The Invertebrate Digital Archive Project: About the Galleries

A pedagogical hallmark of the biology classes taught by Dr. Burks includes a purposeful integration of art and science. The Invertebrate Ecology course provided the opportunity to develop a new project and experiment with presenting students with a novel challenge. Invertebrate diversity across so many types of habitats make it difficult to capture all of it in a small specimen collection. However, the provision of visual images across the internet provides an opportunity for students to curate their own collection of diversity. Students received very little instruction on how to pull together the project as a whole, further testing their ability to learn a new tool, use it and develop their own philosophy about curation. All of the students in the class created awesome galleries and five students provided permissions to share them with the greater community.

Gallery evaluation included feedback on coverage, aesthetics and organization, descriptive content, creativity and an oral tour. In each gallery, the visitor should be able to click on the image to access more information about the invertebrate diversity as well as the artistic impression.

Student learning objectives:

1. To cultivate a greater appreciation for the diversity of invertebrates
2. To gain skills in the art of scientific communication and educational technology
3. To reinforce knowledge of basic taxonomy across the invertebrate phyla
4. To exercise creativity in terms of assembling a gallery
5. To practice writing succinctly 

Sources of images:

1. Fair-use copyright for educational purposes - all images need citation
2. Your own pictures via a microscope or from field trips
3. Scans/photos of books

Gallery Content Expectations:

1. 2 general images for each Invertebrate CLASS within major SUB/PHYLA 
2. 2 images that compare and contrast two species from one GENUS
3. 1 “artistic” image for each Class within the major Phyla and Subphyla
4. 5 additional images from the San Gabriel River collection

Project Examples: The following links connect to a free online program (Oarbt) or a Google Slide presentation with LOTS of images. Thus, please allow some time for loading the projects after you click on the links.

1. Scout Gockle - “Invertebrates Just Floor Us”

2. Katherine Montgomery 

Gallery Room 1 - “Beyond the Backbone”

Gallery Room 2: “Ominous Invertes”

Gallery Room 3: “Close Ups”

3. Maysen Hauck - “Maysen Hauck’s Invertebrate Collection”

4. Cooper Phillips - “The One Room Gallery”

5. Nicholas Hoisington - Links to All Rooms

Gallery Room 1 - “Surrounded”

Hope that you enjoy.