Presentation Schedule
The Importance of Botanical Field Research for High School Students (108170)
Friday, 10 July 2026 15:30
Session: Poster Session 2
Room: Brunei Gallery (Ground Floor)
Presentation Type:Poster Presentation
As part of the cooperation with secondary schools (2013–2015), professors and teachers from the University of Zagreb, Faculty of Science, and the V Gymnasium in Zagreb collaborated on several teaching topics in botany. The aim was to provide students with fundamental knowledge of floristic research. The specific objectives were to teach students the basics of plant identification and methods for measuring plant population size, including density, frequency, and coverage assessment. Field research, with a focus on plant identification, was conducted during the 2014 vegetation season in Papuk Nature Park (Slavonia region, eastern Croatia). The analysis of collected material and results was carried out at school, including the study of chorological elements, vulnerability, protection status, and invasiveness. During the fieldwork, students successfully identified more than 70 plant species in the research area. Population size estimates were conducted according to different plant growth strategies. Taxa that typically grow individually within their habitats are best suited for density assessment; those that grow in clumps or tufts are more appropriate for frequency assessment; and taxa that spread via runners, stolons, or rhizomes are most suitable for coverage estimation. In conclusion, the students acquired fundamental knowledge of flora inventory and analysis, as well as methods for measuring the population size of selected plant species (e.g., invasive, endangered, endemic). This type of teaching can encourage public awareness through young people and highlight the importance of native plants and potential threats to their survival, such as pressure from invasive alien species.
Authors:
Dario Hruševar, University of Zagreb, Croatia
Božena Mitić, University of Zagreb, Croatia
Zrinka Pongrac Štimac, Fifth Gymnasium Zagreb, Croatia
Romana Halapir Franković, Fifth Gymnasium Zagreb, Croatia
About the Presenter(s)
Dario Hruševar is working as Assistant Professor at the University of Zagreb, Faculty of Science.
See this presentation on the full schedule – Friday Schedule
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