African Lion Lesson
Title: Lions, wolves and people, oh my!
| Grade: 6th | ||
| Science Discipline: Life Science | ||
| Utah SEEd Standard: Standard 6.4.2 Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems. Emphasize consistent interactions in different environments, such as competition, predation, and mutualism. Standard 6.4.3 Develop a model to describe the cycling of matter and flow of energy among living and nonliving parts of an ecosystem. Emphasize food webs and the role of producers, consumers, and decomposers in various ecosystems. | ||
| Disciplinary Core Ideas: | Featured Crosscutting Concept: | Featured Science Practice: |
| · Organisms interact with the environment in ecosystems | · Patterns, similarity and diversity · Cause and effect · Systems and models |
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| Performance Tasks: | Students will analyze the data to see the effect of the loss and reintroduction of apex predator. Students will develop a model that shows how energy flows from different parts of Yellowstone National Park and the African Savanna in a food web. Students will construct an explanation for the patterns seen in interactions between animals in an ecosystem can change depending on populations and how people can play a role in these interactions. | |
| 5E Instructional SequenceEngage Phenomenon = The same spot in Yellowstone National Park looked very different in pictures taken 11 year apart. (pictures attached) Using the observations, questions and predictions handout provided, students should list at least five observations they make about the pictures. Students will share one observation they made with the class. Explore Students will come up with questions that are specifically based on their observations and write them down in the question section of their work sheets. Students will share their questions with the class, and as a class decided on three they want to focus on answering. [Teacher Hint: Now would be a good time to ask some guiding questions such as: Think about what you can’t see in the picture. What animals do you think live in Yellowstone? Do you know any animals that can change the way a river looks? What are some reasons the grass is taller in the bottom pictures?] Students will analyze information by reading the provided reading about the Yellowstone Ecosystem. When they come across information that is related to one of their questions they will highlight it. Then they will look at the graphs provided of changes in animal and plant populations. [Teacher Hint: Guiding questions could be used here as well to make sure students are on the right track. What animals were in Yellowstone in 1991? Which ones weren’t? Do you see any patterns between how many of each animals were around at different times? Why do you think those patterns exist? Could any of the animals in the reading or graph make the changes you saw in the two pictures? This also could be a good time to write vocabulary words on the board and have students define them when they are done with the reading.] ExplainStudents develop predictions for the answers to the class questions. As a class, discuss the possible answers. Students develop an argument based on the data collected about what they think caused the changes in the two pictures. As a class, discuss the arguments to come up with an answer. [Teacher Hint: You can guide students in the right direction by pointing out statements that would help lead to the understanding that the ecosystem of Yellowstone changed after wolves were reintroduced. The number of elk who had been eating many of the plants in Yellowstone to the point of it being barren and erosion which caused wider rivers in parts dropped because wolves started to eat them. This allowed trees to grow. Having more trees and smaller predators like coyote being chased off by wolves, beavers came in built dams which changed the way the rivers looked. If you would like more information, a page of sources has been provided.) Elaborate Phenomenon = The number of lions have decreased in many parts of Africa (Use the map of lion ranges over time throughout Africa. Link to map provided in teacher resources. Students will write predictions about what impacts the decline and potential loss of lions in the African savannas might have on the ecosystem. These predictions should at least be a complete paragraph and use evidence from the readings, pictures and map. They should also include vocabulary words: competition, predation, and mutualism. Students will read provided reading about the African savanna ecosystem. They will use the information from that reading and the one on Yellowstone to create a model to show interconnectedness and how energy flows in their choice of the African savanna or the Yellowstone National Park ecosystem. Students should present their models or create a written explanation for their models. Models should show how different parts are interconnected and predict what would happen if there were more or less of a species or resource. [Teacher hint: An example of what this model could be has been attached. You can have the students follow that or have them use their creativity and come up with their own models. Another way this could be done is by making computer models, slnova.org is a website where students can do this. Another alternative, if time is too short for students to create and present their own models would be to work together as a class to play the game oh deer and graph the results and have students write an explanation. The instructions for the activity are also in this document] If time allows, students should watch the linked video for this lesson plan on UEN’s website. Evaluate6.2 The written explanation by the students should be at least a complete paragraph and include evidence from at least one source they analyzed. It should also accurately describe the interactions between competition, predation and mutualism that can be seen in both Yellowstone and the savannas across Africa.6.3 Each student should make a model of a food web to show how energy flows in either the Yellowstone or African Savanna ecosystem. This model should show how interconnected each piece is. Students should also be able to use their model to explain how the ecosystem might be affected if various pieces went missing either in writing or as part of a presentation. | ||
| Materials: Computer with internet capabilities, a projector, whiteboard and dry erase markers, the images and handouts provided, poster board, pictures of animals from Yellowstone National Park and the African savanna, glue, tape, string. Computers for each student and open space are needed for optional extension ideas. | ||
Phenomenon 1 (sourcehttp://images.huffingtonpost.com/2009-03-20-Ripple_Yellowstonecopy.jpg)
Yellowstone National Park Populations
Populations of selected animals in Yellowstone National Park from 1994 to 2005. Years where there is no numbers means there was no official count unless there is a 0.
Name:
| Observations | Questions | Predictions |
Yellowstone National Park
In 1872, Yellowstone National Park was the world’s first national park. It is a large area that covers parts of Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. This area has more wildlife than anywhere else in the lower 48 states. The number of these animal species depend on their interactions with each other and on having a healthy habitat. There are many types of habitats in Yellowstone National Park, such as forests, grasslands, wetlands and mountains. Together they all make up the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
In order to make the ecosystem work all the different species have their own roles and interact with one another, from things that are too small for our eyes to see to iconic animals like wolves and elk, to the largest trees in Yellowstone. These roles have helped to make the Yellowstone ecosystem what we know it to be today. Not only do they keep plants and animals in the ecosystem, but they can shape the way Yellowstone looks.
When looking at how an ecosystem functions it is important to remember that both small and big things are an important part. Plants can be found in many varieties in Yellowstone, from grasses and bushes to flowers and trees. Plants are also called producers because they make food for animals that eat them and get their energy and nutrients from nonliving parts of the ecosystem like the sun and soil. Animals like elk who eat plants like grass, shrubs, branches and tree bark and are considered primary consumers. There are secondary consumers, animals like wolves, coyote and eagles who eat meat and typically catch food that is a primary consumer. Bacteria, fungus, some insects and invertebrates and other microscopic life forms break down organisms that have died and release the nutrients from it back into the soil are called decomposers.
The different roles and interactions that organisms have play a part in the food web of the ecosystem, but other relationships exist as well and are equally important. Some consumers, like the elk and bison in Yellowstone, live in many of the same areas and eat a lot of the same food, this creates competition. If the population of one becomes too big it could make it very difficult for food to be found. Not all organisms in an ecosystem compete for the same resources. For example, the elk is a resource for the wolf. The wolf needs to be able to catch and eat elk in order to survive, and this relationship is called predation. Not all interactions are only beneficial to one side. Some cause mutual benefits, called mutualism. Some of these relationships would be a bee gathering pollen and pollinating different flowers or a bird eating bugs off of the skin of a bison which benefits both organisms.
The roles and interactions that organisms have in an ecosystem are supposed to create a balance in which the ecosystem can function. This balance can be disrupted and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem is perhaps the most well-known and studied example of what happens when a piece of the ecosystem is removed. From the 1800’s and early 1900’s people had killed and driven away the wolves of Yellowstone. This lack of an apex predator caused several changes in the ecosystem as it disrupted the food web and other relationships the ecosystem needed to stay how it was. In 1995, wolves were reintroduced into the Yellowstone ecosystem in an effort to restore its balance, and the effect of reintroducing the apex predator is still being studied by scientists today.
| Ecosystem: All the living and nonliving things that interact in an area. Producer: Plants that can be eaten by other animals and get their energy from the sun. Secondary consumer: An animal that eats other animals.Decomposer: An organism that breaks down things that are dead into nutrients in the soil. Predation: A relationship type where one organism gets its food by eating another. Apex Predator: The predator at the top of the food chain. No other animal hunts this animal for food. | Species: A group of individuals having similar characteristics or qualities and can produce offspring together. Primary consumer: Animals that eat plants.Organism: Individual living things.Competition: A relationship type in which two or more types of organisms need the same resource. Mutualism: A relationship type where two or more types of organisms benefit from each other. |
The African Savanna
The African savanna is a large habitat that covers around half of the continent of Africa. This habitat is warm all year, with heavy rain in the summer. Tall grasses make up most of the plants on the savanna. There are trees and other plants, but they are often far apart from one another. Like Yellowstone National Park, the African savanna is a complex ecosystem. Each type of plant and animal have a role and interact with one another. Even though the species in the savanna and in Yellowstone are different, the roles in the ecosystem work the same.
In the African savanna, the African lion is the apex predator. They are the second largest species of cat, and are different from other cats as they live in a group called a pride and hunt their food together. This allows them to catch larger prey than they could by themselves. Scavengers like vultures also live on the savanna and will eat things that have died or are left over from what lions and other predators have killed. The animals that lions and other predators eat are usually animals that eat plants, or primary consumers, like zebra, gazelle and buffalo. The largest and smallest things on the savanna help plants, which are the producers of food for many animals, grow. The droppings of an elephant are great fertilizer for the seeds that are inside of it and decomposers like bacteria and termites break down materials which releases nutrients in the soil that plants need.
People are also part of the African savanna ecosystem and have been for a very long time. In the past few decades more people have started to live in and near the African savanna as the population of people throughout Africa and the world continue to grow. As people and wild animals have more contact with each other, problems arise. Both need the same space to survive and it can be dangerous for both animals and people.
Scientists have started to notice changes in the African savanna. There are noticeably fewer of some species, like the African lion. However, as the African savanna is so much larger than Yellowstone National Park that these changes are not being seen at the same rate everywhere. Scientists are still trying to figure out what these changes will mean for the ecosystem in the future.
| Ecosystem: All the living and nonliving things that interact in an area.Apex Predator: The predator at the top of the food chain. No other animal hunts this animal for food.Scavenger: The predator at the top of the food chain. No other animal hunts this animal for food.Predator: An animal who eats other animals for food. | Primary consumer: Animals that eat plants.Producer: Plants that can be eaten by other animals and get their energy from the sun.Decomposer: An organism that breaks down things that are dead into nutrients in the soil. |
Ecosystem Model Instructions
- Find pictures of animals, plants and non-living parts of the ecosystem they chose.
- Glue pictures to a poster board.
- Tape the end of a piece of string next to one of the pictures. Take the piece of string and tape it to another part of the ecosystem it interacts with. (For example, a sting could connect a lion and zebra because the lion eats the zebra.)
- Go back to the first picture and use a piece of new string to connect it to any other part of the ecosystem it interacts with. Do this until no more connections can be made. If you would like to take it a step further, use different colored string for different kinds of interactions (predation, competition, mutualism)
- Repeat process with another picture until complete.
Optional Game Instructions
1. Mark two parallel lines on the ground that are far enough apart to allow space to run. Ask students to count off in fours. The ones become the “deer” and line up behind one line with their backs to the other students. The other students become habitat components necessary to survive (food, water, and shelter) and line up behind the other line with their backs to the “deer”. (You can substitute deer for elk, zebra or other animal you wish to tie in better with the lesson plan.)
2. Explain that the deer need to find food, water, and shelter in order to survive in their environment. If they do not then they will die and become part of the habitat.
3. In this activity when the “deer” is looking for food, it should clamp its hands over its stomach. When a “deer” is looking for water, it should put its hand over its mouth. When a “deer” is looking for shelter, it holds its hands together over its head.
4. A “deer” can choose to look for any one of its needs during each round of the activity. Emphasize that the “deer” cannot change what it is looking for during a round. It can only change what is looking for at the beginning of each round.
5. The other students are the food, water, and shelter. Students get to choose what they want to be at the beginning of the round. They show their choice in the same way as the “deer” have. Emphasize to these students that they cannot change what component they are during a round. They can only change at the beginning of each round.
6. The teacher should begin the first round by asking all students to make their signs—hand over stomach, mouth, or head. Emphasize that students should choose one of these symbols before turning around to face the other group.
7. When the students are ready tell them to “GO!”. At this time each “deer” and each “habitat component” turns to face the opposite group continuing to hold their sign clearly.
8. When the “deer” see the “habitat component” that matches what they need, they are to run to it. Each “deer” must hold the sign of what it is looking for until getting to the matching “habitat component.”
9. Once the “deer” find their correct component they should take it back to their line, and the “habitat component” becomes a “deer”. Any “deer” who fails to find its “habitat component” dies becomes a “habitat component” on the other side and becomes available as food, water, or shelter to the “deer” who are still alive.
10. “Habitat components” not taken by a “deer” continue to be “habitat components”.
11. The activity should consist of 12-15 rounds. The teacher records the number of “deer” at the beginning of the activity and at the end of each round so that students can graph the results in the classroom.
Teacher Resources
A quick note: This lesson is designed to teach students about ecosystem and trophic cascades and to think critically about what implications can be made about current ecological issues by looking at past issues that have been well documented and studied. The decline of lions in Africa is a very real problem. There are fewer lions than there are rhinos, and scientists have been finding changes in the African savanna ecosystem. However, the consequences of losing lions entirely is not yet known and can only be inferred by other cases where an apex predator has been lost. Our hope is that that day never comes and we never have to find out. Utah’s Hogle Zoo is committed to the conservation of the African lion and we hope that this lesson will spark interest and the seeds of conservation in you and your students.
If you would like some more indepth reading, videos or want to know more about lion conservation, click the links below.
http://www.cof.orst.edu/leopold/papers/RippleBeschtaYellowstone_BioConserv.pdf. This is a scientific article, but it has some good graphs covering the population and health of different species from shortly before the introduction of wolves and well after.
http://www.bioone.org/doi/pdf/10.3955/046.086.0404 A scientific paper on beaver populations in Yellowstone
http://www.nature.com/news/rethinking-predators-legend-of-the-wolf-1.14841
http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2014/02/16/this-will-shatter-your-view-of-apex-predators-how-wolves-change-rivers/ This video helps explain in a pretty easy to understand way, what changes happened in Yellowstone and why.
Lions:
Map for lesson: http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/big-cats-initiative/lion-decline-map
http://www.niassalion.org/ Niassa Lion Project is based in northern Mozambique
http://pridelionalliance.org/ 5 female lion conservationist and biologists have partnered together to learn more about lions and try to protect them. They have information about each team, how they are doing what they are doing and why. They are new, but will have yearly updates and published scientific papers.
http://www.techtimes.com/articles/100526/20151029/half-of-african-lions-will-be-gone-in-20-years-what-could-happen-when-this-apex-predator-disappears.htm