Bayou Ecology
The GCCDS began working with the CREATE students of Gorenflo Elementary in the fall of 2010. After a series of lessons and field trips to Bayou Auguste, the GCCDS was invited to participate in a Science Night Fair with the CREATE students. During the event students and teachers conducted experiments relating to the bayou and other science topics. The GCCDS assembled an experiment and poster about the important functions plants perform in a bayou’s ecology.
The experiment demonstrated the ability of bayou plants to stabilize stream banks, absorb fluctuating water levels, and filter pollutants from the water. Students poured water through a series of gutters that were created to simulate a concrete culvert, a dirt culvert, a rock lined culvert, and a plant filled culvert. They observed each gutters’ ability or inability to perform the necessary functions of stabilizing soil, absorbing water, and filtering pollutant.
A fish tank full of water from the bayou was also set up next to the science experiment. Visitors to the booth were shocked to see the amount of aquatic life present in the water. They could easily see a number of shrimp, snails and other invertebrates. A microscope also revealed life in the bayou’s water and soil which cannot otherwise be seen. The exhibit demonstrated that bayou plants provide a fertile habitat that supports an abundant and diverse ecosystem.
|
