July 12 and 13 at Twin Creeks Science Center
Friday, July 12 - 4 – 7 pm
Saturday July 13 – 10 – 4 pm
What is the most abundant animal in Great Smoky Mountains National Park? A good bet is that it’s a nematode. Nematodes have been called the most diverse and abundant organisms on earth. E.O Wilson says “It’s a nematode world.” Estimates suggest there may be more than one million species undiscovered and undescribed. Yet few people ever have the opportunity to directly observe them.
Come to the nematode workshop at Twin Creeks Science Center to find out what E.O. Wilson’s talking about. At the Twin Creeks workshop we will provide the opportunity to collect, extract, and view nematodes using dissecting and compound microscopes. Experience this unique chance to view the hidden microbial world that surrounds us. Nematodes feed on bacteria, fungi, small invertebrates including other nematodes, plants, animals and play an important role in the recycling of nutrients. Insect pathogenic nematodes are now marketed as biological control agents of grubs and other soil inhabiting insects.
The workshop begins Friday evening at 4 pm, after a brief introduction we will break into teams and explore and sample the landscape around the Twin Creeks Science Center. We will take the samples back to the laboratory and start the nematode extractions. On Saturday we will meet at the laboratory at 10 am to discover what we have sampled. We will keep a running list of the species we find.
