Gregory Wilkinson, a seventh-grade math teacher at the William Allen Middle School in Moorestown, joined an Earthwatch research team for an 11-day expedition at the Santa Rita Experimental Range and the Southwestern Research Station in Arizona to help scientists understand plant/caterpillar/parasitoid interactions in the forests from Brazil to Canada. Through this comparative approach, which used the results from different sites, the scientists could test numerous hypotheses about the effects of climate on these interactions between caterpillars and parasitoids. More so, Wilkinson helped to collect essential natural history information about plants, caterpillars, and parasitoids, which would benefit farmers who are attempting to control pests without using pesticides. Wilkinson expedition was funded by a grant from the Grousbeck Foundation. From July 28 to Aug. 7, Wilkinson joined 10 other Earthwatch volunteers from the United States for the “Climate Change and Caterpillars” project. The research team was led by Dr. Lee Dyer of the University of Nevada and was assisted by Dr. Angela Smilanich and Dr. David Wagner.
“I came home from my Earthwatch expedition feeling a whole new sense of connection to the natural world, a fresh understanding of climate change and the need to act now, and a renewed enthusiasm for the way I teach my students,” Wilkinson said.
A changing climate is most dramatically visible in the Chiricahua Mountains. Interactions between plants, caterpillars, and parasitoids that once existed are no longer evident and in some instances, parasitism has dropped to almost zero due to high temperatures, rising CO2 levels, and extreme weather events. Furthermore, the impact of change is visible because much of the landscape has been left barren from cattle overgrazing and rainwater shortages.
“As a middle school math teacher, I never imaged I would have an opportunity to take part in real data collections and assist scientists in the field. I was excited to listen to their expertise and capture pictures of our work in the field,” he said.
Earthwatch, the world’s largest environmental nonprofit volunteer organization, is based in metro Boston. Its mission is to engage people worldwide in scientific field research and education and promote the understanding for a sustainable environment.
