Wildlife Encounters: Plant Protectors!

On Wednesday, we were visited once again by Wildlife Encounters who came to show us animals that help plants grow by spreading their seeds and protecting them from pests!

The first animal Jean showed us was a Millipede, which is an Arthropod. It lives in leaves, helping them decompose and add nutrients back into the soil!

The next animal we saw was a Green McCaw named Noah. We learned that birds poop every 15-20 min to ensure they are never too heavy to fly, which means the seeds they eat are still able to grow even after they get digested! Noah is a Herbivore and eats fruit seeds berries, and he can break open a walnut with his beak. His feathers are the colors of the rain forests so he can camouflage himself when he is out in his natural habitat, and the red helps them blend in with the rest of their flock.

Afterwards, we met a Fennec Fox named Radar, which helps plants by eating small insects and rodents that with otherwise be eating the plants. Native to Africa, he uses his large ears to find his prey and uses his long, furry tail to keep him warm on cold desert nights.

We then met another animal that eats plant predators, but this time it was an amphibian! Sugar Cane Toads are native to South America, and like the Fennec Fox, the Sugar Cane Toad protects the sugar cane by eating the insects trying to feast on the plant!

We then saw an animal that MANY of us have seen around our own community, which was a Skunk! While skunks like Fauna also help plants by eating pests that try to eat them, she also helps plants by digging in the ground and aerating the soil, making it healthier for plants to grow in. We also learned that skunks give you a few warning signs before they will spray you:

1. Thump the ground with their hind legs

2. Stick Up Their Tail

3. Turn Around

Even then, it will take them a few more seconds to muster up their spray, so RUN! 

Don't worry, Fauna was de-stinked before she came for her visit! 

Lastly, we saw a Red-Tailed Boa Constrictor, which also helps with pest control around plants. These snakes live in trees around South America

Afterwards, we all had the chance to touch the snake and ask Jean any other questions we had. We are so grateful to her and all the wonderful folks over at Wildlife Encounters for bringing these animals to us! 

Wildlife Encounters: Earth Heroes!

On Monday we had a visit with Derek from Wildlife Encounters! He came to talk to all of second grade about animals who help shape the earth and make it such a wonderful place to live. 

The first animal he brought out was Sid, who is a Moluccan Cockatoo with a LOT to say! Cockatoos and other birds help to shape the earth by planting the seeds they eat. After they eat, cockatoos fly about avoiding their predators, and they drop seeds along the way. You know what they say--what goes in must come out!

Derek also taught us a rhyme to help us learn about which animals are predators and which are prey:

Eyes on the side, I like to hide

Eyes in front, I like to hunt

Next we met an animal who definitely likes to hunt! Derek brought out a Small American Alligator. While he isn't very big yet, this alligator could grow to be 19 ft long someday and already has about 700-900 lbs of pressure in his jaw alone! While they may seem terrifying to us, they actually do quite a bit to help our environment. They feed on invasive species, which can cause a lot of damage to wetlands by eating the vegetation, and they also tunnel deep depressions that provide reservoirs during droughts. These "gator holes" can be a source of lifesaving water for fish, birds, turtles and other creatures.

did you know that Alligators and Crocodiles have very similar DNA to birds?

The next animal Derek shared with us was a Coatimundi, which is native to South America. The Coatimundi is an omnivore (eats both plants and animals) and it is diurnal (awake in the daylight). This animals helps the environment because it too spreads seeds like the cockatoo, and it also digs up the dirt looking for bugs and insects which makes it easier for the seeds to grow (fun fact: 1/3 of living creatures on earth live in the 6-10 inches of soil that cover it!)

The next animal Derek shared with us was a Bennett's Wallaby named Savanna. Wallabies are a type of kangaroo that live in the grasslands of Australia. They are grazers, which means they have very sharp teeth for eating grass so they only eat the blades without disturbing the roots, allowing the grass to grow back. They too spread seeds like the cockatoo and coatimundi and they actually plant their seeds in the ground by jumping on it and pushing it into the soil! All types of kangaroos live in groups called "mobs" which means lots and lots of planting happens in one space :)

After Savanna hopped back into her pouch, Derek had an audience volunteer help him show us some Masdagascar Giant Hissing Cockroaches. While you may not want to find these in your house, they are a great help to the plants and soil outside. They eat decaying plants and animals, break them down, and leave the soil rich with nutrients.

The final animal we were introduced to was a Chinchilla named Sir Poops A Lot!! Native to the Andes Mountain Range, these animals are their own farmers! They have the ability to grow their own food! Living in a volcanic habitat, their food source is often wiped out by lava flow. To rebuild their home, chinchillas hop down the mountains, eat plants, hop back up the mountain, poop (up to 300 times a day!) and use their large back feet to "plant" the discarded seeds in the piles. The roots of the plants that grow are strong enough to break up volcanic rock to turn it into soil, so these animals play a big part in helping areas hit by volcanoes come back to life.  Pretty impressive for little balls of fluff!

After the show, Derek let us pet Sir Poops A Lot and the cockroaches, and all of the giraffes took turns petting them both! Thank you to Wildlife Encounters for another wonderful animal experience, we can't wait to see you again in the spring! 

Wildlife Encounters: Plant Helpers

Last Thursday, the entire second grade was treated to an encore presentation from Wildlife Encounters. Again, this wonderful organization brought several animals to SMS, this time with a focus on how animals contribute to the plants of our ecosystem.

The first animal we were introduced to was an amphibian. The White Tree Frog is responsible for eating insects that would otherwise harm plants. Found in Australia, the White Tree Frog, actually isn't white at all! It can be found in shades of back, brown, or even purple!

Once the frog was placed back in its container, Kirby introduced us to a familiar animal: the Six-Banded Armadillo! In the fall, we met a three-banded armadillo, but unlike that interesting animal, Tatu and other six-banded armadillos cannot role up into a ball (they have too much flubber on their bellies!). Tatu also has the important job of pest control. Searching for termites and worms, he gives the soil a good mixing while digging for his food.

Once Tatu was placed safely back into his cage, Kirby and Kat brought out another familiar critter: a Mini Lop Bunny named Iris. This cuddly, sweet animal originates from Holland and is a seed disperser. She eats the seeds of fruits and vegetables, hops away, and then poops the seed out in a new location.

After Iris went back in her cage, we were introduced to a second grade favorite: The North American Porcupine. Hollywood was a crowd-pleaser from the start and was happy to show off his ability to snatch peanuts for a delicious snack! Porcupines are great climbers and are often found in trees. Porcupines have extremely poor vision and are very slow moving, which would cause them to be quite defenseless without their quills (although fisher cats have quickly discovered that porcupines have no quills on their bellies!). Porcupines are strictly herbivores and are also seed disperses and are responsible for the spreading of many tree seeds. 

While we were sad to say goodbye to Hollywood, we enjoyed meeting the next animal: Grumpy Gus, the Argus Monitor Lizard. This Australian animal is another animal responsible for insect control. Its large throat pouch, loud hissing sound, and ability to stand on its back legs makes it appear big and scary to its predators. While we didn't get to see him standing on his back legs, we were able to hear his hissing noises when we listened carefully.

The final animal we were introduced to, which holds a special place in my heart, was a Chinchilla! Native to the Andes Mountain Range, these animals are their own farmers! They have the ability to grow their own food! Living in a volcanic habitat, their food source is often wiped out by lava flow. To rebuild their home, chinchillas hop down the mountains, eat plants, hop back up the mountain, poop (up to 50 times a day!) and use their large back feed to "plant" the discarded seeds. Pretty impressive for little balls of fluff!

after the presentation was complete and we had met all of Kirby and Kat's animal friends, we were allowed to use a "two-finger touch" to pet the argus monitor lizard and the chinchilla! So fun! Thank you again to Wildlife Encounters for sharing your animals and your knowledge with us! 

Wildlife Encounters

Today, all of second grade got a visit from Wildlife Encounters! They shared animals with us that help our Earth breathe and grow. We talked about all the things we need to do to help the plants in our gardens grow, such as turning the soil, adding fertilizer, planting seeds, protecting plants from pests, and turning the soil again. 

The first animal Krista brought out was a Tegu named Monster. The Tegu lives in the rain forest in South America and finds food near or in the water, so he burrows in the ground by the water to make his home, which helps the earth breathe. He fertilizes soil because he eats mussels with bone crunching jaw, and his sandblaster-like stomach helps him to break down the shells much faster than they would through decomposing, and he puts the nutrients back into the soil.

The second animal Krista shared with us was the  Hog-Nose Snake. They are an endangered species that mixes soil by burrowing in the ground to find worms and bugs, brings air into the soil and also add fertilizer to the soil as they digest their food.

Krista then brought out a Blue and Gold Macaw named Sophie, who plants seeds by eating them and quickly digesting them as she flies. Fruits want to be eaten by birds because birds digest them so quickly, the seeds don't get damaged. That is why they cover their seeds with yummy flesh so birds want to eat them!

Then Krista brought out a Hedgehog named Rafiki (which means friend in Swahili!) Rafiki is a friend to pets because she eats pesky bugs and insects that try to eat the plants. In Africa, many people put small shelters in their gardens to encourage the hedgehogs to stay there and keep the bugs away from their crops!

Ms. Riley got to hold Rafiki while the giraffes got to pet her!

Ping the Woylie is an animal native to Australia, they are part of the kangaroo family! Krista brought Ping to share with us because they too eat pests that destroy plants, but the pests they eat are fungus! Unfortunately, Woylies are also critically endangered, so places like Wildlife Encounters and conservation zoos are working to protect them. 

The last animal Krista showed us was Athena the Three Banded Armadillo. Armadillos live in warmer climates, and they protect themselves from their predators by rolling into a ball of their hard armor. Armadillos like Athena help the earth by bringing more oxygen to the soil as she looks for bugs and worms to eat with her long nose and sharp claws. The soil is also good for armadillos as it helps them to regulate their body temperature in the very hot climates they live in. 

After we got to pet a few of the  animals, we went back to the classroom to draw pictures of our favorite animals that we saw and we labeled the parts of the animals' bodies and wrote about how they help the earth to add to our science folders. 

Thank you so much to Krista from Wildlife Encounters for sharing so much with us today! We loved seeing all of the animals you brought along, and we learned so much about what animals to do shape and grow our planet :)