Dummy Caterpillar Testing

As part of our vacant lot study being conducted in Cleveland, we are doing an outreach program targeting high school students in which we hope to introduce the students to natural predators through a "dummy caterpillar" experiment. There is a bit more to the program than just the experiment but the fun part for us is that we get to test out the experiment before preparing the teaching materials that will be used for the outreach program. If you can't find the caterpillars, you can click the photo for a larger image.

Our "caterpillars". We made three different shades of green by combining green, white and brown plasticine.

I'll be checking the caterpillars over the weekend to look for signs of predation and will collect them all on Monday. We'll check them out under the microscope and try to identify any marks (if present). We'll keep you posted as to how the mini-experiment goes so check back for more information.