|
|
Reach Out With Outreach
One of Wildlife Club's main activities is running Outreach
programs at local elementary schools and Scout groups to help foster an
appreciation for wildlife. The focus of these informal presentations are
live animals provided by Sciensational
Sssnakes!!!. No experience is necessary (okay - reading over the
information below would be helpful) but enthusiasm is a must!
Emails will be sent out to club members when a program is
scheduled and those who are available and interested can reply. Days and
times vary, but two hours usually allows for picking up the animals,
transportation, and the program itself.
Below are information bundles for four of the main species
we used when Dr. Bogart at the Aqualab was providing animals (thanks should
go to Lisa for preparing them). Our species have now changed, but the
information below gives a good idea of what we'll talk about. If you think
something should be added/removed/changed, give a shout to
wildlife@uoguelph.ca. New
submissions for the other animals we use are also welcome.
Additionally, there is the option for designing "themes" for
the visits; i.e., if the class is studying camouflage, we can focus our
visit on aspects dealing with hiding. Design of the themes (as well as
sheets for us and teachers) is a great place to start if you want to get
involved.
Species Information
- Painted Turtle
- shell - top = carapace, bottom = plastron
- each turtle has a unique pattern on its carapace, like each
person has a different fingerprint
- dry, scaly skin
- sharp-edged beak instead of teeth
- good eyesight and hearing
- raccoons are a major predator of adult turtles
- eggs and hatchlings eaten by crows, bears, raccoons
- live in plant-filled ponds, lakes, and streams
- eat insects, snails, fish, worms, parts of lily pads
- spend winter at the bottom of ponds
- eaten by people in soups - a delicacy
- females are larger with shorter foreclaws and tails
- like to bask to keep warm and sunlight is good to get rid of
parasites
- can live up to 40 years or more
- over winter, can absorb oxygen through skin (don’t need much to
survive when dormant)
- native to Ontario
- Ball Python
- also known as Royal Python
- 3 - 6 feet in length (rarely 6’ in captivity)
- ground snakes but comfortable in trees
- from hot, dry Savannah (mixed grasslands and trees) regions in
Africa (western and west-central Africa)
- nocturnal / diurnal
- adult will eat 1 rat every 10-14 days (2 weeks)
- in wild eat small rodents
- can go for months without eating when in hibernation
- called “ball” pythons because when frightened, coil into a ball
around their head
- constrictors - wrap around and squeeze their prey
- in captivity, can live up to 50 years (20-30 more likely)
- in wild, a threatened species (habitat destruction, pet trade,
killing for skin and food)
- one of the most popular snakes in the pet trade
- have heat pits near their mouths to detect prey
- have spurs, which are remnants of legs
- at Guelph because it was found at the airport being brought
illegally into Canada as a pet
- shed skin very often when small and growing (every couple of
weeks) - when bigger, shed much less (every couple of months)
- takes 7 - 10 days to shed
- Grey Treefrog
- found in US and Canada
- can change colour from grey to green to blend into background
- yellowish-orange markings on inside of hind legs
- colour under back legs shows when they jump - can startle prey
and give frog a chance to escape
- large adhesive pads on the end of its toes - can cling to
vertical surfaces
- live near ponds and trees, hide during the day in trees, under
bark or on leaves
- most active in summer at night
- eat insects, spiders, and other invertebrates
- nocturnal, call at night
- hibernate (antifreeze produced - glycerol)
- lifespan of 7-9 years
- predators: raccoons, snakes, etc.
- absorb water through their skin (can absorb poisons from air and
water very easily this way too)
- have ears (located behind eyes) - males have ears bigger than
eyes, females have ears smaller than eyes
- Yellow-Spotted Salamander
- harmless amphibian
- smooth, moist skin (no scales)
- bodies slow down as they cool, so they must burrow away for the
winter
- eat insects, worms, snails, spiders, slugs
- use sight and smell to find prey
- make no noise
- have ears, but can’t hear - can feel vibrations
- can regrow tails and legs - this regeneration of limbs is being
studied
- breed and lay eggs in water, but spend most of time on land in
moist places
- larvae are smaller and flatter than frog tadpoles
- native to Ontario
- come out at night
- hide during the day under logs and rocks
- clawless toes
- have lungs but can also breathe through skin (can easily absorb
poisons from air and water this way)
- salamanders have a lifespan of 1 - 60 years, depending on the
species
- Amphibians in General
-
~3900 species
- smooth, moist skin (no scales)
- many glands (poison & mucous)
- small teeth
- respiration: lungs, skin, and/or gills
|
|
