Welcome to the Grasshopper Database

Information about grasshoppers has been collected at Konza Prairie Biological Station for more than 20 years. We have made available here eight years of data from 1983 to 1990.  You can ask questions (queries) of the database.  For example, if you want to know how many grasshoppers of each category ( like "Spur-throated" or "Slant-faced") were found in the unburned watersheds in 1983, go to Query 1 below and select the year "1983" and the "0" for unburned treatment.  The database will make a table to give you the answer.  Try asking the database different questions within the parameters it sets.  Ask about different combinations of years, categories or fire treatments.  Each Table gives you the numbers you asked for, but does not tell you what the numbers mean.  You must learn how to interpret the numbers for yourself, as every researcher must do.  

You can also use the database to find the relationship of grasshoppers to the weather data.  If you leave the weather data window open or minimize it so you can call it back at any time, it might help you to interpret some of the data.

There are three tables in the grasshopper database.  Table One has general information in nine fields: data code, date, watershed, soil type, replications, time, wind speed (mph), temperature (°C) and cloud cover (%).  Table Two has the grasshopper information in six fields: code, watershed, soil type, replication, species code, species name and quantity. This table has more than 1000 records.  Table Three has the names of the grasshoppers including the common name, species name, and category.  If you want to see the details of those tables, just click on the table and it will appear. 

Query 1: What was the total number of grasshoppers collected by the transect method in the years 1983 to 1990 in different fire intervals?   

Query 2: What was the total number of grasshoppers collected by the transect method in the years 1983 to 1990 in different types or categories?    

Query 3: What was the total number of grasshoppers collected by the transect method in all the years with different types or categories and different fire intervals?   

Query 4: What is the average number of grasshoppers per 100 sweeps in the years 1983 to 1990 in different categories?   

Query 5: What is the average number of grasshoppers per 100 sweeps in the years 1983 to 1990 in different fire intervals?   

Query 6: What is the average number of grasshoppers per 100 sweeps in different groups and in different fire intervals?   

Query 7: What is the maximum number of grasshoppers in any species collected in any one transect (per 100 sweeps) in each year from 1983 to 1990?  

Query 8: What is the total number of grasshopper species in each category and each fire interval in the years 1983 to 1990?   

The following queries look for relationships between the number of grasshoppers and environmental conditions.  For example, if you are interested in finding the relationship between numbers of grasshoppers collected and temperature, select the year and the temperature range.  The database will provide a table with your answer. 

Query 9: What was the average number of grasshoppers in each category in different years with different wind speeds (mph) and temperatures?        

Query 10: What was the average number of grasshoppers in each category in different years with different wind speeds and cloud covers?   

Query 11: What was the average number of grasshoppers in each category in different years with different temperatures and cloud covers?   

Query 12: What was the average number of grasshoppers in each category in different years with different wind speed, temperature, and cloud cover?     

There are two soil series in the three watersheds. One is the Florence series (Fl) which consists of moderately deep, sloping, or moderately steep soils on upland. The surface layer of this series is very dark cherty silt loam or cherty silty clay loam. The other is a Tully series (Tu) which is located on a plane or slightly concave base of a hill. It consists of deep, gently sloping or sloping soils with a surface layer of silty clay loam. 

Query 13: What was the average number of grasshoppers associated with each of the two soil types in different years?