Posts Tagged With: environment

Happy International Polar Bear Day!!

Happy International Polar Bear Day!

e e polar bear

We are celebrating the beloved polar bear today! These amazing marine mammals are one of our very favorites! Come learn some fun facts about polar bears and how you can help protect their arctic home!

polar bear

  • Polar Bears are excellent swimmers, they have been found miles off shore.
  • They have a thick layer of fur, including on the bottoms of their paws.
  • Polar bears are carnivores.
  • Polar bears have translucent fur.
  • Polar bears have black skin that helps them soaks up the warmth of the sun.
  • Polar bear mothers build a den to have their cubs.
  • Polar bear cubs stay with their mothers for up to two years.
  • Polar bears have no natural predators.
  • Scientist think polar bears evolved from brown bears.
  • Polar bears are the largest land predator on earth.
  • Adult male polar bears can weigh up to 1,200 pounds.
  • Polar bears are protected in Norway, Canada, Russia, Denmark and the U.S.

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One great way we can all help out polar bears is to use less energy! There are easy ways to do that in your own home such as; when you leave a room turn off the lights, unplug appliances like toaster ovens and coffee machines when not in use and turn off your computer and/or unplug your laptop when not in use!

You can also learn other ways to help polar bears by checking out Polar Bears International!

polar bear lights

Categories: adventure, Animals, Children, conservation, education, Environment, mammals, nature, science, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Guess the Animal!!

Day #23 (2/26/14) – Guess the Animal

As we were looking for the Snowy owl yesterday we spotted this animal! Check out the picture, read the clues and tell us who you think it is!

arctic fox

 

  •         I am a carnivore!
  •         My white coat turns brown/gray in the summer.
  •         I am a member of the canine family!

Who is it?

Ellie and Edmond

Categories: adventure, Animals, Children, conservation, education, Environment, nature, science, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Day 22- Snowy Owl

Day #22 (2/25/2014) Snowy Owl

      We headed out to South Canada today to find an owl! These birds have been seen in parts of the U.S. this winter, so we wanted to see one in the wild. We packed all our cold weather gear! We sat around at dusk with our binoculars, a thermos full of hot tea and our cameras! We were lucky this trip and spotted the Snowy owl!

e e orange scarves

      Their range/habitat: Arctic Circle/ tundra-open land

      Their length/weight: 22- 28”/ 2 ¼-5 ½ lbs  Conservation Status: Common

      Their diet: Carnivore: lemmings, rabbits, waterfowl

snowy owl

  • Snowy owls are covered in long white feathers. The feathers cover every part of them including their feet and beak.
  • They are most active at dusk and dawn, but are diurnal (active during the day) during the summer when there is little darkness.
  • Females are larger than males and have molted or spotted brown colors on their feathers. This helps them blend in with the ground.
  • Snowy owls nest on the ground.
  • They have excellent hearing and eyesight.
  • Snowy owls mate for life and both the male and female take care of the chicks.
  • Snowy owls are ambush predators!

 snowy owl2

snowy owl3

These gorgeous owls are so amazing! They are built for the cold! This elephant and horse are not though. Thank goodness we have this lovely warm cabin to stay in for the week! We’ll be here for several days because International Polar Bear day is coming!

-Ellie and Edmond

Categories: adventure, Animals, birds, Children, conservation, education, Environment, nature, science, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Science Word of the Week

Science Word of the Week!

Welcome students! We’ll be holding class on Mondays from now on! Can you think of a better way to start your week? I know I can’t! Let’s get on with this week’s word!

nocturnal swow

Nocturnal: being active at night. Animals that are nocturnal are primarily active during the evening and night and sleep during the day. Animals have many reasons to be nocturnal; it helps protect them from predators, their prey may be nocturnal too and it helps them avoid the heat of the day.

nocturnal cartoon

Categories: adventure, Animals, Children, conservation, education, Environment, nature, science, vocabulary, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

GUESS THE ANIMAL!!

Day #20 (2/19/14) – Guess the Animal

We boarded a plane to Australia and since our plane was late, we’re doing guess the animal today! This was one of the first animals we saw as we headed to our stop for the night! Check out the picture and read the clues. (We are looking for a specific species.)

red kangaroo

 

  •          They are the largest members of their species.
  •          They cannot walk.
  •          They are marsupials!

Who is it?

Ellie and Edmond

Categories: adventure, Animals, Children, conservation, education, Environment, mammals, nature, science, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Visiting the Whales!

VISITING THE WHALES OF THE DEEP AT FERNBANK MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY!

We visited one of our most favorite places in Atlanta- Fernbank Museum of Natural History to check out the new exhibit Whales- Giants of the Deep! We’re giving you the top 10 reasons to go see this amazing exhibit!!

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1. You can learn about the whale family! That is one big reunion!

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2. You can see one of the first ancestors of whales! They walked on land by the way!

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3.There are whales floating from the ceiling (another whale ancestor).

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4. There are sharp teeth- really, really sharp!

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5. Dolphins have monkey lips! Whaaaaaaa???

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6. You can learn how whales eat! Who knew they scooped food off the bottom of the ocean!

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7. You can ride the SS Fernbank!

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8. You can touch a whale’s vertebrae!

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9. You can see a REAL Sperm Whale Skeleton and it is HUGE!!!

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10. YOU CAN SEE A REAL SPERM WHALE SKELETON! IT IS AMAZING!!!!!!!

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If you are in the Atlanta area make sure to put Fernbank’s new exhibit on your to do list! We only showed you a few of the many amazing things to discover in the super outstanding exhibit! There may even be a whale heart to climb…

Categories: adventure, Animals, Atlanta, Children, conservation, education, Environment, mammals, nature, science, whales, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

SCIENCE WORD OF THE WEEK!

SCIENCE WORD OF THE WEEK

tamandua adaptations

Welcome Students to this week’s lesson and the Science Word of the Week!

Today’s word is Adaptation \ˌa-ˌdap-ˈtā-shən, -dəp-\

Adaptation is when an animal or plant has a characteristic that helps them survive in their environment better. Adaptations include things such as camouflage, behavioral traits and the structure of an animal or plant!

Adaptations can be learned or inherited.

 Let’s check out some tiger  adaptations!

tiger adaptations

Categories: adventure, Animals, Children, education, Environment, mammals, nature, science, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

INTERNATIONAL HIPPO DAY!!

HAPPY INTERNATIONAL HIPPO DAY!! 

e e hippo

We’re celebrating one of our favorite mammals today! Come learn some fun facts about hippos and enjoy a hippo coloring sheet!!

  • Hippopotamuses means “river horse” in Greek.
  • They spend up to 16 hours a day in water!
  • Hippos are herbivores.
  • Hippos can hold their breath for 5 minutes.
  • Their nostrils,ears and eyes are located on top of their heads. They can be mostly submerged with their nose and eyes above water.
  • Hippos sweat a pink liquid to help them keep cool and it acts as  a sunblock when they are out of water.
  • They can eat up to 80 lbs of vegetation a day!
  • They do have large incisors made of ivory.
  • Hippos are very territorial.
  • Hippos can run up to 30 mph on land!
  • There are two species, the hippopotamus and the pygmy hippo!
  • Hippos closest living relative is the whale!

Hippos are amazing creatures. We are partial to the pygmy because they are so cute! There are even hippos who surf in the ocean off the coast of Gabon! Pretty cool!

hippo coloring sheet

Categories: adventure, Animals, Children, conservation, education, Environment, mammals, nature, science, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

BIRDS OF FEATHER WEEK- BUILD A NEST!!

BIRDS OF A FEATHER WEEK- BUILD A NEST!!

It’s the last day of our Birds of Feather Week! Today we’re sharing three birds who are wonderful architects! The males of these species work hard building and decorating nests to attract a female! Whew- it must be hard work!

 

Male Adelie penguins build nests from rocks. The carefully choose these rocks and if you’re a smart Adelie penguin then you steal the best rocks from your neighbor! Check out this funny video! Cheeky penguin!

Male Hamerkops build nests to improve the lady Hamerkops. The bigger the better is the rule with Hamerkops!

hamerkop  hamerkop2

Male house wrens will build up to 12 nests to impress the females. These ladies must be very picky!

house wren

Lastly the Bower bird decorates their nests elaborately to attract a female! Maybe they should have their own HGTV show!

bowerbird

We just love the way these birds work to attract their mates! Way to go hard working birds and Happy Valentine’s Day!

Categories: adventure, Animals, birds, Children, conservation, education, Environment, nature, science, Uncategorized, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

BIRDS OF A FEATHER WEEK- GUESS THE ANIMAL

BIRDS OF A FEATHER WEEK– Guess the Animal

We are featuring a bird for today’s Birds of Feather Week. This one is in honor of the snow storm that arrived at HQs yesterday!! Plus these birds are amazing parents! Tell us who you think it is.

emperor penguin

 

We live in Antarctica.

We are the largest of our species.

The males take incubate the eggs while the females go to find food.

 

Who is it?

Categories: adventure, Animals, birds, Children, conservation, education, Environment, nature, science, wildlife | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

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