Crushing Cockles

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Crushing Cockles
By Olivia, Thomas, Holly and Michael
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Introduction

• We are studying the relationship between
  cockles and their shell strength

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Funky Facts about Cockles

• The New Zealand Cockle, Austrovenus
  Stutchburyi,is a bivalve from the family
  Veneridae and is found across NZ in habitats from
  soft mud to fine sand. It is often a dominant
  species and has been found in densities of 4500
  cockles per square metre.

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Size of Cockle vs. Force to break

• What We Did
• Took measurements of Cockles
• Crushed The cockles and recorded force taken to
  break them

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METHODS IN ACTION
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Graph of Results
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pH Testing

• Lower pH Weaker cockle shells
• Put Cockle shells in different pH solutions
• Crushed them

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pH Testing Results

• pH did affect shell strength
• Didnt show a significant relationship
• More research is needed

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Conclusion

• We found that bigger cockles stronger shell
• Lower pH may affect shell strength
• More samples are needed for a more accurate result

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Thanks to

• Pete, for being our mentor
• Steve, for running the programme
• And an acknowledgement to Hayden, who only made
  it to the first block