Winter at the ODC

What a fun morning!  We had an opportunity to visit the Outdoor Discovery Center today to learn about plants and animals in the winter months. Our guide was again the wonderful Miss Kelsey!  She was fantastic when we were together in the fall, and she did not disappoint today!

We began our morning inside.  The kids were given about five minutes to check out some of the living animals, such as snakes and turtles.  In addition, there were LOTS of cool taxidermy animals to look at as well!

Miss Kelsey gathered us in the back room to talk about animals in the winter.  She also had three live animals to show us.  First, Miss Kelsey asked the kids if they could remember the five things every animal needs in order to survive.  Of course,  those things are a habitat, food, water, air and space to move.  She then taught us that animals will do one of three things to survive the winter:  Migrate,  Adapt, or Die  (MAP). 

The first animal she brought out was Willow the rabbit.  Miss Kelsey asked the children how Willow would survive the winter and the kids determined that she would ADAPT by growing thicker fur, eating a lot more to increase the fat (to keep her warm) and finding shelter to decrease the need to expend energy.

The next animal Miss Kelsey brought out was a Garter Snake (often mistakenly called Gardener Snake).  When asked, the children determined that the snake would also ADAPT to survive the winter.  Miss Kelsey explained that in the winter, snakes will BRUMATE, which is almost like hibernate, to slow their heart rate and handle the cold temperatures.  She also told us that snakes return to the same hibernaculum, or winter quarters, each winter.

The final animal Miss Kelsey showed us was a Red Slider Turtle.  The children again determined that turtles would ADAPT to survive the winter by digging into the mud at the bottom of a pond, and sleep though the winter.

Our next stop was a quick visit to the elk enclosure.  We were so very fortunate today!  The male elk was lying very close to the viewing deck!

We were on our way to the BRAND NEW Birds of Prey building next!  This was newly constructed this fall, so it was very exciting to be able to see it today!

On our way there, Miss Kelsey pointed out a DREY (squirrel's nest) in a tree.

This is the brand new Birds of Prey building!  Each bird has its own cage around the outside perimeter of the building.  The cages are accessible from the inside of the building for the staff, and there is a room with bleachers on the end for staff members to host a group of children for teaching about the birds.

Here are just a few of the birds around the building.  Each bird has been either injured or was previously kept as a 'pet', which caused it to depend on humans, thus unable to find its own food.  The ODC has been granted permission to house them because they would not survive on their own.

Great Horned Owl

Golden Eagle

Bald Eagle

Miss Kelsey then took us into the side room to show us a Peregrine Falcon.  She explained that each of the birds has a 'Jess' (leash) attached to its ankle, which is hooked onto a glove used to hold the bird.  A glove must be worn to protect her from their sharp talons!  Miss Kelsey told us that the bird will flap its wings when she moves because it is trying to gain its balance.  She also explained that when the bird shakes its wings, he is adjusting its feathers (like when we brush our hair).

When we left the Birds of Prey area, we were off to revisit three areas that we saw in the fall:  the woods, the pond and the meadow.  On our way through the woods, we stopped at the hibernaculum area where snakes brumate for the winter.

Miss Kelsey and the kids discovered some animal tracks, a dead mouse and some scat (animal poop).  They figured out that most likely the animal was a fox or coyote based on the tracks.  

They also found a humongous fungus, which Miss Kelsey had never seen before and could not name for us!  She did say that a fungus grows in wet, cool places, and this particular fungus gave off dust (spores) when it was bumped.

As we continued on our walk, we found another type of fungus growing on the side of a log and the Praying Mantis nest that we discovered last fall!  Miss Kelsey reminded us that in the spring, over 200 babies would emerge from the nest!

Our next stop was to see the pond!  In the fall, the pond area was still a bit green, and the water was warm enough to touch.  We saw some fish and plants in the water.  This time, the pond was frozen over except for the edges.  Some of the kids and Miss Kelsey did see a few small minnows swimming near the edge, but Miss Kelsey explained that in the winter, fish don't swim around a lot to conserve energy, and also stay deep, where the water is warmer (so they also adapt to survive the winter).

 

 

We were running short on time, so we didn't have time to stop in the meadow area, but we were able to walk through it on our way back to the bus.   We had a fantastic time at the Outdoor Discovery Center today!  Thank you to Miss Kelsey for teaching us about nature in the winter!  Thank you to the parents who joined us on the trip today.  A big thank you to the ODC for hosting us today and to our administration, who provides this wonderful experience for our first graders in each season!