Woodland Park Zoo Field Trip, Part 3

Next, we started our walking tour through the temperate rain forest.

Here is a nursing log. A log that used to be a living tree which has fallen and now is home to newer bushes and trees.

Owls which "hooted" for us.

Tess showing us the difference between a crow's feathers and an owl's feathers. She let us hear the difference. The crow's feathers were loud. The owl's feathers were quiet. This is an adaptation for the owls who hunt at night and need to be stealth like - quiet to sneak up on their prey.

The owl feather is on the left.

Now, Tess is showing us the difference between a fox pelt in the winter time versus the summer time. The winter pelt of a fox is thicker to keep the fox warm in the cold environment. This thickness comes from a down layer, close to the skin. This is another animal adaptation. The down fur is shed in the warmer months, so the pelt becomes thinner.

Tess let us touch the pelts.

Tess also took us into the Bug House. We got to see insects that help keep both the tropical and temperate rain forests' forest floors filled with nutrients for the other living plant live to use to thrive and grow.

Now Tess is showing us how much rain is in the temperate rain forest. We get about 30 inches a year. That was not far from the start of the yarn. The furthest point shows how much rain falls per year in the tropical rain forest: 180 inches!!

Another peacock strutting around the grounds.

The jaguar called Jr.

These picture show what an emergent tree would look like in the tropical rain forest. Here is a shot of the buttress roots that help stabalize the tree because it is so tall.

This shows how wide this emergent tree would be. We walked right through it. Look for the buttress roots. That's one wide tree trunk.

This shows the canopy layer of a rain forest. It is very dense which means it is hard to see through this layer. The sun has a hard time coming through, so the leaves must be large in order to soak up as much sunlight as possible.

 Here we are in the Savanah hut. We noticed this hut is made just like the Native American homes - thatched roof and sapling sides which have been braided, or woven together.

Do you see the two hippos? Look closely.

We sure wish we had more time at the zoo. This field trip is free. The zoo writes a grant that pays for the $16 fee per student/chaperone/teacher and the $1200 bus ride for our entire second grade. We have to leave early, so that the buses can get to the high school students for their rides home. It's a bummer to have to leave so soon, but we are lucky to get this opportunity.

Woodland Park Zoo Field Trip, Part 2

 Next, we went into the auditorium for a presentation on the similarities and differences of the temperate and tropical rain forests.

Here is the forest floor of the temperate rain forest: leaf litter, beetles, banana slugs, bees, ferns, rabbits and foxes are some of the life on this level.

Here is a shot of two layers of the tropical rain forest: forest floor with leaf litter, ocelots, jaguars,  frogs, anacondas and insects live on this level; the understory has bromeliads, poison tree frogs, and monkeys, to name a few.

Meanwhile, at the canopy level of the temperate rain forest, we see birds, bats and hawks populating the bushes.

In the tropical rain forest, we see a variety of trees in the canopy layer. Vines hang from this layer. Monkeys use those vines to travel. Snakes camouflage themselves in this layer. The sloths love to live at this level.

The canopy layer of the temperate rain forest does not have a lot of biodiversity. That means most of the trees are the same in this layer. Racoons, bats, hawks, and birds live at this level.

The last, and fourth layer, of the tropical rain forest is the emergent layer. These trees are so tall that they have to have buttress roots for stability. The toucans live here with the macaws and parrots. The temperate rain forest does not have an emergent layer.

The tanager bird lives in both habitats. These birds fly south, to the tropical rain forest, in the winter to stay warm. They fly back to the temperate rain forest in the summer to stay cool.

 

People also live in both habitats.

Woodland Park Zoo Field Trip, Part 1

 We were so lucky to have a trip to the zoo to study the temperate and tropical rain forests.

Here is our tour guide, Tess. She sure knows a lot about the rain forests and animals of these habitats.

One of three resident peacocks. There are no peahens at the zoo. He entertained us while we used the restrooms.

Report Writing with George and Abe

We worked on report writing. We learned how to read a book and take notes on a prewrite. Then we whole-class composed a report from the prewrite organizer. Next, we whole-class read and completed the prewrite graphic organizer, and then partner composed

Mr. Tucker's Art

 Our class earned a 25 Point Reward. This month we chose to have my son, Mr. Tucker Standlee, who is a professional artist, come teach us how to draw a jaguar to go along with our rain
forest studies.

Mr. Tucker's drawing. Mrs. Standlee's coloring.