May 24-Graph

The only steep rise we had in nitrate was between 4/18 and 4/22 when one of our fish died. Then at the end it rose to 80 ppm. The ammonia rose to 1.00 ppm but we added pondzyme and fixed the problem.

May 23-Changes Over Time

Our ecosystem has changed over time because when we started the tank was fairly dirty, and the rocks on the bottom needed to be cleaned, and the water was a little cloudy. After we conducted a partial water change, cleaned the sides of the tank with a sponge, and siphoned the rocks, the water quality was better. In four days, after one of our fish died, the nitrate level rose from 5 ppm to 160 ppm, so we had to do another partial water change which fixed that problem quickly. Our nitrate rose and fell, but never again went to an uncontrollable unhealthy level for the fish. The ammonia did rise to a bad level at one point, but we added some pondzyme and it went back down to 0 ppm. Our plants stayed the same throughout the time we had the aquarium, and the baby mollies grew throughout.

May 22-Things I have learned

Things I have learned:
1. Nitrate can be deadly to fish if not controlled.
2. It is better to feed fish every other day instead of every day so they are not overfed.
3. Nitrate levels will go up alot when fish die.
4. Partial water changes should be done regularly to keep fish healthy.
5. Water has to be dechlorinated before the fish are put in or it will be deadly to the fish.

For next year, I don't think anything about the project needs to be changed. I think it was good that it was an interactive project that lasted a lot of the year, and we did all of the different tests and learned many different things.

May 21st-Aquarium Update

The aquarium is going well. The nitrate level did go up this week to 80 ppm which is above the acceptable level, so we are going to have to do a water change on Friday to fix it. These higher levels of nitrate might be affecting the fish, as they have been sluggish lately and a little less excited and active than they normally are. The temperature of the water stayed at 69 degrees Fahrenheit and 21 degrees Celsius which is good, and the ammonia was at .25 ppm which was also a good level, so we will not have to make any changes for that.

May 20th-Invasive Plants

Invasive plants are plants that can completely take over an ecosystem in a harmful way.

Floating: Water Lettuce

Water lettuce is makes a rosette of gray-green leaves. It can impede navigation and affect habitat.

Emergent: Aligatorweed

The aligatorweed is an aggressive, mat forming perennial with a white flower on a stem. It can impede navigation and displace native vegetation.

Submergent: Eurasian Watermilfoil

The Eurasian Watermilfoil has a red stem when it is actively growing and just has a stem with leafy strands. It can impede navigation and shade out native vegetation.

In native areas these plants are controlled by native organisms that will feed on them and control their levels.

May 17th-Water Quality in Aquarium

In our aquarium nitrate has definitely been the hardest part of water quality to control, because with a fish death that spiked up the nitrogen a lot, and the levels have been fluctuating since then. The hardest part about controlling the nitrate is that the only way to effectively make a quick change if the levels are very severe is a water change, which requires a lot of work if done properly. Our ammonia has stayed at a good level for the most part, and if it was bad it was an easy fix to just add in some pondzyme to get it back to a good level. The temperature of our water has stayed fairly constant, and our dissolved oxygen was good.

May 16th-Aquarium Update

The aquarium is still going well. We have not had another fish die. Our fish still seem very excited when we feed them, and the goldfish is always swimming around biting at rocks at the bottom or bubbles at the surface of the aquarium. Our nitrate level went down from 20 ppm to 5 ppm which is good, and our ammonia went from .25 ppm to 0 ppm which is good. Both of those levels have been fairly constant and at acceptable levels so we have not had to make any changes to our water to fix either of those levels.

May 15th-Self-Sustaining Ecosystem

A self-sustaining ecosystem is one that does not need humans to take care of it for it to support life, it can take care of itself. Our aquarium ecosystem is not self-sustaining because it requires a filter, and we have to check the ammonia and nitrate levels and do water changes so the fish are not harmed. To become independent, our aquarium would need more sunlight and plants so it could keep up oxygen levels and keep the nitrate levels down.

May 14th-Nitrogen Cycle

In the nitrogen cycle, the animals eat food and then have waste which turns into ammonia and carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide is absorbed by plants as a part of photosynthesis. Nitrosomonas then turn the ammonia into the by product nitrites, which nitrobacter then turn into the by product nitrates. Nitrate is absorbed by the plants and also water change. It is not possible to have a functioning ecosystem without one of these components because the levels would become to high and nitrates and nitrite are toxic to fish.

May 13th-Water Quality

The water quality in our ecosystem is more easily controlled than the water quality in a lake and can be changed faster because it is a more condensed and controlled area. Our aquarium would have less oxygen than a lake because it is smaller and not as open to sunlight, and also does not have as many plants which would mean less photosynthesis and less oxygen. The aquarium would probably also have less oxygen than a river because it is not moving water like a river, therefore it does not get as much oxygen.

May 10th-Aquarium Update

The aquarium has been going well. The goldfish still continues to bite at the gravel on the bottom and the edges of the tank. The fish seemed happier and more energetic after they were fed, and on days we didn't feed them they seemed more lethargic and slow. One of the neon yellow fish has been staying very still which is somewhat of a concern. The last water quality test we did was similar to the previous one, with 20 ppm Nitrate and .25 ppm of Ammonia, which was a slight increase. The temperature was 69 degrees Fahrenheit and 20 degrees Celsius. Although the ammonia increased, it was still at a manageable level that the fish can handle so we did not need to make any changes to our tank at this time.

May 9th-Dichotomous Key

To correctly use a dichotomous key, one must start at the beginning and answer the questions, then follow the answers to the correct number of the next question, until they eventually find the name of the organism they are attempting to find. The purpose of a dichotomous key is to identify organisms by their appearance and qualities using an easy to read key. I created my key by looking for key characteristics that two or more the algae shared, and then splitting them up to name the different algaes. Some of the algaes were hard to identify by simply their outside characteristics, so I also used smell as a characteristic to include in my key.

May 8th-Water Quality

The first step I would take in assessing the water quality of a body of water would be to check the nitrate and ammonia, because these could be very harmful to the fish living within the waters and could cause a problem and be solved if necessary to avoid fish death. Then I would test the dissolved oxygen, to make sure the dissolved oxygen is at a level that will sustain the fish, and then I would test the temperature to make sure it is not to hot or cold for the fish. I would have to be careful of the organisms living on and near the water to avoid disrupting their habitat or prohibiting them from doing there normal activities within the ecosystem for my own tests.

May 7th-Dissolved Oxygen

Two sources of dissolved oxygen are the atmosphere and plants in the water. As the sun rises and photosynthesis is occurring, the amount of oxygen in the water increases throughout the day until the sun goes down and the amount of carbon dioxide decreases. When the sun goes down, photosynthesis stops and the amount of oxygen starts to decrease again. Earlier in the day there is less oxygen that in the evening, and then there is less oxygen again when the sun goes down.

May 6th-Dissolved Oxygen

Dissolved Oxygen is the amount of oxygen dissolved in a body of water which reflects the health of the water and its' ability to support aquatic life.
To conduct a dissolved oxygen test, first you take the glass with the chemicals in it out of the package. Then you get a water sample in the beaker, followed by breaking the tip of the glass at the bottom of the beaker to release the chemicals into the water. After that, the chemicals in the glass will turn a different color, and you compare that color to the colors on the package to determine the level of dissolved oxygen.
Some fish can live with dissolved oxygen levels of only 5 ppm, like warm water fish, but other fish need higher levels of oxygen than that, 6-7 ppm. The oxygen level in my ecosystem is 10 ppm. In a small pond the levels might be around 8 ppm, while a large river might be around 10 ppm.

May 3rd-Aquacheck Test

The five components of the Aquacheck test are Free Chlorine, Total Chlorine, Total Hardness, Total Alkalinity, and pH. Free Chlorine kills bacteria and contaminants in the water. Total Chlorine is chlorine that has combined with the contaminants along with the free chlorine. Total Hardness is the amount of minerals that are dissolved into the water. Total Alkalinity is the ability of water to neutralize acid. The pH of water tells one if the water is acidic or basic. For our aquarium, the Free Chlorine was 0 ppm, Total Chlorine was 0 ppm, Total Hardness was 250 ppm, Total Alkalinity was 180 ppm, and the pH was 7.8. Because we added dechlorinator to our water, it was good to see that there was no chlorine in the water. Also, the hardness, alkalinity, and pH was at a manageable level that was acceptable for our fish to live in.

May 2nd-Fish

Neon Tetras


The neon tetra has a blunt nose. A glowy blue line spans the side of the neon tetra, with red near its tail. When fish is resting its colors will dim but when its awake they are bright.
Facts:
1. The neon tetra is a peaceful fish.
2. The neon tetra can be kept in a tank with other fish that aren't aggressive and are around the same size.
3. Neon tetras should be kept in groups of around 5 or more.
4. If the neon tetras are left alone in a tank, they will be stressed and nervous, and will hide most of the time.
5. In groups, neon tetras are very active fish.
6. They will be in the middle or lower parts of the aquarium most of the time.
7. Neon tetras enjoy aquariums with a lot of plants.
8. Neon tetras also want places where they can hide if they want to hide.
9. One should feed their neon tetras different kinds of food to avoid malnutrition.
10. If the neon tetras colors look dull during the day, that could be a sign that something is wrong with it.

May 1st-Field Trip

I did not go on the field trip, but the research is going well. We picked all of our animals, and have learned some interesting facts about all of the animals we have researched. A few of the animals we have decided to research are the sloth, giant octopus, and the axolotl. The axolotl is endangered, and efforts in Mexico are being made to help these creatures get back into the wild in larger numbers. One of the reasons they are endangered is because their predators eat them before they can adequately reproduce. We found all of our research from Google, mainly using major websites like national geographic.

April 30th-Aquarium Update

The fish have been doing well recently. The fish seem to be a little bit sluggish on the days we do not feed them, and then they seem to have a lot more energy immediately after we feed them. Lately the fish seem to be staying in groups by species, and a lot of times the neon yellow fish will just stay in their own little corners kind of floating around there. The big molly also chases the little mollies very often.
The water quality test results was 40 ppm Nitrate, 0 ppm Ammonia, and 69 degrees Fahrenheit and 21 degrees Celsius. The Nitrate did go up but it is still at a manageable level which is good. The Ammonia went down from the last test because of the pondzyme we added, so that was good.

April 29th- Pollution Index Chart

The purpose of the pollution index chart is to figure out what range of pollution water has, from low to high levels of pollution. The benefits are that it can show if certain types of organisms would be able to handle living in certain bodies of water, and it can warn one to not put certain types of organisms if water is too polluted for them to handle. Its shortcomings are that it does not include every type of algae and therefore some of the levels of pollution may be slightly skewed. The effect of organic pollution on algae is that certain types of algae, such as euglena, are more likely to live in areas with more pollution and can handle higher levels of pollution than other types of algae that could not survive in high levels of organic pollution.

April 26th- Algae

I have learned that the types of algae found in the water can indicate whether the water is polluted or of bad quality. If batrachospermum is found in water then that would be an indication of low organic materials/pollution in the water, but if  euglena or oscillitoria was found in the water, that water is probably polluted because those are the most tolerant of pollution.


Batrachospermum is found in shaded areas that contain soft cold water. This algae is an indicator of clean water because they are found in waters with low organic materials/pollution.


Euglena is the algae that is most tolerant of organic pollution. It is commonly found near sewage treatment plants due to the nitrogen.


Oscillatoria is the algae that is 2nd most tolerant of pollution. It is commonly found with euglena, and its filaments are said to oscillate.

April 25th-Microscope

To focus an item in high power, you must start by focusing the object in the scanning objective, then the low power objective, before finally getting to the high power objective and focusing using the fine adjustment knob instead of the coarse adjustment knob. To make a wet mount slide, first put a thin piece of the specimen on the slide, then put one drop of water on top of it, followed by applying the cover slip at a 45 degree angle over the specimen in order to ensure there are no air bubbles. To correctly stain a slide, first put a drop of the stain on one edge of the cover slip covering a specimen, then put a piece of paper towel on the other side and capillary action should pull the stain under the cover slip to stain the specimen. In this lab, I learned how to properly focus a microscope on all of the different objectives and I now understand how to use the diaphragm to help see the specimens.

April 24th-Amphibians

Facts:
1. Amphibians have porous skin.
2.  Frogs are tadpoles when they are babies.
3. Some amphibians have evolved to have no lungs, and get the oxygen they need through their skin.
4. Most frogs have teeth on their upper jaw and none on their lower jaw.
5. Amphibians are animals that live part of their lives in the water and part of their lives on land.

Without water, amphibians bodies would dry out because they need to stay moist with their porous skin. Amphibians are an important consideration when testing water quality because since their bodies are porous the water quality needs to be kept nice and clean or it could be deadly to the amphibians.

April 23rd-Observations

One of the neon tetras that were recently added to our tank swam up to the filter and somehow got stuck in the filter, and we found it dead. Its tail had been clipped off from the filter and we had to remove the dead fish from the tank. The water level was still going down little by little each day. When we did our water quality test, the ammonia had gone down to a good level of .25 ppm. However, the nitrate had increased to 160 ppm, probably due to the death of the neon tetra. Because of this, we had to do a water change, and siphoned the gravel at the bottom of our aquarium in order to hopefully make the nitrate level go down to not kill any of our other fish. The temperatures were 66 degrees Fahrenheit and 22 degrees Celsius.

April 22nd-Watershed

A watershed is a region of land that all drains into another body of water, and includes rivers draining to lakes or oceans. We live in the Elm Fork Trinity Watershed. It is important to monitor the quality of our watershed because it provides us with our water we use for everyday things, and is also the place where we go to do recreational activities in the water among other things. The benefits of the watershed are reducing gas emissions, providing a habitat for fish and other organisms, and reduces the chances of flooding and fires is minimized. Also, there is water recreation available for everyone living here to take part in.

April 19th-Freshwater Organism

The Panamanian Golden Frog (Atelopus zeteki) is a yellow frog with black spots that is native to Panama. It can release poison from its pours to protect itself from predators, and they actually wave at mates and make sounds which is one of their adaptations. Their primary habitat is rain forests near freshwater streams. They eat many different kinds of insects. Many are losing their habitats because of people using slash and burn in rain forests, or just cutting down rain forests in general. Also, some people collect them for pets illegally which is a danger. I chose this organism because frogs are my favorite animal and this type of frog seemed interesting to learn more about.

April 18th-Observations

Our aquarium has been doing pretty well. The water levels seems to be going down, which makes sense because we only changed out the water the first time and have not added any since then. We feed the fish every other day, and it seems that on the day we do not feed them in between the days we do feed them they seem to be more sluggish and more stationary, and they seem to be more active and energetic on days we feed them. I have also noticed that the big molly chases the little baby mollies fairly often like it is going to eat them. Our ammonia level went up to .50 ppm from .25 ppm, and the nitrate went down to 5 ppm from 10 ppm which is good. For the ammonia we put in some pondzyme to make the ammonia level go down, and the temperature has stayed relatively at the same level, because it is now 73 degrees Fahrenheit and 26 degrees Celsius.

April 17th-Pond Water Search

Here is a picture of the worm in the pond water. An interesting fact about the aquatic worm is that it is not really a male or a female.

This is a picture of the snail in the pond water. An interesting fact about the snail is that it often travels in circles.

This is a picture of a scud in the pond water. An interesting fact about the scud is that it resembles a freshwater shrimp.

When we put the scud in our aquarium, about 5 fish swam up to it quickly and one of them immediately ate it.

April 16th-Freshwater Careers

Wildlife Biologist:

A wildlife biologist studies the behaviors of aquatic animals, which is necessary for our environment because if people understand how animals behave then it might make them more likely to try to protect the environment for these amazing creatures.

Restoration Worker:

A restoration worker restores aquatic environments by adding plants and animals, which is necessary for our environment because restoration workers are making sure that the habitats will support the animals and plants that live there, and also bring those organisms back to their proper environments.

Waste Water Manager:

A wastewater manager makes sure that aquatic environments are not polluted by untreated waste water. This is necessary to the environment because if they did not regulate the amount of pollution that got back to the water, it could kill the organisms that lived in these waters.

April 15th- Ecological Succession

Oligotrophic lakes have little nutrients, and therefore do not support much life, whether it be plants or animals.


Mesotrophic lakes have more nutrients than oligotrophic, and therefore support more life and have more plants and animals within them.


Eutrophic lakes have the most nutrients, have turbid waters, and have the highest populations of plants and animals.

The levels of productivity are related to succession because as lakes go through the natural aging process, they will gain more nutrients and become productive and support more life. These terms are helpful in the study of freshwater ecology because knowing that the different levels of productivity have different amounts of nutrients explains why certain fish or plants may or may not be living in one lake and not another. My aquarium would probably be mesotrophic because while it does support life like a plant and the different types of fish it does not just spontaneously start growing other plants, and we have to make sure the conditions and amounts of bacteria and nutrients stay at a healthy level for the fish. Lewisville lake would probably be considered eutrophic.

April 12th-Freshwater Ecology

Freshwater ecology is the study of freshwater organisms and how they are related to their habitats and cultural environments. It is important to study freshwater ecology in order to make sure we as humans do not hurt or disrupt the environment of all of the fish and freshwater organisms with activities we do in everyday life involving their environments like recreational activities on lakes and ponds.
A pond is just a stationary body of water, while a river is a flowing body of water. A pond does not lead to anything, while a river flows to a larger body of water, whether it be a bay, lake, sea, or ocean. The organisms living in a pond do not have to be able to withstand a current, while many organisms that are native to rivers must have some sort of adaptation in order to not be swept into the current.

April 11th-Water Issue Presentations

Facts Learned from Water Issue Presentations:
1. Construction around the area of lakes can cause early erosion which can have a negative effect.
2. Zebra mussels can be a major concern, because if you get one zebra mussel you will get a lot because they reproduce so quickly.
3. Waste water treatment plants treat water and remove all of the solids and other waste products out of the water so it is safe and does not threaten public health.
4. Due to all that goes into producing a steak, such as washing and watering the cow, etc, producing a steak uses far more water than producing a salad.
5. To conserve water in your home, turn off faucets when brushing your teeth, do not run the dish washer if it is not full, and drink water out of bottles instead of out of the tap.

I think the best presentation was the one about water conservation because it was all videos which kept people interested and engaged, and it was entertaining while also giving all the information it was supposed to teach. I think our presentation would have been better if we could have maybe added some videos to make the presentation a bit more interesting to watch.

April 10th-Aquarium Observations

The aquarium is going well. The fish are swimming around quickly and appear to be healthy. The goldfish seems to continuously bite at the gravel and rocks at the bottom of the aquarium, which might mean that he is hungry? Also some of the tetras seem to stay together somewhat in a group and follow each other around. The filter is working well, bubbling and pouring out clean water as it is supposed to. The plants seem to be doing well as well, and are normally very still in the water. When we did the nitrate test the water had 10 ppm of nitrate and the ammonia test resulted in 0 ppm of ammonia. Both of these were in the acceptable results in order to have fish living in the water. Because the results were good and acceptable to have fish, we did not make any major changes to the aquarium because we didn't need to. Also, the temperature of the water was 20 degrees Celsius or 69 degrees Fahrenheit, which is a normal temperature.

April 9th-Ammonia and Nitrate Test

Ammonia Test:
1. Put 5 mL of water into a test tube.
2. Put 8 drops of ammonia test solution #1 into the test tube, making sure the bottle is completely upside down for equal drops.
3. Add 8 drops of ammonia test solution #2 into the test tube, making sure the bottle is completely upside down for equal drop size.
4. Put a cap on the test tube and swirl thoroughly.
5. Let sit for 5 minutes.
6. Compare the color of the water to the card provided in the kit and record results.

Nitrate Test:
1. Put 5 mL of water into a test tube.
2. Add 10 drops of nitrate test solution #1 into the test tube, making sure the bottle is completely upside down for equal drop size.
3. Swirl for 30 seconds.
4. Add 10 drops of nitrate test solution #2 into the test tube, making sure the bottle is completely upside down for equal drop size.
5. Swirl for 1 minute.
6. Let sit for 5 minutes.
7. Compare the color of the water to the card provided in the kit and record results.

Nitrate is a substance made from nitrogen and water, and nitrogen and ammonia come from decomposing organic materials such as fish waste. Ammonia and nitrate can be toxic to fish and plant life, and potentially kill them.

April 8th-Observations, Inferences, and Opinions

Observation: watching something and writing down what you notice happening
Example: Water is clear.

Inference: drawing a logical conclusion based on assumption
Example: The fish seem to be healthy given the fact that they are swimming freely and quickly.

Opinion: a belief or judgement not based on logic
Example: The goldfish is very pretty.

An observation is good when it is scientific and truly gives a good idea of what is happening in whatever is being observed, and gives the reader insight into the state of what is being observed. Observations are important because even just seeing and noticing the state and look of things can affect an experiment and can give hints into what is going on even in chemical aspects of what is being observed. Inferences have a place in science because science is about discovery and sometimes one has to infer and assume things to be able to test them and discover something new. Opinions don't have quite as much of a relation to science because they probably won't hold much importance in the grand scheme of a scientific investigation. 

April 5th-Water Issue Presentation Topic

We chose the topic prescription drugs in drinking water and how it affect aquatic organisms because it seemed like an important issue that would also be interesting to learn about. I have learned that drugs are found in parts per billion or parts per trillion in drinking water, but even these tiny particles can be having an effect on those drinking the water. Drugs are not meant to fully break down because if they did they would not have a long term effect on the body, so even when people just take the drugs like they are supposed to, they still get back into the water through waste. Also, drugs in lakes and water ecosystems can have an effect on the fish, making them eat more zooplankton and quicker which can eventually cause algal blooms and fish death. It is important for society to be aware of this so they know that they definitely should not dispose of their drugs down the toilet, because those could eventually harm the fish and the drinking water which could in turn have a negative effect on the people who do not need drug build up in their bodies.

April 4th-Water Property Demo

Our water property demo was density of water, alcohol, and oil. Most of the demo went fine, but when too much of one of the ingredients was added, we had to pour some of it out and I think that possibly could have had somewhat of a negative effect on the rest of our demo. The water stayed under the oil as it was supposed to and a little of the rubbing alcohol seemed to go under the oil, however when we let it sit for a few minutes after the demonstration most of the alcohol did end up being on top, the food coloring had mixed together a bit though.

Things I learned during the Water Property Demos:
1. Cold water is less dense than warm water so it will sink under warm water.
2. More buoyant objects will float on top.
3. Acids have a pH below 7.
4. Bases have a pH above 7.
5. A solution is two substances that mix throughout.

April 3rd-Aquarium Set Up

Because our aquarium already had fish and water in it, our set up process was slightly different than some of the others in the class. We began by using a siphon to clean the gravel already on the bottom of the tank, and get all of the fish waste out of the gravel. With that we siphoned out about half of the water in the tank. Then we used a sponge to clean the insides of the tank to get any unnecessary bacteria and dirt from the edges of the aquarium that could be harmful to the fish. Then we filled our bucket with water and added the dechlorinator and pondzyme so the water would be safe for the fish, before pouring that water into the aquarium. We had to repeat the process with the bucket about 3 times. Then we fed our fish and were done with our set up.

April 2nd-Plans for Aquarium

Our aquarium already had a significant amount of fish in it, so we decided to just keep those fish instead of adding more organisms and possibly disrupt the current ecosystem that seems to be doing just fine. There are many different kinds of fish in the aquarium, one of which is the flame tetra, and there are 3 of them in our aquarium. There are also 4 skirted tetras, along with 1 goldfish, 1 platy, 1 minnow, and 4 mollies. They are naturally tropical fresh water fish, which is the kind of aquarium we have. All of these fish are sensitive to water quality, however we plan to continually check the water quality and keep the proper amounts of bacteria in the water as well as dechlorinating in order to keep the tetras safe from any diseases or harmful effects caused by poor water quality.  I hope that we have a successful aquarium and that all of our fish stay safe and healthy while we are taking care of them, and I hope we can keep our water quality at a good clean and clear level. It would also be cool if one of our fish had a baby while we were taking care of them, especially because there are already a couple of babies in the aquarium from before.

April 1st-Water Uses

Uses of Freshwater:
Some uses of freshwater are drinking water, bathing and showering, washing dishes, washing clothes, and watering plants and the yard.

Properties of Water:
If density is higher that means that the molecules are more tightly packed which makes it heavier and sink to the bottom.
Distilled water does not conduct electricity, while freshwater has a low conductivity and saltwater has a high conductivity.
Blue litmus paper checks for acids while red litmus paper checks for bases.

Ways to Conserve Freshwater:
1. Do not leave faucet running while you brush your teeth.
2. Only run the dishwasher when it is full.
3. Use water bottles.
4. Do not use water to thaw meat.