High School Research Projects

We are looking for local high school students who want to do research projects on our property! This is an excellent opportunity for students interested in environmental science to gain experience collecting data out in the field and developing scientific skills.

Students are expected to come up with and complete projects on their own or join one of the seasonal projects listed on this page. Education staff is available for check-ins, feedback, and planning!

This is a FREE OPPORTUNITY for anyone in grades 9-12

If you’re interested, please send an email to Tommy McCarthy at tmccarthy@woodcocknaturecenter.org.

We can only accept 1-2 projects at a time and cannot accommodate projects during the summer.

Volunteer service hours through this program can contribute to earning the Presidential Volunteer Service award. To learn more click here

Seasonal Projects

Vernal Pool Surveys – Help WNC monitor the health and productivity of our vernal pools on the property. Measure biodiversity, population density, water quality and more! These pools are highly productive and of critical importance to our amphibian populations. It benefits WNC greatly to monitor their health!

Bird Surveys - Go where no student has gone before and study the bird population at WNC! Our educator Tommy McCarthy has done surveys for the Connecticut Bird Atlas and can teach students how field technicians gather data on bird populations. Students will be strongly encouraged to learn how to identify bird species native to Connecticut by sight and sound using resources like guides and apps.

Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Surveys - Discover the lesser-known organisms that inhabit our freshwater habitats and learn how scientists can gain information about the health of aquatic ecosystems by studying their populations. There are a wide range of research questions you could come up with, and we have several bodies of water for sampling!

Past Projects

Soil pH Study – Whether soil is acidic or basic can have a big impact on what nutrients are available to plants. Learn about how seasonal changes might affect the pH and quality of the soil, and what that means for plant, animal, and microbial life!

Sebastian Utomo - 2023 Click to View Study

Trail Camera Studies – There are many species of animal on the Woodcock Nature Center preserve. Many we see, and many we don’t. Trail cameras help us to keep track of who is coming and going when we are not around, and how it changes throughout the year! This project helps WNC learn about the biodiversity of our ecosystem. Trail cameras can be used to investigate a variety of questions, no matter the season – email with your ideas!

Alice Ding - 2021
Peter Gutstein - 2019

Butterfly Migration - Do you ever wish we could track the movement of Monarch Butterflies and find out exactly where they are traveling to? One student did just that here are WNC!

Tara Slovinski - 2021

Hydroponics - Benefiting from the symbiotic relationship between plants and animals, we are using water from the snapping turtle tank to grow food to feed our vegetarian animals at the nature center. How do the plants effect the water quality in return?

Kai Harris - 2020

Molly Bluestein - 2021

Emerald Ash Borer Traps -- Our precious Ash trees are being attacked by an invasive species called the Emerald Ash Borer. At WNC, we looked into different variables including color and smell and their effectiveness as lures for emerald ash borer traps.

Jason Hartnett - 2020