THE BACKGROUND
This aerial photo shows the immense Sandhills in Nebraska, where a team of researchers on an NSF (National Science Foundation) Grant to study Nematology, traveled to study its unique ecosystem.
Measuring about 19,000 square miles, the Nebraskan sand hills remains to be much as a native prairie which shows to be untouched by farming or development. Some of these dunes measure to up to 400 feet tall and anchored in grasses that keep the sand in place. The sand hills are native to countless different plant species due to it's biodiversity.
The research team on this trip collected data of nematodes from the alkaline lakes in the Sandhills.
A few of the researchers include David Sirengo, Dorota Porazinska, Ricky Critchfield, Thomas Powers, and more.
Thomas Powers from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (also known as TOP), joined the research team to collect data on how nematodes affect the ecosystem.
"There is the thinking that if we can kind of understand some of these organisms, we might understand a little bit more about what makes an ecosystem resilient; what might help us save critical or vital ecosystem functions." - Thomas Powers
The Importance of Soil Biodiversity
"The Sandhills are incredibly unique ecosystem. It is the larger, most intact grassland in the world. The predominant component of this ecosystem is made of the sand dunes. However, among the sand dunes are these amazing lakes. Many of them are highly alkaline and there are probably two more places on Earth that have similarly alkaline lakes. However, not exactly the same." - Dorota Porazinska
What exactly is a Nematode?
Porazinska explains in an interview: “A nematode is also called a worm. It is a microscopic worm, so it’s a worm that you won’t be able to see with the naked eye. Nematodes play an important role in ecosystem, functioning. They are the most abundant animals on the planet.”