sea life for schools years habitats & adaptations · habitats & adaptations sea life for...

Habitats & Adaptations

SEA LIFE for Schools

ContentsIntroduction 2

Teacher’s map 3

Teacher’s notes 4-10

Student exploration sheets 11-12

1

Self-guided learningThis guide provides you with information and

student activities linked to key displays throughout

SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium that can be used to

explore the topic of Habitats & Adaptations during

your visit. By drawing out the points included in this

guide, you will be able to introduce or recap on the

key learning outcomes and provide students with a

fantastic real-life context for learning.

SEA & Discover classesIf you would prefer an interactive, hands-on lesson

led by a marine expert and speciically tailored to match the Australian curriculum, then a guided SEA

& Discover class is a great choice. Students will

embark on an underwater journey through SEA

LIFE Sydney Aquarium’s 14 amazing themed zones

and learn about the unique animals on display, their

interconnectedness and survival.

Other topics in this series:• Food Chains & Ecosystems

• Behaviour

• Conservation

Learning objectivesBy completing this tour students will

learn:

• Living things have basic needs, including food

and water.

• Living things live in different places where

their needs are met.

• The growth and survival of living things are

affected by the physical conditions of their

environment.

• Living things have structural features and

adaptations that help them to survive in

their environment.

YearsK-6

What is a habitat?

A habitat is the natural home or environment of an

animal, plant or other organism. It provides all the

things needed for survival. Let’s start by thinking

about our own habitats…

What do you need to stay alive?

The most important thing we all need is food.

We also need somewhere that can keep us warm

enough and sheltered from rain or snow. Can you

ind both of these things in your home? Then it makes a good habitat for you!

How about the Gentoo Penguin that lives in

the Antarctic – what do you think it needs

from its habitat?

The Gentoo Penguin actually needs the same

things we do: food and shelter. However, the food

and shelter it needs are very different. It eats ish and crustaceans like krill, which it catches while

swimming. This means it needs to live close to the

water. It has a thick layer of body fat that keeps it

warm and means it is happy to live in the freezing

cold Antarctic. The only time when it needs to

be able to ind good shelter on land is while it is waiting for its eggs to hatch.

So now we understand a bit more about what a habitat is we can start our trip around the SEA LIFE aquarium and have a closer look at the

different habitats that marine creatures live in.

Remember to hand out exploration sheets to each student - these will be needed for activities on the tour.

Questions:

Use the questions on this page to introduce this topic to students before starting your tour.

Introduction


2

Sydney Harbour• Fascinating facts

student activity• Seahorse discussion notes (p4)

Bay Of Rays• Which ray? student activity• Rays discussion notes (p5)• Rays talk times:

10.00

12.30

South Coast Shipwreck• Octopus anagrams

student activity• Octopus discussion notes (p6)• Little Penguin feed time:

15.00

Teacher’s map

3

Dugong Island• Dugong wordsearch student activity• Dugong discussion notes (p7)• Dugong talk times:

13.30

16.00

Shark Valley• Adapted for life

student activity• Sharks discussion

notes (p8)

Discovery Rockpool• Who’s at home in the

rockpool? student activity• Rockpool discussion

notes (p9)

Clownfish Garden• Spot the habitat student activity• Clownish discussion

notes (p10)

Reef Theatre• Shark talk times:

11.00

17.00


Activities

You can help!Never buy dried seahorses as souvenirs

or medicines and other products made

from seahorses.

Activity: Fascinating factsAsk students to look out for other fascinating facts

about seahorses as they look around the displays.

Discuss these as a group.

Do you know why it is called a seahorse?

The seahorse gets its name from its long snout

that looks a bit like a horse’s.

What do you think a seahorse uses

its long snout for?

The long thin shape of a seahorse’s snout is very

useful for helping it to catch food. They can use it

to get food out from tiny cracks in coral and rocks

or even suck up food by breathing in quickly.

What does a seahorse use its fins for?

Like most ish it uses its ins to swim, but what is unusual is that the seahorse is one of the only ish that swims upright. This means it isn’t very quick.

According to Guinness World Records seahorses

are the slowest ish in the ocean!

Look at the unusual shape of its tail – how do

you think this helps it to survive?

The seahorse spends most of its life clinging on to

seagrass or other perches with its strong tail. This

prevents it from being swept along by currents and

allows it to eat the other tiny animals that are swept

past it. This is vital to its survival, as it isn’t a very

strong swimmer.

What makes the seahorse different

to nearly every other animal?

Unlike most other animals, it is

the male, not the female, which

incubates the eggs the female

lays. Each male has a special

pouch for carrying fertilised

eggs until they hatch. A seahorse

is also a very loving animal –

most choose one partner

and stay with it for life.

Questions:

Seahorses are one of the most fascinating creatures in our oceans. There are nearly 50 different species that have evolved over 40 million years. Seahorses can normally be found in tropical and temperate waters that are shallow and sheltered.

Visit Area: SYDNEY HARBOUR

SEAHORSES

4

Habitats & Adaptations - Teacher’s discussion notes

FACTA seahorse can look forwards and backwards at the same time!

FACTThe bony spine on a

seahorse makes it

unappetising to

predators.

You can help!We can help by supporting campaigns to set-up

Marine Conservation Zones across the globe.

Try to avoid eating skate, it’s a member of the

ray family.

Activity: Which ray?Ask students to look at the information screens around the aquarium and

try to identify the different species of rays on display. Discuss how they

differ.

Why do you think rays have such flat bodies?

Most rays use their lat bodies to loat close to the sea loor. This means that they can suck their food (mussels, clams and oysters) off the seabed and if

they need to, they can bury themselves in the sand

to hide from predators.

How do you think the colour of the Fantail

and Maskray’s skin helps them to survive in

their habitat?

The grey and blue colouring on their skin helps to

camoulage them once they settle on the ground. This makes them invisible to predators. Their

blue spots also warn predators that the rays are

poisonous.

Can you think of any other simple ways rays

might avoid predators?

Rays have been know to reduce their activity at

times when the threat from predators is highest.

Do you think rays always use their eyes

to hunt?

Scientists don’t think so. Rays use special sensors

called ampullae of Lorenzini, which can detect the

tiny electrical charges given off by their prey.

Do you think rays are dangerous?

Most rays aren’t dangerous as they don’t have a

venomous stinger (called a spine) on their tail, but

some rays like the Spotted Eagle Ray do, and can

use it to defend themselves against predators.

Questions:

Rays are strange lat looking creatures that use their wings to glide through the ocean. They live in oceans and seas all over the world, mostly on or near the seabed. Some species choose a habitat close to the shore, whilst others live over 3,000 metres beneath the surface in the deep ocean!

Visit Area: BAY OF RAYS

RAYS

5


FACTRays and sharks are part of the same scientiic family - the Elasmobranchii.

FACTThe Manta Ray

is the biggest of its

species with ‘wings’

that can span almost

7 metres across!

You can help!Be careful when on the beach or in the sea not to

disturb creatures and their habitats. And always

use a recyclable bag instead of a plastic one.

Activity: Octopus anagrams Octopuses have some great ways to avoid getting caught by predators.

Ask students to solve the clues and unscramble the anagrams.

The correct answers are 1. Ink 2. Colour 3. Bones.

Where do you think an animal as big

as an octopus could hide?

The octopus’ body is boneless so it can squeeze

into really tiny spaces the size of a dollar coin to

hide from predators.

An octopus is very intelligent and can solve

problems. How do you think it solves the

problem of defending its home?

An octopus will collect shells and other objects

to construct a fort around its home for extra

protection.

Can you guess what predators

octopuses have?

The octopus’ most common predator is the Moray

Eel. Some seals, whales, sharks and even sea turtles

eat octopuses too!

The octopus also has some other amazing

ways of avoiding predators; do you know

what these are?

It can change the colour of its skin instantly to

camoulage against any background, or even just to display its mood! And if an octopus is threatened

by a predator it can spray ink to cloud the water,

helping it to escape.

Questions:

The octopus can be found across a really wide range of waters - from the east coast of Australia to as far as New Zealand. It’s a master of survival and can live in lots of different environments. It particularly likes rocky areas where there are plenty of places to hide.

Visit Area: SOUTH COAST SHIPWRECK

OCTOPUS

6


FACTSome octopuses crawl along the seabed, tucking their arms into small openings to search for food.

FACTA female octopus

can lay over 150,000

eggs at one time!

You can help!We can help by avoiding anchoring close to sea

grass beds, so we don’t damage dugong feeding

habitats. And ish responsibly - don’t discard used lines, nets or other equipment in the water.

Activity: Dugong wordsearchAsk students to ind the dugong habitat and adaptation related words in the wordsearch on their exploration sheet:

warm, coastal, luke, tusk, manatee, elephant.

Can you think why dugongs only like to live in

warm shallow waters?

Dugongs have very slow metabolisms, and only a

thin layer of fat - so they feel the cold even more

than we do! Plus the dugong’s favourite food, sea

grass, only grows in shallow coastal waters.

What animals are dugongs related to?

Dugongs are closely related to manatees and are

distant relatives of elephants. They have tusks

similar to elephants and luked tails similar to dolphins.

Why do some dugongs have tusks?

Male dugongs have short tusks similar to their

distant relative, the elephant. They can use them

against other dugongs, particularly during breeding

season.

Where does Australia’s most significant

dugong population live?

The protected waters and plentiful sea grass

meadows of Shark Bay in WA and Moreton Bay in

QLD are perfect for the dugong, the world’s only

marine mammal herbivore.

How can dugongs sleep underwater if they

need to breathe?

While it is sleeping, a dugong will wake up every

few minutes to take a breath of air.

Questions:

Dugongs live in warm coastal waters stretching from East Africa to Australia, including the Red Sea, and the Indian and Paciic Oceans. Torres Strait has the largest, most stable population of dugongs in Australia.

Visit Area: DUGONG ISLAND

DUGONGS

7


FACTBecause sea grass

is hard to digest,

the dugong has an

extraordinary large

intestine. It’s 8 times as

long as a dugong’s

body!

FACTThe dugong’s heavy skeleton helps it stay on the sea loor while feeding.

You can help!We can help sharks by supporting campaigns to

set-up Marine Conservation Zones across the

globe. We should also never buy products made

from sharks or eat shark in soup.

Activity: Adapted for lifeWhen you arrive at Shark Valley, identify two different sharks and ask

students to draw a picture of each on their exploration sheet. Discuss their

similarities and differences and explain how these help sharks survive in

their habitats.

What do you think the Blacktip Reef Shark

eats?

A better question is what don’t they eat! These

hungry predators eat more or less anything they

can get hold of, whether it is small ish, an octopus, prawns or even a sea snake.

The Wobbegong Shark is from Australia. Its

Aboriginal name means ‘shaggy beard’. Why

do you think it is called by this name?

When you look at the lattened Wobbegong Shark it has strange seaweed-like growths hanging down

from its mouth. This ‘beard’ attracts small ish who swim in amongst it thinking it is seaweed. The

Wobbegong Shark spends much of its time resting,

well-camoulaged by its patchy colouration, on the rocky bottom of the sea loor waiting for its prey.

If you look closely you’ll see a spine on the

front of the Port Jackson Shark’s dorsal fins.

Why do you think it has these?

The Port Jackson Shark has adapted to help protect

the important parts of its body from being attacked

by larger predators. Port Jackson Sharks have the

ability to eat and breathe at the same time. This

ability is unusual for sharks, many of which need to

swim with their mouths open to force water over

their gills.

Questions:

There are over 450 species of shark in the world, living in all kinds of different habitats from warm tropical waters to icy polar seas. Some live in the deep, dark waters of the ocean, while others prefer sunlit waters close to the surface.

Visit Area: SHARK VALLEY

SHARKS

8


FACTTo help disguise themselves, sharks have a dark top half and a pale belly.

FACTSharks never run

out of teeth - some

get through as many

as 30,000 in their

lifetime!

How do you think the sea star manages

to survive in this difficult environment?

It has thousands of tiny suckers under each arm

which it uses to attach itself to rocks and hide in

nooks and crevices.

Crabs are animals that can’t attach

themselves to rocks. What do you think helps

protect them against predators?

They use their claws and are well camoulaged against the rocks, making them hard to ind. They also have a tough shell for protection.

As you know, one of the most important

elements of an animal’s habitat is that the

right sort of food is available. What do you

think sea stars eat?

Sea stars can eat a range of different things,

including mussels. They use the suckers on the

underside of their arms to pull food towards the

mouth in the centre of their body.

What about mussels. How do you think they

get food?

Mussels get all of their food by iltering the water around them for tiny animals and plants called

plankton. Rockpools are perfect places for them

to live as new plankton is brought in every time

the tide ills the pool.

We can see that the animals in the rockpool

depend on the other animals for food. What

do you think would happen if all of the

mussels in a rockpool died out?

With no mussels for food the sea stars would die.

All of the creatures in the rockpool are part of

one ecosystem. It is delicately balanced with each

creature playing an important role.

You can help!We should always take our litter home after we’ve

visited the beach. We should also be respectful of

any animals we might ind in a rockpool and make sure that they are left undisturbed.

Activity: Who’s at home in the rockpool? Ask students to identify the creatures they can see in the rockpool and

then colour them in on their exploration sheet. Students can then touch

creatures under the guidance of a SEA LIFE expert.

Questions:

Rockpools are very dificult places for creatures to survive - with huge waves, strong currents, changing water temperatures, harsh sunlight and lots of predators! Creatures commonly found in this habitat include sea stars, sea cucumbers, crabs and urchins.

Visit Area: DISCOVERY ROCKPOOL

ROCKPOOL

9


You can help!Don’t touch anything if you go snorkelling and

never buy products made from coral or other

marine creatures.

Activity: Spot the habitatClownish live amongst the poisonous tentacles of the anemone on coral reefs. Ask students to identify the correct habitat on their exploration sheet

and then draw a clownish within it.

An anemone might sound like a strange

place to live but can anyone tell me why this

makes a perfect habitat for the clownfish?

The clownish is immune to the anemone’s poison so can live there without fear. But more than that,

the anemone’s tentacles also provide protection

from other predators that might try to eat it.

Can you think of anything else that a

clownfish needs to survive that it can

get from the anemone?

The clownish can also ind food. It feeds off the leftovers of other ish the anemone catches. They have even been known to eat the dead

tentacles from the anemone!

This immunity to the anemone’s poison is

called an adaptation. Does anyone know

what an adaptation is?

An adaptation is a feature which an animal develops,

normally over millions of years, which makes it

easier for them to survive in a speciic environment.

Can you think of any other adaptations?

How about the penguin’s thick layer of fat which

allows it to live in cold areas or the octopus’ ability

to squeeze into tiny spaces?

Questions:

Clownish live on sheltered coral reefs found in the warm tropical waters of the Indian and Paciic Oceans. Within their habitat they ind a very unusual place to hide - amongst the poisonous tentacles of sea anemone!

Visit Area: CLOWNFISH GARDEN

CLOWNFISH

10


FACTAll clownish are born male!

FACTIf a female dies, a

male clownish in the group can change sex

to take her place.

Name:

Class:

Find out about habitats

11

Habitats & Adaptations - Student exploration sheet

Shark

Who’s at home in the rockpool?Find out which of these creatures live in the rockpool and colour in their shape when you spot it. Be careful – some of these deinitely don’t live in rockpools!

1 2

Octopus

JellyfishSea star

ClownfishPufferfish

Which creatures did

you touch?

The Grey Nurse Shark often swims with its mouth out

of the water!

Adapted for lifeThere are many different types of sharks whose bodies have changed over the years to perfectly suit their habitats. Draw two sharks that have different bodies.

Sea cucumber

Urchin

Find out about habitats

12

Habitats & Adaptations - Student exploration sheet

Which of my friends did

you see?

Where do I live?

Dugong wordsearchHome sweet homeClownish have a very unusual habitat, but what is it?Choose the right one and draw a clownish in it.

Can you ind these words about dugongs above?

COASTAL FLUKE MANATEEELEPHANT TUSK WARM

Octopus anagramsUnscramble these words about octopuses.

Which ray?Write down the names of the ray species you found in the aquarium.

BS

O EN

_ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _

C LOR OU

2. To camoulage themselves they can change:

K IN

1. Octopuses defend themselves by spraying:

_ _ _

3. They can also squeeze into tiny spaces as they don’t have any:

Sea grass

Beach Anemone & coral

Rockpool

M S N O B U N D S X A H

O R S Y K S U T R Y C L

C Q A F C D P I Z E M X

S O M W Z O K M U S A M

W Y A V T F K R Q K N I

I X N S L S I R D L A Y

U Z E U T X P O T O T U

Z T K X S A O J J T E J

I E K C F K L O R R E X

T H N N T E L I Z Q T H

N B U R I A A Y V U X U

E L E P H A N T S B T P

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