In week 7 of term 1, the year 12 Biology classes went down to Smithfield Rocky Shore as part of their Ecological Pattern Internal.

We learned about community patterns, kite diagrams, how to process data, habitats, niches, and adaptations for different species at the Rocky Shore.

On 11 March, we set out from school to head down to the Rocky Shore at 9 am, where we met with the lovely Keely, an Educator from the Timaru museum. Keely was with us for the day to help us learn as much as possible about this unique environment. From finding the huge diversity of species that make the rocky shore home, including limpets, chiton, starfish, nudibranchs, and mussels, Keely was also able to tell us some of the history behind the formation of the rocky shore and Washdyke Lagoon.

We spent the first half of the morning identifying as many of the different species present. This activity was lots of fun as we got to explore the rock pools and crevices and see what species lay around these rock pools. After a brief morning tea, we split into two groups.

One group learned about the 3 focus species for our assessment, their adaptations, and the abiotic and biotic factors that affect their lives. The other group worked with Mr McKay, opening up mussels, limpets, and chiton to dissect the insides.

The last activity we did down a rocky shore was to split into groups of about 3-4 people. We set out 60 m transect lines and used quadrats to count how many of each of the three focus species there were every 6 m from the low water mark to the beach. Once we returned to school we processed the data collected and used it for our assessment to Investigate a pattern in an ecological community.

Ava Johnson, Holly Thin