Tracks and Scat!

Today, the Urban Naturalists learned the importance of identifying animal tracks and scat (another word for animal poop) in the areas we study. Tracks and scat tell us many things about an area including:

We then became Critter Scene Investigators and examined a made-up nature scene. We used the clues left behind to draw conclusions about what the animals were up to. Check out the scene and see what you can figure out!

Checking out the Critter Scene! 

Hmmm....what are these animal prints telling
us? 

Using our tracks guides to figure out
what's visited our scene

Writing down some observations!

What does the scene tell you? 

Site Assessment

We visited the Caratunk Refuge in Seekonk, Massachusetts to do some site assessments and comparisons. While there, the Urban Naturalists found 9 objects in Nature and took notes on them. We then played a fun game if camouflage!

We saw some deer tracks along one of our snowy paths and learned about a funny little plant called Princess Pine. We even spotted the first flower to bloom in Rhode Island!

Working hard to assess the site! 

One Urban Naturalist worked hard
deciding the status of birdhouses in the area

Deer Tracks found in the woods!

A beautiful Princess Pine tuft! 

Last site assessments before our game!

Considering the places to hide for
our camouflage game!

Skunk Cabbage! Our first flower to bloom in Rhode Island! 

Scientific Drawing

Today, we had a guest speaker, Chloe, from Audubon teach the Urban Naturalists how to do good scientific drawings. We discussed the importance of focusing on shape, scale, descriptions and labeling over artistic accuracy. We found out we had MANY artists in the class, some who didn't even know they were excellent with scientific observation and recording!

Chloe showed us some excellent examples
of scientific drawings

Putting what we learned to good use! We
practiced scientific drawings using biofacts
from Audubon.

Urban Naturalist practicing drawing without looking
up from his specimen. 

Oh No! A coyote skull tried to eat one of our students!

One student did an EXCELLENT job demonstrating
dimension in her scientific drawing. 

Working hard to capture the shape of the
coyote skull!

Not bad for a short, ten minute sketch! 

Sketching out the rings on a tree cookie!

 After practicing on un-moving objects, we then took on a real challenge by sketching a LIVE animal! Meet Otie, our Eastern Screech Owl! The Urban Naturalists took some time to sketch out as many details as they could about the owl. See more examples of their journal entries on the Journal Entries page!

Observation at Work

Today, the Urban Naturalists spent time visiting the Audubon Refuge in Smithfield, Rhode Island. We discussed the purpose of refuges and took a hike outside. We saw a few animals, but found a ton of animal tracks in the snow!

We found a type of canine track in the snow.

We were able talked about watersheds within the area and how they affect the local environment. We walked across bridges over dry areas of land and questioned why these bridges were there if there is no water present. One student made the astute observation that "higher land areas will dump their water onto lower land areas when it rains because of gravity." 

Why is this bridge here if we can simply walk over the land under it?

We then took some time to do some silent observations in the woods. Everyone enjoyed some quiet time observing  taking notes and drawing sketches about the areas around us! 

First Field Trip!

Our first field trip was to an Audubon Refuge in Bristol, RI. While there, the Urban Naturalists performed a scavenger hunt to discover food chains, characteristics of a good healthy habitat, various animal adaptations and proper observation techniques. They then put these skills to use when meeting a Barred Owl named EEC!