PERIOD: MARCH 1, 2013 – PRESENT
Contact: Prairie Fork
Organization: The University of Missouri and The Department of Conservation
Funding Source: Prairie Fork Conservation Trust
Project Link: Jeff Demand, Landry Jones, Dr. Steve Anderson, Anita Carpenter, Dr. Jason Hubbart, Eric Kurzejeski, Dr. Gene Garrett, Jamie Coe, Pat Jones, Chris Newbold, and Amber Edwards
Objectives: To determine the impacts of restoration efforts on arthropod community position.
structure, and function in tallgrass prairie. She will sample plants and insects to make comparisons between native prairie, restored prairie and grazed prairie sites. Will not conduct any management activities, just will select sites that already exist in each of the conditions. Plans to put 2 pots of big bluestem containing 100 Bird Cherryoat aphids on each study site for 24 hours (one pot caged and one exposed) to determine the amount of predation on the aphids. Will conduct this test in June, July and August.