As I walked past the trail I noticed white spots sporadically spread out on the ground. Upon further investigation I noticed they a type of fungi, later being identified as the pale spore mushroom (Tricholomataceae).
As mentioned in my previous post, the area of observation is called the Golden View Trail. The trail is approximately only 600 ft long with a designated walking path which curves in a serpentine manner. On the left of the trail, there is construction being done as new condos are being developed. The site is separated from the trail by a blue fence. In between the site and trail are various different shrubbery, plants and trees. On the right side of the trail is a patch of grass. As you further go right of the trail you hit a fence where there are various shrubbery, plants and trees beyond it. Throughout the trail there are pale spore mushrooms spread out along all areas.
The four locations along the gradient I chose are:
- Far left area where the fungi are most exposed to the undergoing construction.
- Next segment to the right close to the trail road
- Segment to the right of the trail road just before the fenced area
- Segment passed the fence
My hypothesis is that human activity whether passive or active will inhibit proper number and spread of the local fungi throughout the garden. My prediction is that the fungi closest to the construction site (gradient 1) will have the least amount of growth and spread while the fungi past the fence area will have the largest growth (gradient 4). Gradients 2 and 3 are directly beside the trail road which will result in smaller growth compared to gradient 4 as there is a higher chance of active human interaction.
- Response variable would be the growth (number and average size), being continuous. Observation of the spread of the fungi would be categorical (whether they are in clusters or not)
- Explanatory variable would be observing the effects of human activity or lack thereof (categorical)