Paige runs feeding assays

This week I've been busy collecting many samples of Gracilaria and running feeding assays. When Gracilaria is grazed on by herbivores, it turns on a defense full of chemicals that make the herbivores not want to eat it anymore. I want to find out whether or not all parts of a plant turn on these chemical defenses when it's grazed on by herbivores or if only the nearest part of the plant turns on the chemical defense. I took multiple individuals of Gracilaria and ground the tip of a plant (which is similar to an herbivore eating that tip!). I then put a piece from this ground area of seaweed in a container with a piece of seaweed that wasn't next to the part that was ground. I then put an amphipod called Ampithoe valida (they look like tiny green bugs that live in the ocean) in the containers to see whether the amphipod will eat the ground seaweed or the unground seaweed. I will be checking the results tomorrow! I predict that the amphipods will eat the seaweed that was unground because I think the chemical defenses won't be turned on where I didn't grind the seaweed and that the pieces that were ground won't taste good because the chemical defenses will be turned on!