Lesson 10: Launch a Habitat Project

Lesson Information

Summary: Students plan and implement a community project to improve habitat for ocean life.
Duration: At least one full day
Group size: Groups of three to five students
Materials: Clipboards, graph paper for recording data and map-making, planting or building materials needed to implement habitat projects

Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

• Describe ways in which human communities can help ocean communities through action projects.
• Demonstrate stewardship of ocean communities by completing an action project.

Background

Habitat loss is one of the most serious threats to natural communities, and Canada's oceans are no exception. Habitat projects can go a long way towards helping ocean communities.

Projects that improve coastal habitats, such as salt-marshes and sandy shores, are of enormous benefit to ocean life. But equally important are inland projects beneficial to marine migrators, such as waterfowl, herons, shorebirds, and anadromous fish (those that require both fresh- and salt-water habitats). Healthy freshwater habitats also mean cleaner water flowing into ocean communities. So, no matter where you live in Canada, you can implement a meaningful ocean habitat project.

The procedure below includes guidelines for organizing your project. Links to a wide variety of community projects follow.

Procedure

1. This activity is most effective as the culmination of a unit on ocean communities. Review the links between local habitats and ocean communities (watersheds, drainage basins, migratory marine species). Ask your students whether there are local areas that serve as habitat for ocean communities or marine migrators or that could be enhanced to improve water quality. Local wildlife agencies can help you identify a site.
2. Visit the site in question. For comparison, visit a second site that is in a healthy state. Make sure you get permission from school authorities, parents, and landowners whose property you might traverse. Discuss safety issues and arrange to have volunteer supervisors along. Don't forget to pack a first-aid kit, sunscreen, insect repellent, Epipen, and drinking water. Youngsters should wear appropriate clothing and bring any special medication they need.
3. Divide the class into groups of three to five students and equip each with a clipboard, graph paper, and pencil. Ask the students to compare the two sites, making the following observations:
• Record all signs of wildlife in the area, including fish.
• Record signs of vegetation. Does it look healthy and abundant? Are there areas that could use more vegetation?
• Are there signs of invasive (non-native) plants or animals?
• Are there signs of erosion or unstable shores?
• Are there signs of trampling by humans or domestic animals?
• Are there any other signs of human impacts that might be remedied?
• Does the water look clean and free of oil and other pollutants?
• Is there a variety plant life, such as trees, shrubs, wildflowers, and grasses?
• Ask each group to sketch a map of the area to be improved.
4. Back in the classroom, review the gathered data and discuss possible habitat improvements. Ask the groups to pinpoint problems to be solved, such as the invasion of non-native species, shoreline erosion, or poor water quality. Determine if any of the key wildlife habitat elements C food, water, shelter, and space C is lacking or insufficient. Are year-round food sources available? Does wildlife have adequate shelter to nest, hide from predators, and take cover from harsh weather? Is there enough space for plants to grow and for animals to raise their young?
5. Form a vision of how to improve the habitat. Brainstorm solutions with your students. Consult with experts, such as biologists and conservation officers. If natural areas have vanished from your community, find out what kinds of vegetation, animals, and food webs once existed in similar areas by consulting local libraries and historical societies.
6. Draw up an action strategy. Plan to supply one or more of the four key habitat elements: food, water, shelter, and space. Aim for diversity. An array of structures and plant communities in a variety of patterns, such as clumps, thickets, and edges, will attract a wider assortment of species. Plant trees, wildflowers, grasses, and aquatic plants native to your area to help conserve the local gene pool. Draw a map or create a model of the "improved" site and make a materials and equipment list. Remember to register as a Blue School with CWF by using the Blue School Registration Form.
7. Get the go-ahead. Obtain permission from your municipality or landowners before carrying out your project. Ask by-laws inspectors about local regulations.
8. Implement your plan. Develop partnerships by enlisting parents, seniors, and other community members. Ask local businesses and organizations, such as nurseries and wildflower societies, to donate services. A successful habitat strategy doesn't come from a cookbook approach. Trial and error are vital ingredients. Remember to take pictures before, during, and after your activities.
9. Follow up by checking regularly to ensure that planting projects are well nurtured and that building projects are in good repair. Write articles on your progress for a local paper or hold a media event to promote ocean awareness.

Evaluation

Evaluate students' action plans for creativity and inclusion of one or more of the four habitat components.

Habitat Project Ideas

Restore a Ribbon of Life
Revitalize the moisture-loving strip of vegetation along a water body to control erosion and boost an entire shoreline community.

Restore an Aquatic Plant Community
Reintroduce native aquatic plants by sowing seeds or transplanting vegetation from a donor site.

Salvage a Salt-marsh
Recover one of the Earth's most life-rich ecosystems.

Work Wonders for Wetlands
Implement strategies to save soggy spaces, such as marshes and vernal pools, for a wide range of species.

Protect Prairie Potholes and Streams
Promote shoreline-friendly cows and crops, grow a living fence row, and plant upland grasses to conserve some of Canada's richest aquatic habitat.

Adopt an Urban Waterfront
Reclaim a metropolitan shoreline by cleaning up garbage, preventing pollution, planting a vegetation buffer, and undertaking other habitat initiatives.

Lend Wings to Ospreys
Build nesting platforms for these noble fish-hawks to offset the loss of natural breeding sites along shorelines.

Furnish Quarters for Colonial Birds
Extend the life of a heron rookery by replacing collapsed nesting trees with artificial structures.

Keep the Waterfowl Comeback on Track
Advance the recovery of Canadian ducks by providing nesting cylinders for mallards, pintails, and teal and nesting boxes for mergansers, goldeneyes, and buffleheads.

Keep Loons Afloat
Ease the impacts of shoreline developments and recreational activities on one of our most beloved birds.

Assist Finned Friends in Need
Help fish in their upstream battle by clearing debris from salmon streams, creating escape cover for walleye, and planting shoreline vegetation.

Build a Dragonfly Pond
Create aquatic habitats with the needs of "mosquito hawks" in mind.

Mind a Micro-migration
Give safe passage to rambling reptiles and ambulatory amphibians.

Take Migratory Birds Under Your Wing
Make way for avian wayfarers by conserving a flyway, curbing collisions, and taking other initiatives.

Accommodate Amphibians
Provide ponds, toad abodes, and hibernacula to make amphibians feel at home in your community all year round.

Resist the Alien Invasion
Root out purple loosestrife, muscle out zebra mussels, and battle other exotic invaders now wreaking havoc on habitat.

Purge Pesticides From Your Community
Explore organic alternatives to pesticides and promote legislation restricting the use of these harmful chemicals in your area.

Conserve Water Quality
Learn how your municipality contributes to aquatic impurity, test water quality, and cut contaminants off at their source.