Panther Science

Forest Succession

fowlerm — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 22:10:27 +0000

Here is a link to a Power Point on Forest Succession. The presentation could help you answer a few of the questions below.

Click Here!

I have a few questions for you to consider:

What is forest succession?

Is forest succession good or bad? Why?

In what order would the following events occur?

1. Climax Forest

2. Bare Soil

3. Pioneer Trees

4. Shrubs and Grasses

Food Chains and Food Webs

fowlerm — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 15:53:31 +0000

We have started talking about food chains and food webs in science. Obviously these chains and webs link to systems because the webs are a group of organisms working together to ensure that everyone has food.

I would like to see if we can come up with some food chains here on the blog. Below are some different ecosystems. I challenge you to come up with producers, consumers, and decomposers that live in these ecosystems. From there, I would like to see what chains and webs you come up with.

Ecosystems:

Pond

Forest

Desert

Rainforest

Ocean

Example:

Pond

Sun –> Apple Tree –> Deer –> Earthworm –> Grass

How did grass get energy from the Earthworm?

This is a picture of a forest food web that I came up with. What do you think?

Weird Blobs Appear in Texas

fowlerm — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 11:31:12 +0000

Check out this article from Fort Worth, Texas that describes a strange organism that has recently showed up:

“They look like dirty jellyfish, but you can’t pop them because they’re not filled with air, according to experts. They’re not even fish. They’re actually millions of tiny organisms called “zooids” that have clumped together forming a slimy mass known as bryozoa, or “moss animals.” Each zooid has a tiny tentacle to feed on microscopic particles in the water.

“These unusual blobs may range in size from a softball to a basketball and are actually freshwater invertebrates,” said Dr. Billy Higgenbotham, of the Texas A & M Agricultural Research and Extension Center said in an online press release. “The colony exudes a protective gelatinous material that makes it resemble a big ball of jelly; some describe it as a floating brain.”

How would you classify these organisms?

Here is a link to a video about the blobs. At the end, the reported says that the blobs are good for the lake because they clean the lake. Does this make is a producer, consumer, or decomposer? How do you know?

http://www.myfoxdfw.com/myfox/MyFox/pages/sidebar_video.jsp?contentId=4341887&version=1&locale=EN-US

Original Link

http://www.myfoxdfw.com/myfox/pages/Home/Detail;jsessionid=A1A1C9C2DBB26893533080221B44EA8D?contentId=4340051&version=2&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=1.1.1&sflg=1

The new Terrariums and Aquariums are in!

fowlerm — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 21:27:15 +0000

We have recently put aquariums and terrariums together for science class. Our class is hoping to study the interactions between the organisms and their environment. Check back soon for observations, pictures, and more!

Have any of you out there ever made your own aquarium? How did it go? Any suggestions?

Number Puzzles

fowlerm — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 14:24:46 +0000

Clue 1: This number of tiles will make an array that is 6 wide.

Clue 2: This number is a factor of 72.

Clue 3: This number is even.

Clue 4: This number is a square number.

Which clue was most helpful?

Classify this… if you dare!

fowlerm — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 14:00:52 +0000

Please classify these animals. Does anyone remember some of the ways that you can classify?

Welcome!

fowlerm — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 21:28:50 +0000

Hello and welcome to Panther Science! This is a site for us to share our thoughts about the topics we cover in our science class. Although we have not actually covered any topics YET, we will be jumping right into science once school starts. Our first unit we will cover is Systems. This is a great unit because it really gets us thinking about how living things on Earth are related.

In Systems we will classify animals, build aquariums and terrariums, research different ecosystems, and much more!

Finally… just when you thought you’d seen it all! This video shows bioluminescence (making light with body chemicals) from deep sea creatures, mostly jellyfish.

Some questions to consider:

What do you think about this video?

How would you classify these animals?

How do these animals make thier own light?

Why would these animals need to make their own light?