Authors: Lizzie Tskhovrebadze, Laura Ocampo, Itzel Garcia, Matthew Grubin
Campus: Baruch College
Professor: Isobel Mifsud
When choosing our topic, we focused on our personal experiences at the BioBlitz event hosted by Macaulay. Upon grouping our data, we noticed the prevalence of American Pokeweed at Prospect Park. This made us question the significance and benefit of American Pokeweed to our environment despite being a poisonous plant. As a result, we decided that our main topic for our project would be the effects of American Pokeweed on biodiversity. Utilizing iNaturalist as our main source, we examined the areas where American Pokeweed was found and the associated species within those areas. Through our project, we aimed to help people understand the different benefits of a plant that is deemed to be negative to our environment.
The project aims to contribute to the understanding of how American Pokeweed density may affect biodiversity in NYC parks, encouraging further exploration and research in this field. By providing a nuanced view of the relationship between American Pokeweed and biodiversity, the project aims to foster curiosity, scientific inquiry, and a thoughtful approach to managing plant species in urban ecosystems.
Question: The research aimed to answer the question: How does the amount of American Pokeweed in the environment affect the biodiversity within an environment and ecosystem?
