Shot with my very old Sony Mavica , before I got my SLR.). Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota.
I will be collecting over a wide geographic range, but the bulk of
my time will be spent collecting insects on the provincial lands that lie between Thompson and Flin Flon Manitoba.
Below: Areas near Pisew Falls, a core study-region.
The Interlake Road, Central Manitoba
