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Objectives
Students will be able to: learn the names of some at-risk water birds that
migrate through Nebraska; 2) list limiting factors affecting populations of
migrating water birds; 3) describe the effects of habitat loss and
degradation on populations of migrating water birds; and 4) make inferences
about the importance of suitable habitat for migrating water birds.
Method
Students role play migrating, at-risk birds traveling between nesting
habitats and wintering grounds, and are subject to hazards at either end of
the migration path as well as along the way. Each student wears a name tag
identifying which at-risk bird he represents (from the list provided).
Background
Migration is a mysterious topic. How do birds, fish, mammals, and insects
travel the immense distanceds they do with such exactness? Some travel at
night, some during the day, some in the skies, and others deep within the
sea. Yet they locate habitats necessary for the continuation of their
species. Scientists have proposed that they use the stars, the sun and even
the earth’s magnetic field for guidance. Some animals, such as salmon, seem
to use smell to guide them home from the sea. Migrating species probably use
a combination of these means to guide their journeys.
Migrating water birds require the presence of wetlands in their
breeding and wintering habitats. Since these two regions are often thousands
of miles apart, wetlands are needed in between to provide them with food and
rest. The main threats to the survival of migratory water birds are the
disappearance and degradation of wetlands.
List of At-risk Water Birds in Nebraska
Least tern, piping plover, whooping crane, long billed curlew, king rail,
trumpeter swan.
List of Common Water Birds
Wood duck, sand hill crane, snow goose.
Materials
Large playing field or gymnasium 70-90 feet long; hula hoops or bases from
the P.E. dept—one for every 3 students; chalk board or large cardboard and
marker for graph; whistle; signs so each student is designated a certain
species of bird (optional).
Procedure
1) The hula hoops (or carpet samples) represent wetlands. Place them
in two patches at each end of the playing field. One end represents the
nesting habitat, and the other end the wintering habitat. 2) Explain
to the students that they are water birds and will migrate between these two
areas at your signal. Tell them the hoops represent wetlands that provide
good habitat for the birds. At the end of each journey, the students will
have to have one foot inside a hoop in order
"survive" and continue. Those
who do not reach a "wetland",
"die" and have to move to the sidelines
temporarily. 3) Explain the limiting factors: wetland drained and
converted to farmland; drought; pollution; urban expansion; disease. 4)
Begin with all the students at the wintering habitat. Start the first
migration in slow motion. All the birds will migrate successfully. Explain
that habitat is available for all. 5) Take away a hula hoop from the
opposite region. Explain that a drought has occurred so some wetlands are
dry. Some "birds" will not find
"habitat" and
"die." Tell the students they
can come back as hatchlings when habitat is available in the nesting
grounds.
6) Continue to take away or replace hoops to represent loss
or restoration of wetlands in the two regions. 7) Bring the students
together to mark and discuss the graph. The series of migration cycles can
be graphed.
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