My dear friends at the Save the Giant Armadillo Foundation, I have been laboring for the past two months in research trying to establish an ecosystem service that is relevant to the Giant Armadillo; finally, I have discovered a way for us to raise the awareness surrounding the possible extinction of the Giant Armadillo. I am writing in hopes that my initial research may lead to a possible grant. In order to touch the heart of the people in the giant armadillo's environment, we must go through their stomachs. I purpose experimentation concerning the effects the extinction of the giant armadillo will have on the crops of the people in South America.
It is my belief that the giant armadillo plays an integral role in the maintenance of the local crops dispersed throughout its environment. It is documented that the giant armadillo exists on a diet of mostly termites and ants. I believe that the giant armadillo plays an integral role in regulating the populations of the insects. This position seems to entail that if the giant armadillo becomes extinct, the insect populations in these areas will grow out of control, destroying many of the native's crops.
My hope is that, with the help of your grant, I will be able to conduct an experiment to see if the exclusion of the giant armadillo from its environment will result in lower crop turnouts for the farmers in this area. For this experiment, my hypothesis is as follows: If the giant armadillo is removed from a set area of crops, then the production of those crops will be markedly lower than an area including the giant armadillo. It is my belief that this will in fact be due to the regulation of the insect population, but this aspect will not be measured along with the data recorded from the experiment.
The basic structure of this experiment will consist of two 1x1 acre plots of wheat. The plots will be marked off and fenced in, and the plots will be housed in air tight greenhouses. A mechanical mechanism is currently being implemented into the greenhouse schematic in order that the crops can be properly cared for and cultivated without interference from outside variables. One plot will serve as the control; it will be devoid of any giant armadillos. The other plot will have 3 adult male giant armadillos living within the fenced area. The 3 adult giant armadillos will serve as the independent variable. For a period of one year, the production of both crops will be documented. Termite and ant populations will be introduced in equal proportion in each field. At the end of one year, the dependent variable, the number of barrels of wheat produced by each crop, will be compared. It is extremely important that we keep the greenhouses devoid of any interference from outside sources, for the entire experiment depends on creating controlled environments that are as parallel as possible, not including the independent variable.
It is my professional opinion that, at the end of one year, the crops that were exposed to the giant armadillos will yield a larger number of barrels of wheat. Thank you for your time.
References:
Joshua Nixon. September 14, 2006. Genus Priodontes. http://www.msu.edu/~nixonjos/armadillo/priodontes.html. Dowloaded on March 29, 2007.
What are Ecosystem Services? http://www.ecosystemservicesproject.org/html/overview/index.htm . Downloaded on May 4, 2007.
