|
|  | | | | The EcoZone | | Join us in a special collaborative project between Crossroads and the Bell Museum of Natural History. In March and April, students will be immersed in a special collection of Inquiry Zone work stations exploring ecological concepts such as adaptation, life cycles, and decomposition.
|
 The Bell Museum of Natural History
Home Page of the Bell Museum of Natual History at the University of Minnesota
Plants
There are many kinds of beans planted in the EcoZone. Check out the grow lab to compare the way the different bean plants look. Learn about the life cycle of a bean plant and try growing some of your own! Don't forget to check out The Great Plant Escape to learn more about plant parts and structures, their life cycles and how to grow them. Why not conduct an experiment that will test the ways different things in the environment affect plants? |
Adaptations
An adaptation is anything that helps an organism survive in its environment. Check out the different adaptations that animals use to survive. After you have learned about animal adaptations, play this quiz game to test your knowledge of the ways in which different animals adapt. |
Earthworms
Earthworms are fascinating animals that help to make the soil healthy and fertile. Unfortunately, most people do not appreciate earthworms. Visit Worm World to see just how useful worms really are. Click on the links in the orange circle. To learn more about the history of worms and about their bodies, go to The Adventures of Herman the Worm. Impress your friends and family with all of the fun worm facts that you learn! |
Life Cycles
All animals experience developmental changes as they grow. This is known as their life cycle. This website will take you through a tour of the life-cycle of some fascinating animals, such as kangaroos, frogs, butterflies, and dolphins. Click on the links on the left hand side of the page to get the details of each animals' life cycle. |
Classifying Animals
Scientists place all animals into different groups, called classifications. These groups help them to see the similarities and differences between animals. Click on this link to see how animals are grouped together. This chart allows you to easily see how animals can be divided into groups and what each groups' characteristics are. |
Giant Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches
 Not everyone can say they have a cockroach for a pet like we can. I wouldn't call them cuddly, but they are very friendly. Spend some time with them and get to know them. Where are their favorite places to hang out? What do you notice about their behavior? Read about them at the the Pet Place and from the Pet Arthropod Pages |
Dermestid Beetles
A dermestid beetle colony is amazing to watch. Dermestid beetles are important in nature to help decompose dead organisms. It has also been useful in natural history museums to prepare skeletons of animals for display. Dermestid eat off all the soft tissue and leave the harder bone structure. Some interesting websites tell more.
Use of Dermestid Beetles for Skeleton Preparation This site includes pictures and narrative about the use of these amazing beetles to prepare skeletons.
The Skull Doctor Another site exploring the use of the beetles to help clean tissue off skeletons.
|
Turtles
 We have had our turtle around for four years. See if you can find out what kind of turtle he is. Check out the Critter Catalog. Click on Reptiles, then on the left, click on turtles. Work your way through the website to see what you can find out. To find out more, explore pages about the Common Map Turtle, and the Painted Turtle. Which one do you think he is? You will have to do some research to find out. Before you leave, browse through these pages of turtles and tortoises pictures and see what else you can find out. |
Owl Pellets
Owl pellets are made up of materials that owls can't eat, such as bones, feathers and fur. Watch this Flash Movie to see how owl pellets are made. To learn more about owl pellets and to see what's inside of them, check out Kidwings. Click on the links on the left side of the screen. Before you dissect an owl pellet in the Inquiry Zone, you need to do a virtual dissection on the computer. Click on the pictures of the different owls to try each of them. Before you leave, see the similarities and differences between owl species. |
| |
