Winter/Spring Homeschool - Week 6

theme: winter wildlife - hibernation & Adaptations

We have had a couple great weeks together! On March 9th, we decided to enjoy the spring weather by hiking farther than usual–where Robbins Creek meets the Boardman River. On the way down Sabin Trail, we trekked (and slid) across the ice, stopping to enjoy the views. When GTCD’s Parklands team takes care of fallen logs, they provide wonderful opportunities to stop and count tree rings. We estimate that this tree was over 70 years old when it fell!

Next, we learned that Michigan is home to not only the Bald Eagle, but Golden Eagles, as well. Bald Eagles’ head and tail feathers do not turn white until they are five years old and their vision is four times better than a human with perfect vision. Eagles’ main diet consists of fish, so we often see them flying near open water, but they also eat mice, rabbits, squirrels, raccoons, and anything else they can scavenge. 

Along the river, we found a new beach full of rocks. Many of these rocks contained fossils, so we nicknamed this spot Fossil Beach! Below is a cool photo with different types of Michigan fossils–all critters that once lived in Michigan’s ocean long ago. At the Fossil Beach, we found evidence of crinoids (second photo), favosites (Charlevoix Stone or Honeycomb Coral), and bryozoa (third photo). We even found two other sedimentary rocks–conglomerate (smaller rocks solidified into one) and fossiliferous limestone (fourth and fifth photos).

On the hike back to the pavilion, we played the Animal Game. One of us would choose an animal and tell everyone the beginning letter, and the rest would try to guess the animal. At the pavilion, we talked about animal adaptations and different types of hibernation. Adaptations are changes to an animal’s physical characteristics or behavior that arise over time to help their species survive in their environment. Ms. Paige read us examples of adaptations and we had to determine whether they were physical or behavioral adaptations. Here are a couple of examples (the answers are at the bottom of this post):

  1. Red squirrels and beavers cache food before winter begins.

  2. Snowshoe hares, white-tailed jackrabbits, long-tailed weasels, and short-tailed weasels turn white for winter.

  3. River otters’ fur has long guard hairs with interlocking spikes that protect the underfur, which is extremely wavy and dense to trap insulating air.

  4. Deer, elk, and bison sometimes follow each other through deep snow to save energy.

All of us (Ms. Paige and Ms. Rachel B. included) learned something new about hibernation today! When warm-blooded animals (mammals) sleep during the winter, it is called hibernation, but when cold-blooded animals (reptiles and amphibians), it is called brumation. Lastly, we learned that some animals will even sleep during hot and dry weather in the summer. This occurs in places where it is very hard to find water, like deserts. Estivation is typically much shorter than hibernation, and might only last a few weeks. Like many hibernating animals, we are looking forward to the warmer spring weather!

Answers:

  1. Behavioral

  2. Physical

  3. Physical

  4. Behavioral