Red Wolves Post-Trip
Summary:
Students will discuss what they observed while at the zoo and what they learned about
Species Survival Plans (SSP), species recovery, conservation, and the importance of
animals in ecosystems.
Grade Level Expectations:
GLE 1.2.1
 Analyze how the parts of a system go together and how these parts depend on each other.
o (6) Predict and explain how a system would work if one of its parts was missing or
broken.
GLE 1.3.10
 Understand that an organism’s ability to survive is influence by the organism’s behavior and
the ecosystems in which it lives.
o (5) Describe how an organism’s ability to survive is affected by a change in an ecosystem
(e.g., the loss of one organism in a food chain affects all other organisms in that food
chain).
 Understand how organisms in ecosystems interact with and respond to their environment
and other organisms.
o (7) Explain the role of an organism in an ecosystem (e.g., predator, prey, consumer,
producer, decomposer, scavenger, carnivore, herbivore, omnivore).
Description:
Using their observation notes students will begin by discussing what they learned while
at the zoo. Students will discover how predators, prey and other resources are
interdependent within an ecosystem as they complete the Predators and Prey: Keeping
a Balance worksheet.
Students may also want to develop a modified version of their original pre-trip ecosystem
story to include what would happen if an animal from the ecosystem was removed.
Materials:
Pencils or Pens
Writing Paper or Notebook
Teacher Resource (pdf)
Students’ pre-visit ecosystem stories
Red Wolf Field Investigation worksheets (completed during zoo visit)
Predators and Prey: Keeping a Balance worksheet
Option:
If you would like to add a visual component to the Predators and Prey: Keeping a
Balance worksheet activity you will need to provide sets of 3 different objects, at
least 15 of each kind; enough sets for groups of two to four students (Examples: 3
types of beans). One object would represent the predators, another object would
represent the prey animals and a third kind of object would represent the resources
consumed by the prey animals.
Essential Understandings:
Predators help to control populations of other animals in an ecosystem.
The presence of top predators such as wolves has a direct affect on the health of
their ecosystem (Yellowstone example).
Predators and prey rely on one another for the health of their populations.
Preparation:
Have students take out their Red Wolf Field Investigation worksheets from
their trip to the zoo.
Address any questions they might have from their visit.
Lead the class in a discussion on their findings from the zoo.
Ask students to brainstorm thoughts on why the recovery and reintroduction of
red wolves is important to the ecosystems the wolves once naturally inhabited.
Activity:
Break the class into groups of two to four students.
Print and distribute copies of the Predator and Prey: Keeping a Balance
worksheet to each student.
Optional: Distribute a set 3 different objects, at least 15 of each kind, to each
group.
Lead students though the instructions and the “first time period calculations if
necessary.
After they have analyzed the scenarios provided for them on the worksheet they
should generate their own. Each group can present their own scenarios and
findings to the class.
Complete the activity by discussing the importance of wolves in ecosystems as a
key predator using our Teacher Resource (see Pre-Visit Activities) as a guide.
Using the first ecosystem story students should now develop a modified version
of their story explaining what would happen if a piece of the ecosystem
disappeared.
Students should present their stories and ideas about what happens to an
ecosystem when a key species is removed. The class should then generate a
common agreement and understanding of what the effects would be.
Predators and Prey: Keeping a Balance
Worksheet
Background Information:
Within an ecosystem there are many different food chains interconnected within a food
web. In this activity you will explore the predator prey relationship and their dependence
on each other. This interdependence is important for maintaining the health of
ecosystems. Predators help to control prey populations, which in turn protects resources –
such as food supplies for plant eating prey animals.
It is important to note that there are many contributing factors that affect the balance in an
ecosystem. Disease, environmental changes and human involvement also affect the
number of predators, prey, and resources.
Instructions:
Read the background information.
Calculate the number of prey animals and resources that will remain after each
predator and prey animal has eaten what it needs to survive during each time
period example.
Remember that in order to survive an individual predator must eat two prey
animals over a certain time period. Each individual prey animal must consume
one resource item (such as grass or leaves) during the same time period.
Time Period Example 1:
2 Predators
10 Prey animals
12 Resource items
How many prey animals are left after each of the predators have eaten what they need to
survive during this time period?
How many resource items are left after the remaining prey animals have eaten what they
need to survive during this time period?
Time Period Example 2:
2 Predators
12 Prey animals
10 Resource items
How many prey animals are left after each of the predators have eaten what they need to
survive during this time period?
How many resource items are left after the remaining prey animals have eaten what they
need to survive during this time period?
How are these results different than the first time period example?
Time Period Example 3:
0 Predator items
12 Prey items
10 Resource items
How many prey animals are left after each of the predators have eaten what they need to
survive during this time period?
How many resource items are left after the remaining prey animals have eaten what they
need to survive during this time period?
How are these results different than the first two time period examples?
Try experimenting with different numbers of predators, prey, and resources and
document your results. You can also try changing how many prey organisms predators
require to survive, and how many resource items prey require for survival.
Predators and Prey: Keeping a Balance
Teacher Guide
Background Information:
Within an ecosystem there are many different food chains interconnected within a food
web. In this activity you will explore the predator prey relationship and their dependence
on each other. This interdependence is important for maintaining the health of
ecosystems. Predators help to control prey populations, which in turn protects resources –
such as food supplies for plant eating prey animals.
It is important to note that there are many contributing factors that affect the balance in an
ecosystem. Disease, environmental changes and human involvement also affect the
number of predators, prey, and resources.
Description:
Using their observation notes students will begin by discussing what they learned while
at the zoo. Students will discover how predators, prey and other resources are
interdependent within an ecosystem as they complete the Predators and Prey: Keeping
a Balance worksheet.
Students may also want to develop a modified version of their original pre-trip ecosystem
story to include what would happen if an animal from the ecosystem was removed.
Materials:
Pencils or Pens
Teacher Resource (pdf)
Predators and Prey: Keeping a Balance worksheet
Option:
If you would like to add a visual component to the Predators and Prey: Keeping a
Balance worksheet activity you will need to provide sets of 3 different objects, at
least 15 of each kind; enough sets for groups of two to four students (Examples: 3
types of beans). One object would represent the predators, another object would
represent the prey animals and a third kind of object would represent the resources
consumed by the prey animals.
Essential Understandings:
Predators help to control populations of other animals in an ecosystem.
The presence of top predators such as wolves has a direct affect on the health of
their ecosystem (Yellowstone example).
Predators and prey rely on one another for the health of their populations.
Preparation:
Have students take out their Red Wolf Field Investigation worksheets from their
trip to the zoo.
Address any questions they might have from their visit.
Lead the class in a discussion on their findings from the zoo.
Ask students to brainstorm thoughts on why the recovery and reintroduction of
red wolves is important to the ecosystems the wolves once naturally inhabited.
Activity:
Break the class into groups of two to four students.
Print and distribute copies of the Predator and Prey: Keeping a Balance worksheet
to each student.
Optional: Distribute a set 3 different objects, at least 15 of each kind, to each
group.
Lead students though the instructions and the “first time period” calculations if
necessary.
Remind students that in order to survive an individual predator must eat two prey
animals over a certain time period. Each individual prey animal must consume
one resource item (such as grass or leaves) during the same time period.
After they have analyzed the scenarios provided for them on the worksheet they
should generate their own. Each group can present their own scenarios and
findings to the class.
Complete the activity by discussing the importance of wolves in ecosystems as a
key predator using our Teacher Resource as a guide.
Using the first ecosystem story students should now develop a modified version
of their story explaining what would happen if a piece of the ecosystem
disappeared.
Students should present their stories and ideas about what happens to an
ecosystem when a key species is removed. The class should then generate a
common agreement and understanding of what the effects would be.
Time Period Example 1:
2 Predators
10 Prey
12 Resources
How many of each item is left after they organisms take what is necessary to
survive?
(2 predators, 6 prey animals, 6 resources)
What does this tell you?
The balance is kept, and there is enough of each item to survive and reproduce into the next season.
Time Period Example 2:
2 predators
12 prey animals
10 resources
How many of each item is left after they organisms take what is necessary to
survive?
(2 predators, 8 prey animals, 2 resources)
What does this tell you?
Because of the larger number of prey remaining there will not be enough available resources for all to
survive into the next season.
Time Period Example 3:
0 predators
12 prey animals
10 resources
How many of each item is left after they organisms take what is necessary to
survive?
(12 prey animals, 0 resources)
What does this tell you?
All the available resources have been used up by the prey meaning there are no resources available to
provide food into the next season, and there will be no new resources generated.
Try experimenting with different numbers of predators, prey, and resources and
document your results. You can also try changing how many prey organisms predators
require to survive, and how many resource items prey require for survival.