Name: ______

Animal Adaptation Stations

Station #1 Duck Station

Ducks coat their feathers with oil so they will float in water. Ducks have a special body part that takes the oil from the food it eats so that the duck can use it.

Procedures:

In the cotton ball area:

  1. Take on cotton ball and place it in the water. Wait a few seconds and then record your observations below.

______

  1. Next, take another cotton ball and soak it in oil. Then place it in the water. What happens to the oil-soaked cotton ball in the water?

______

In the brown paper bag feathers area:

  1. Take two paper bag feathers and place them on your paper towel. Use the basting brush to coat one side of one of the feathers with oil. Leave the other feather untouched. Then, take your water dropper and squirt a few drops of water on both feathers.
  2. What happens to the water on the oiled feather?

______

  1. What happens to the water on the non-oiled feather?

______

Conclusion:

  1. Why do you think ducks coat their feathers with oil?

______

  1. Why is this an important structural adaptation?

______

Station #2 How Newts and Salamanders “Hear”

Procedure:

  1. Place the pie pan upside down on a table.
  2. Sprinkle a very thin layer of salt over the upturned bottom of the pan.
  3. Tap on the upturned bottom of the pan with the spoon.
  4. Observe and record any difference in the movement of the salt crystals.

Observations: ______

The molecules in the pan that are struck by the spoon start to vibrate(move back and forth). As these molecules move, they bump into neighboring molecules and start them moving, but with slightly less energy. This continues until there just is not enough energy to cause the neighboring molecules to vibrate. Newts and salamanders that walk on land are able to "hear" by feeling vibrations from the surface they stand on. A slender muscle connects the shoulder blade to bones set in a thin membrane of the ear cavity in the head. The vibrations from the surface travel up the bone in the front leg to the shoulder blade, through the muscle, and on to the ear. Sounds close to the animal produce stronger vibrations, just like the greater movement of the salt crystals close to the spoon.

  1. Could a person that is deaf use this structural adaptation? How?

______

  1. How could the newt and salamander use this structural adaptation to their advantage?

______

Station #3 How Elephants Ears Cool Them Off

Procedure:

  1. Hold the index card about 4 inches (10 cm) above the skin on your arm.
  2. Quickly fan the index card back and forth on the bottom half of your arm about 10 times.
  3. Observe any cooling of your skin due to the fanning paper.
  4. Next, wet the paper towel with some water.
  5. Rub the wet towel over the surface of the bottom half of your arm.
  6. Hold the index card about 4 inches above your wet arm.
  7. Quickly fan the index card back and forth about 10 times.
  8. Again, observe any cooling effect on the skin.
  1. Which fanning felt cooler to your skin? Wet or Dry?

______

  1. Why do you think this is?

______

The cooling effect is due to the evaporation of the water from the skin. Evaporation occurs when a liquid absorbs enough heat energy to change from a liquid to a gas. The water takes energy away from the skin when it evaporates, causing the skin to cool. Elephants use their trunks to spray themselves with water; then they fan their bodies with their large ears. The fanning of their ears, like the index card, increases the flow of air across the skin. The moving air speeds the evaporation of the water and, thus, aids in the cooling of the skin.

Station #4 Blue Whale (A Baleen Whale)

Procedure:

  1. Fill a bowl of water and sprinkle heavily with pepper.
  2. Dip the comb into the water.
  3. Then, dip the toothbrush into the water.
  4. Complete your conclusion.
  5. Rinse the bowl, comb, and toothbrush out in the sink for the next group.

Conclusion:

  1. What collects more pepper?

______

  1. Read the paragraph below the questions (may be on the next page).Which tool acts most like baleen? Why?

______

  1. How does it work better?

______

Baleen is a sifter-like device (filter) that Mysticeti (Baleen whales) use to obtain food and nourishment (krill). Baleen is a series of stiff, flexible material that hang from the upper jaw. The inside of the baleen is edged with hairy plates that filter krill. Baleen is made of keratin (the same substance our fingernails are made of). It is also called whalebone. Baleen whales use the bristles they have for teeth to filter across the surface of the ocean for feeding.

Station #5 Blubber!

Procedure:

  1. Take one hand and stick it into the bowl of ice water for a few seconds, then dry it off with a paper towel. Write an observation about how the ice water felt below.

______

  1. Take your other hand and stick it inside the “blubber glove” inside the other bowl of ice water for a few seconds. Be careful to not allow ice water inside the glove.
  1. Both bowls were filled with ice water. Write an observation of what happened to the hand that was placed in the blubber glove below. How did the blubber glove make the ice water feel?

______

The animals of the Arctic and Antarctic circles spend their lives surviving subfreezing air temperatures and frigid water. Their secret is blubber, a thick layer of body fat that comprises up to 50% of some marine mammals and can range from 2in thick in dolphins and smaller whales, to more than 12in thick in some bigger whales. Blubber acts an insulator so that the animal can retain heat.

Station#6 Bird Beaks

Procedure:

  1. Choose one of the tools given to use as your first “beak.” Write the name of the tool/beak you used in the chart below.
  2. Set the timer for 30 seconds.
  3. Start the timer and try and grab as many “bugs and insects” as you can out of the first tray.
  4. Record how many you collected in the chart below:

Tools Used / Collected in Tray 1 / Collected in Tray 2 / Collected in Tray 3
Beak tool 1: ______
Beak tool 2: ______
  1. Place the items you collected back in the correct tray.
  2. Using the same tool, set the timer again for 30 seconds, and collect your data for Tray 2.
  3. Repeat the same sequence for Tray 3.
  4. Next, choose a second tool/beak and write the name of it in the chart above.
  5. Repeat steps 2-7 for the second beak/tool.
  6. Compare your data and answer the questions below.

Conclusion:

  1. Which beak/tool worked best for Tray 1 (Earthworms)?

______

  1. Which beak/tool worked best for Tray 2 (Beetles)?

______

  1. Which beak/tool worked best for Tray 3 (Fish)?

______

  1. Using the information you collected, why do you think a bird’s beak is an important structural adaptation?

______

Station #7 Camouflage

In the wild there are two types of animals: the hunters and the hunted. A good predator is always on the prowl for fresh prey. What can an animal do to stay off of the menu? To survive, some animals use camouflage so they can better blend in with their surroundings. In this science project, you will be the hungry predator hunting for M&M prey. But it may not be as easy as it sounds — some of your prey will be camouflaged by their habitat. Will they be able to avoid your grasp? To find out, work up that appetite and go hunting!

Procedure:

1.You are all now an M&M birds. Make a "beak" using your pointer finger and thumb for collecting M&M's candies.

2.Set the timer for 20 seconds. During those 20 seconds, you will use your beak to quickly pick up M&M's and quickly put them in their other hand.

  1. Avoid picking up any Skittles candies because Skittles make M&M's birds sick. The Skittles represent the habitat that the M&M's candies live in.

3.Start with Tray 1. Start the timer and quickly try and pick up as many M&M candies as you can without picking up any Skittles.

4.Record your results in the table below and the procedures continue on the next page:

Collected in Tray 1 (Green Skittles Habitat) / Collected in Tray 2 (Orange Skittles Habitat) / Collected in Tray 3 (Red Skittles Habitat)
Red M&Ms
ALL MEMBERS GROUP TOTAL

5.Replace the candies in the correct tray you collected them out of.

6.Re-set the timer for 20 seconds and this time, collect from Tray 2 and record your results again.

7.Replace the candies in the correct tray you collected them out of.

8.Analyze your data by adding up the amount of M&Ms picked up by every member of your group and answer the questions below.

Conclusion:

1.What do you notice between the color of the Skittles habitat and the color of the M&M's that were picked? (Hint: Any interesting patterns??)

______

2.How do you think this camouflage survival strategy would work in the wild?

______

Station #8 Behavioral Adaptations (Instincts)

On the tableis a baby doll and a baby bottle. What behavioral adaptation (instinct) does this remind you of that we talked about in class on Friday?

______

Use the computers for the next few minutes to research behavioral adaptations and record five more below: (Hint: Remember a behavioral adaptation (instinct) and a learned behavior (taught) are not the same!!!)

  1. ______
  2. ______
  3. ______
  4. ______
  5. ______

What is the difference between a behavioral adaptation and a structural adaptation?

______