LESSON FOUR

CAN YOU NAME THAT YOSEMITE ANIMAL?

COGNITIVE GOALS: Know importance of the animals that live at Yosemite National Park and how they each affect one another

AFFECTIVE GOALS: Learn what they can do as people to make a difference for the animals

FOCUSING ACTIVITY: “Today we will learn about the wildlife at Yosemite. Can you each name an animal that you think lives at Yosemite National Park?” (bears, bats, fish, birds, deer, etc.) “Those are just a few of the animals that can be found at the park. Since there are a lot of animals that live at Yosemite National Park we are going to make an ABC chart to keep them organized.”

CONTENT KNOWLEDGE:

·        Review vocabulary: mammal- endangered- species- habitat- recovery plan

·        “What weighs up to 350 pounds and eats berries, acorns and fish?” Black Bear- can eat up to 2,000 calories a day. That’s 40 Big Mac’s from McDonalds! 23 black bears have been hit by a car in the year 2009 (the main reason: because of people speeding). What can people do in order to protect these animals?

·        “I am an animal that you are used to seeing. I’m aggressive. I’ve injured and even killed more humans than a black bear!” Mule Deer-more common for person to be injured by a Mule Deer because people try feeding them. Deer may seem harmless but they are wild animals and should be treated the same as other wild animals. Wild animals shouldn’t interact with humans like we do with house pets (dogs & cats). They are wild and just want to protect themselves so sometimes they will harm a human if the human tries to pet or invade their space. It is also not healthy for the animals and it can harm them. What can people do in order to protect these animals?

·        Mountain Lion- also called Pumas, Panthers, and Cougars. Males weigh 130-150 pounds; females weigh 65-90 pounds. Hear a mountain lions roar(scroll down the page on the link)…more like a loud screech.

·        “There are only about 40 of my kind left in Yosemite National Park. I am endangered from disease and over hunting.” Big Horn Sheep- endangered because of disease from farm animals like cows and sheep that were brought over by people. Also, endangered because of over hunting and being eaten by mountain lions. Humans reintroduced the Big Horn Sheep in order to make their population grow again. Humans did this by breeding the sheep which means they make sure the animals have baby sheep and then release the babies in the wild to grow.

·        “We are the only kind of our species that humans can hear…listen…” (http://www.werc.usgus.gov/bats/western-mastiff-bat-searchphasecall.html )Western Mastiff & Spotted Bat: Listen to the clip of those bats before revealing what animal we are going to discuss. Ask students if they think they know what the animal is? Sounds like a bird but it’s actually a bat. What makes these bats interesting is that they are among the very few species of bats that humans can hear. Most other bats make noises that are inaudible, or impossible to hear by a human ear
.

·        “I can be found in Yosemite valley as well as in your yard. There are more than 1,000,000 (one million) species of my relatives and I. We make up more than ½ of all living organisms!” Insects & their relatives- Yosemite is home to over 60 species of butterflies. One type is the Alpine Butterfly which lives high up in the mountains.

·        “Adults of my species are bout the same height as you are right now (comparing to the third graders in our group) but we don’t have any feet!” Western Rattle Snake- The only venomous snake found in Yosemite Valley. Hikers and visitors of Yosemite must be cautious when they see a snake even if it isn’t rattling because baby snakes may not have a rattler and adult snake’s rattlers can fall off!

RESPONSE ACTIVITY: complete an ABC chart using various books to find names of native Yosemite animals and insects