A DESERT GOLF COURSE -- AN OASIS FOR HUMANS AND WILDLIFE!

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1 A DESERT GOLF COURSE -- AN OASIS FOR HUMANS AND WILDLIFE! There is a special desert found in the southwestern United States called the Sonoran Desert. This desert is found in Arizona and California. It also extends into the country of Mexico. The Sonoran Desert is rapidly changing because many people are moving to the southwest. Home developers are building homes on the flat, open land that is in this desert. Sometimes the homes include outdoor activities. One popular outdoor activity is playing golf at a golf course. These courses are built around the natural beauty of the desert and are called desert golf courses. They vary in size. Some are small with a 9- hole green. The most common size is an 18-hole green. The larger sizes are a 27-hole green and the largest is a 36-hole green. The larger the size, the more land the golf course uses. Not everyone is in favor of building homes and outdoor activities in the desert. Golf courses use a lot of water, and the water in this desert climate is limited, especially during a drought. Such development may also change the river washes and channel them differently. This might destroy the wildlife and vegetation. The Sonoran Desert has many types of desert plants, including the saguaro cactus that is only found in that area. It also has many different types of wildlife. Wildlife needs four things to survive: water, food, shelter, and space. The desert golf courses have ponds where birds, ducks, and fish live. They attract other animals, such as coyotes and birds of prey. There is beautiful green grass called turf. Javelina are attracted to the green turf that contains insects. The turf has hills, or berms, that become dens for animals such as rabbits and ground squirrels. They burrow into them to make their shelter. Rattlesnakes, bobcats, and deer can be found around the large open spaces at the desert golf courses. Sometimes the wildlife use the desert golf course as a pathway to find another place to live. They even appear as the golfers play golf. They follow the dry river washes around the golf courses and visit the nearby homes. It is important that people do not feed these wild animals. They are not pets. The Sonoran Desert is a special desert with unique wildlife. As we continue to build in this desert, we must remember that we are forever changing it. It is important that keep the natural desert beauty that now exists for the survival of this desert.

2 STUDENT TALLY WORKSHEET Name Sonoran Desert Golf Course WildlifeTally Chart *Wildlife includes animals, reptiles, birds, fish Directions: Using your Sonoran Desert Golf Course game, tally the wildlife found in each Square in the chart below. Wildlife Found in each Square of the Sonoran Desert Golf Course Game Square #2 Square #3 Square #4 Square #5 Square #6 Totals 15 Answer the following questions using your Sonoran Desert Golf Course game. 1. Name the desert found in the southwest that is changing due to human movement. 2. Name the wildlife that lives in the saguaro cactus in Square #3 3. Identify 2 types of wildlife that live at the man-made pond. 4. List 3 items in Square #5 that indicates human development has occurred. 5. After looking at this tally chart, do you think a lot of wildlife can be found at a desert golf course?

3 ANSWER KEY to Student Tally Worksheet Sonoran Desert Golf Course WildlifeTally Chart *Wildlife includes animals, reptiles, birds, fish Directions: Using your Sonoran Desert Golf Course game, tally the wildlife found in each Square in the chart below. Wildlife Found in each Square of the Sonoran Desert Golf Course Game Square #2 Square #3 Square #4 Square #5 Square #6 Totals (quail) (bird, bat, (coyote,rabbit)(duck,5 fish) (woodpecker) owl, snake, lizard) Answer the following questions using your Sonoran Desert Golf Course game. 1. Name the desert found in the southwest that is changing due to human movement. Sonoran Desert 2. Name the wildlife that lives in the saguaro cactus in Square #3 owl 3. Identify 2 types of wildlife that live at the man-made pond. duck, fish 4. List 3 items in Square #5 that indicates human development has occurred. Any of the following: golf green, homes, bench, trash can, rock path, manmade pond. 5. After looking at this tally chart, do you think a lot of wildlife can be found at a desert golf course? yes

4 Desert Golf Course Student Assessment Name 1. The Sonoran Desert is found in a. Arizona, California and Mexico. b. Arizona, New Mexico, Texas c. Arizona, Nevada, and California d. Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado 2. One outdoor activity that is popular in the desert is a. sea diving. b. golfing. c. skiing. d. sledding. 3. Desert golf courses are being built due to a. large open spaces. b. flat land. c. home developments. d. all of the above. 4. Desert golf courses have wildlife such as a. whales. b. polar bears. c. rabbits. d. beavers. 5. Some people do not think golf courses should be built in the desert because golf courses a. use too much water. b. change the desert habitat. c. channel the river washes differently. d. all of the above.

5 Desert Golf Student Assessment Page 2 6. John played golf on a small 9-hole desert golf course. He used one golf ball on each hole. How many golf balls did he use in one 9-hole game? a. 2 b. 9 c. 10 d One 18-hole golf course has a dry wash that winds through 2 holes. How many holes does the wash not go through? a. 2 b. 4 c. 12 d There is one pond at a local desert golf course. It has 10 birds and 4 ducks. Today, golfers also saw a road runner, a lizard, and a rattlesnake. What was the total wildlife found at this golf course? a. 16 b. 17 c. 18 d The larger the golf course, the more land it uses. Which golf course would need the most land? a. 9-hole b. 18-hole c. 27-hole d. 36-hole 10. A tally chart that shows that a desert golf course had two rabbits hopping down the berm or hill. This is shown by which of these marks? a. // b. //// c. / d. ///

6 Desert Golf Course Assessment Key Geography Assessment #1-5 Math Assessment #6-10 Desert Golf Course Student Assessment Name 1. The Sonoran Desert is found in a. Arizona, California and Mexico. b. Arizona, New Mexico, Texas c. Arizona, Nevada, and California d. Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado 2. One outdoor activity that is popular in the desert is a. sea diving. b. golfing. c. skiing. d. sledding. 3. Desert golf courses are being built due to a. large open spaces. b. flat land. c. home developments. d. all of the above. 4. Desert golf courses have wildlife such as a. whales. b. polar bears. c. rabbits. d. beavers. 5. Some people do not think golf courses should be built in the desert because golf courses a. use too much water. b. change the desert habitat. c. channel the river washes differently. d. all of the above.

7 Desert Golf Student Assessment Page 2 ANSWER KEY 6. John played golf on a small 9-hole desert golf course. He used one golf ball on each hole. How many golf balls did he use in one 9-hole game? a. 2 b. 9 e. 10 d One 18-hole golf course has a dry wash that winds through 2 holes. How many holes does the wash not go through? a. 2 b. 4 c. 12 d There is one pond at a local desert golf course. It has 10 birds and 4 ducks. Today, golfers also saw a road runner, a lizard, and a rattlesnake. What was the total wildlife found at this golf course? a. 16 b. 17 c. 18 d The larger the golf course, the more land it uses. Which golf course would need the most land? a. 9-hole b. 18-hole c. 27-hole d. 36-hole 10. A tally chart showed that a desert golf course had two rabbits hopping down the berm or hill. This is shown by which of these marks? a. // b. //// c. / d. ///

8 Sonoran Desert Golf Course Game: