Ecology Observations Day 2

Day 2 of our observations and we learned even more than day 1!
Some students were really lucky in their observations while others were not so lucky.

Some of the luckiest observations included a desert tortoise, harris hawk, as well an Arizona blond tarantula! It's amazing that such a variety of animals actively participate in our Sonora desert ecosystem.

Some quick facts about some of the animals observed:
Desert tortoises can live up to 40 years.
Harris hawks hunt cooperatively in groups of 2-5.
Tarantulas live off fat reserves in the winter after they burrow themselves in their hole.

Ecology Observations Day 1

Today was the first day the students reported their ecology observations.
People reported on seeing rabbits, various birds, and even some hawks! Some other students reported on the types of plants they saw.

Using various online resources such as the Pima Community College Desert Ecology site, wikipedia.org, and Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum we were able to specify what animals plants, and bugs were actually witnessed. We also learned a bunch about these different organisms.

We discovered that most the rabbits seen were actually desert cottontails and we were able to distinguish the many different cacti from barrel, to prickly pear to cholla.

Some of the new organisms observed:
Desert cottontail
Barrel, prickly pear, and cholla cacti
Cactus wren
Mourning dove
Bumble bees

Welcome!

Welcome to Mr. J's third grade class blog! From here you will be able to check on what we are currently working on in class. This blog will be used as a medium for various projects, such as our ecology project.

The students will be reporting on desert animals that they will observe out of school in the desert or their backyard. They will be giving be their observations day to day for three days and I will report and update them on this blog.

Thanks for the visit,

Mr. Jungbluth