Learning on the Edge

Upcoming DatesOn Darwin: The full title of Darwin’s famous work is much longer than most people realize: On the Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life.

On Frogs: The world’s largest frog is the goliath frog of West Africa - it can weigh up to 7 lbs.; the smallest frog grows up to a maximum of ½ inch.

On The Big Sit: The Big Sit is a part of a larger bird watching competition known as the Great Texas Birding Classic. This year the competition runs from April 9- 17. The Big Sit involves counting birds from one location over a specified period of time (i.e. picking one site and staying put). There are other teams who will travel to get 24 hr counts, weeklong counts and more to see who can spot the most birds.

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Spring 2011 Issue

• Feb. 5 - National Ocean Sciences Bowl at Harte Research Institute www.nosb.org • Feb. 11 - Edison’s Birthday• Feb. 12 - Darwin Day• Feb. 15 - Galileo’s Birthday• Feb. 17 - National Public Science Day• Feb. 18 - Pluto Discovered• Feb. 19 - Copernicus’ Birthday• Feb. 26 - Flying WILD Workshop www.texasstateaquarium.org • Feb. 28 - DNA Discovered• Mar. 2 - Deadline to register - Just Gotta Evolve www.nuecesdeltapreserve.org• Mar. 5 - “TEKS for TAKS” a look at the Earth Science TEKS Workshop www.texasstateaquarium.org • Mar. 10-11- Just Gotta Evolve Workshop www.nuecesdeltapreserve.org• Mar. 14- Einstein’s Birthday• Mar. 20- World Frog Day• Mar. 23- World Meteorological Day• Mar. 30- Deadline to register for The Big Sit e-mail: education@cbbep.org• April 10- The Big Sit

New website: We’ve officially launched our new website: www.nuecesdeltapreserve.org. We have a calendar of booked field trips, available dates, workshops so that you can see what is coming up!

New building!: The new education office building has arrived at the Delta. The volunteers and staff have been working hard to get the building into shape to be used as offices, volunteer workspace, animal housing, and teacher workshop space.

The Big Year: The education staff has started a Big Year bird count at the Delta. The purpose of the Big Year is to see the maximum number of species in a given geographical location (a state, a county, a country, a hemisphere, or our awesome piece of property). We’d love to have you and your classes help count birds you see on your field trip. You can also check for a monthly update on our new website www.nuecesdel-tapreserve.org.

Walk Like a Decapod-ian!

Grade Level:Grade 3

Subjects:Science, Math

Materials:• Picture of a ghost crab• Stopwatch or timer• Pieces of yarn or string (pre-cut to 15 m)• Masking tape• Permanent Marker• Meter stick or tape

Vocabulary:AdaptationMeterDecapodCrustacean

Objectives:The student will be able to mimic the movements of a crab, talk about how they are adapted for their environment, and calculate the efficiency in which a crab moves.

BackgroundHave you ever wondered why you’ve seen that crab sneaking stealth-ily sideways across the sand? By taking a close look at crab anatomy we can gain some insight into crab movement and behavior. Form follows function in nature. The way an organism is shaped relates to it needs for survival in a particular habitat. Look at a ghost crab and notice how their jointed legs are shaped and hinged.This attachment allows them to easily glide in any plane of movement - not only side to side, but also forwards and backwards. By mov-ing sideways a ghost crab can construct a narrower burrow opening, which leaves less space for a predator to reach inside, and a stronger burrow construction architecturally speaking! Ghost crabs legs are long and sturdy. Always on the move to dodge predators and scavenge for food, these crabs have been clocked

traveling at speeds over one meter per second and covering over 300 meters a night. A ghost crab could be considered an animal Olympian of sorts! Compare and contrast crab and human bodies by studying their locomotion.

Procedure- Copy pictures of a ghost crab for the class to examine- If not done as a class activity, cut yarn or string into (9) 15 meter lengths and mark (6) of them at every meter with tape. See procedure step 6.1. Examine a picture of a crab with the class and generate a list of things students know about crabs. Stu-dents may have a lot of different feelings about crabs, so as the list is generated separate facts from opin-ions.

2. Introduce the idea that there is a reason for the way that living things look and behave in their environ-ment. Crabs are creatures that look completely different from us! Each of their features (adaptations) has a unique purpose to help them survive in their habitat.

3. Crab legs are shaped for movement. How are our legs shaped for our movements? For example, ghost crabs (Ocypode quadrata) could be considered animal Olympians because of their swiftness.Do the students think a human the size of a ghost crab could move faster than a ghost crab? Let’s find out!

4. Divide students into 6 teams of 4. Each team should make a measuring yarn to record how far the stu-dents will travel in meters. These will also serve as racing lanes. Give teams a precut 15 meter yarn piece, and have them measure and fold masking tape over the yarn at every meter. A marker can be used to write units on the tape.

5. Lay out the six (6) parallel lanes in a teaching area with lots of space (outside is best). An extra unmarked yarn piece can be used to close off the last outer lane edge.

6. Now it’s time to test our hypothesis with a race! Ask a student to demonstrate the crab walk, done on all fours with your stomach facing the sky. This race is conducted in four rounds – one team member partici-pates per round, and each round uses a different mode of movement. Assign each team member a differ-ent crabwalk for their round – frontward, backward, sideways leading left, or sideways leading right.

7. Line up the frontward crab walkers in the lanes for round one. At the GO signal, students crab walk as far as they can while 10 seconds is timed on a watch. The students freeze at the end of time, and another teammate looks at the yarn to determine how far the crabwalker traveled. Record these distances on group data sheets (attached) or on a class chart.

8. Repeat this process for the backwards, sideways leading left, and sideways leading right crab walkers.

9. Analyze the data. The data recorded indicates speed: the number of meters traveled in 10 seconds. Ghost crabs travel over one meter per second. Have students create a division equation to calculate how many meters they traveled per second.

10. Compare data recorded for different racing styles. Were student speeds faster than those of a ghost crab? Why not? Compare human size to that of a crab. Do we move faster just because we are bigger? If we were the same size as a crab, who would move faster? How do our legs bend compared to a crab? Would we be limited in accomplishing daily tasks if we moved like a crab? In which direction was it easiest to move? How does a crab benefit from moving as it does?

ExtensionUse the data collected to create graphs for visual comparison, or practice math skills by converting meters per second into different units or by computing average speeds for different race methods or racing teams.

Crab Walk Movement Student Name Meters traveled in 10 secondsFrontwaysBackwardsSideways LeftSideways Right

1. I traveled_____________________________meters in 10 seconds.

2. I traveled_____________________________ meters in 1 second. hint: create a division problem

3. A ghost crab can move up to one meter per second. Was your speed faster than that of the ghost crab?

4. Which racing style was fastest?

5. Think about how much bigger you are compared to a ghost crab. Why was it harder for you to move this way?

6. What are some ways that our bodies are shaped to perform our daily functions?

Critter Charades

Grade Level:Grades 5-8

Subjects:Science

Materials:• Animal list & facts

Vocabulary:Food WebAdaptationsTrophic level

Objectives:The student will learn about native animals, research them and place them in the appropriate trophic level.

BackgroundFood chains show the relationship between animals in an ecosystem, based on who eats what, and what eats them. The base of the food chain or the first trophic level is always a producer, something that harnesses energy from the sun. The level above producer is known as the primary consumer, which we tend to classify as herbivores. Carnivores would then fill in as secondary, tertiary or even quaternary consumers, depending on what they eat.

Energy is lost between each of these levels as nutrients are used by the consumer. Also remember that food chains tend to simplify an ecosystem and that food webs can get a little messy but are more accurate.

Procedure1. Split the students into groups and assign them a trophic level and an organism. Remember that there may be multiple consum-ers at each level.

2. Have the students research their organism.

3. Once everyone is prepared, the students should act out their organism. The other groups may know what trophic level this represents, but have to guess what the organism is.

4. After all the groups have gone, have the students create the food web or chain.

Organism ListSource: “Critters of Texas Pocket Guide”

Organism Trophic Level What it eats What eats itGrass Producer --------

Flowers Producer --------

Trees Producer --------

Harvester Ants Primary Consumer Grass, dead insects Horned Lizards

Honey Hornet Primary Consumer Flower (nectar) Spiders, Woodpeckers

Wolf Spider Secondary Consumer Honey hornet, insects Toads, Birds, Praying Mantis

Praying Mantis Secondary Consumer Spiders, Insects Birds

Cardinal Primary or Secondary Consumer

Seeds, Spiders, Beetles Cats, Snakes, Hawk, Raccoon

Sharp-shinned Hawk Secondary Consumer Songbirds --------

Nine-banded Armadillo Secondary Consumer Bird eggs, Insects, frogs Mountain Lion, Coyote

Mexican Free-tailed Bat Secondary Consumer Insects Snakes, Hawks, Mammals

Coyote Secondary Consumer Mice, rabbits, lizards, birds, deer

Owl & Mountain lion eat young

Mountain Lion Secondary Consumer Deer, rabbits, javelina ------

Javelina Primary Consumer Cactus, acorns, fruits Mountain Lion, Coyote

Organism Trophic Level What it eats What eats itBald Eagle Secondary Consumer Fish, waterfowl, birds ------

American alligator Secondary Consumer Rodents, fish, small mammals Fish, snakes, birds (eat young & eggs)

Horned Lizard Secondary Consumer Harvester ants, spiders Hawks, roadrunners, snakes, coyotes

Rattlesnake Secondary Consumer Mice, rabbits, eggs Hawks, owls, eagles, roadrun-ner, coyote

Texas Toad Secondary Consumer Insects, earthworms Birds, fish, other toads

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*NEW SERIES* Urban Animal Encounters – February 10, March 10 (tentative), April 28 (tentative), May 19 (tentative) - Join the Texas Wildlife Association and Wild Times Wild-life Edutainment as we bring LIVE, WILD, NATIVE Texas animals into your classroom! Each program is a unique experience, each with different themes and animal “guest stars.” Classes will discuss habitat components, adaptations, survival strategies, and little known fun facts. From armadillos to tarantulas, and snakes to skunks, we promise not to disappoint! Grades 1,2,3,4,5,6.

Appalling Adaptations - February 10th - Meet the nine-banded armadillo and the striped skunk. Although their natu-ral defense behaviors are beneficial to them in the wild, these same behaviors do not fare well with their urban cohabi-tants. Most people cannot help but turn up their noses when they think about these two animals, but after our class, we hope your feelings change. Join us as we clear up some common untruths and add clarity to their adaptations with the help of Dug and Segonku, our friendly guest stars! ASI: Animal Skull Investigation! – February 1, March 22, April 19, May 10This interactive presentation allows students the opportunity to investigate skulls of na-tive Texas animals. Unique adaptive traits will be discussed and students will be asked to look for clues to determine the identity and feeding habits of our mystery specimens. Grades 1,2,3,4,5,6.

Texas Critters! – February 15, March 29, May 3 - From the raccoon they see in their neighbor-hood to the nine-banded armadillo (the official Small Mammal of Texas); your students will be intrigued while learning fun facts about these and other Texas critters. Students will learn the differences between mammals and reptiles, carnivores and herbivores, habitats and adapta-tions, all the while looking at interactive visuals. We will also discuss the human effect on animals; why and how we should maintain the animals’ environment. Grades 1,2,3,4,5,6.

BATS: LIVE on the BIG screen! – March 3, May 24This interactive presentation allows students the opportunity to investigate the relation-ship between the anatomy and the ecology, including the dietary habits of different spe-cies of bats. An experience you will not want to miss. LIVE bats take part in this program! Look at their transparent wings, learn how a free-tailed bat gets its name, and watch them munch down on mealworms! Grades 1,2,3,4,5. Viewing Distance Learning Programs:- Visit Connect2Texas (www.connect2texas.net) to view our program calendar, class descriptions, and to register.- Classes are INTERACTIVE, TEKS aligned, 50 minutes long and $70 per class.- All classes include: pre/post materials, a monthly Texas Wildlife magazine, and a quarterly class set of TWA’s mini-magazine Critter Connections!

Estuaries in the Classroom: We had 24 teachers register for our Jan. 21 workshop. We had a great time learning new activities that can be taken back to the classroom. Russ Miget of Texas Sea Grant shared some of his curricu-lum from the Floating Classroom program. He also took us on a trip of Corpus Christi Bay on the R/V Karma. Join in the fun and sign up for our next workshop!

Register for Just Gotta Evolve: Time is running out to reg-ister for Just Gotta Evolve, our two day workshop that will be on March 10 & 11 at the Nueces Delta Preserve. We will introduce this controversial topic and how you can address it in your classroom. Register for this workshop using the form found on our website: www.nuecesdelta-preserve.org.

Learning on the Edge Registration Open: Now is the time to start registering for our weeklong summer work-shop. The secondary teachers will be hosted the week of June 6-10, the elementary teachers June 13-17 and returning teachers who just can’t get enough will be the week of June 20-24. Flyers and the registration form are available on our website: www.nuecesdeltapreserve.org.

Learning on The Edge News

1. Spend a week and catalog the animals in your school yard. Have the students create a field guide for the animals they saw including name, picture and description.

2. Have students write a story about their favorite place in nature. It can be the local park, a family vacation spot, the beach, or their backyard.

3. Have students draw and label the parts of their favorite wildflower. After the rain we had this fall and winter, hopefully lots of things will be “spring”ing up.

4. Draw a map of an ant nest and the trails leading to it.

5. Record the behavior of an insect for three minutes. List all of its activities.

6. Count and list all the plants you can see from the playground. If you can name the plants, awesome!, if not use descriptions and look them up when you go back inside.

7. List all the reasons you could celebrate today.

8. Tell a story about an animal that migrates, and where you think it might go before it returns to your neighborhood in spring.

9. In honor of World Frog Day, find an amphibian and observe it. Then sketch its’ habitat and life cycle.

10. Do your own Big Sit, go into your yard for 15 minutes and watch for birds. List all the ones you see. Sketch and color your favorite one.

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For more information or classroom

presentations contact: Lari Jo Johnston or Sara Bounds

Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program

361 - 885 - 6207education@cbbep.org