Over the last few weeks, I have been gathering data for my field research project. My project examines bird density across different vegetation types in my backyard. For this study, I observed three types of vegetation: bush area, open grass/field area, and garden area which are all the same size. I sampled each vegetation type over 7 different days so far, at the same time of day. Initially, I set each observation period to 5 minutes per location, but I extended this to 10 minutes. I still need to perform more replicates on a few different days. This change in time, has allowed for a more thorough count of birds across the different vegetation types. As I collected data I noticed some patterns. The bush areas showed the highest bird density, supporting my hypothesis. The garden showed some bird density, and the open grass/field area showed lower bird densities. These patterns show that birds favour habitats with more shelter and food availability.
Sounds like it is going well. Remember the context for your study when you get to your paper – seasonality, so fall / non breeding season and also resident birds in a northern climate.