ARMADILLO. Lesson 3: Activity 1. Classroom Activities for Schools or Zoos (Great curriculum focus for use in schools)

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1 gi a n t ARMADILLO s e i t i v i t c a & s n lesso Lesson 3: Activity 1 Classroom Activities for Schools or Zoos (Great curriculum focus for use in schools)

2 LESSON 3. ECOSYSTEM ENGINEERS giant armadillo educational resources Goal/Objectives: 1. Students will be able to define the term ecosystem engineer. 2. Students will be able to describe the important role of giant armadillos as ecosystem engineers in their environment. 3. Students will be able to list one example of how humans can be beneficial ecosystem engineers. action: Students will understand the importance of ecosystem engineers. Standards: US Next Generation Science Standards: Interdependent relationship of ecosystems, Animals Plants and their Environment, Habitats. (Biological Evolution, Unity and Diversity; Earth and human Connectivity). 2nd Grade- LS2.A, LS4.D; 3rd Grade-LS4.D; 6th Grade- LS2-4, LS2.A, LS2-2, LS2.C, ESS3.C Age: 7-11 years old Materials: Teacher Resource Guide Lesson 3-Ecosystem Engineers White Board, Chalk Board or large piece of paper. Vocabulary: Coexist, Ecosystem Engineers, Shelter, Thermal Refuge W Check marks notate teacher resource information such as answers to questions posed

3 LESSON 3. ECOSYSTEM ENGINEERS giant armadillo educational resources Activity 1: Ecosystem Engineers discussion: 1. Ask students to recall where giant armadillos live. Students should remember that giant armadillos live in burrows. They dig these burrows with their long claws. Giant armadillos live in each burrow for several days before moving on to another area and digging another burrow. Explain that old armadillo burrows are then used by as many as 24 other animal species that coexist in the same ecosystem as giant armadillos. Digging these burrows makes giant armadillos ecosystem engineers. An ecosystem engineer is a plant or animal that changes its physical surroundings, and in doing so, creates and modifies habitats that influence other species. (For an additional ecosystem engineer resource, visit: 2. Some animals use the inside of the burrow as shelter from predators and shelter from temperature extremes (otherwise referred to as a thermal refuge). See Lesson 3 resource for pictures of animals using giant armadillo burrows. Tortoises, smaller armadillo species, and collared peccaries hide inside the burrows to avoid predators and temperature extremes. Tamanduas (lesser anteaters) hide their young inside the burrows when they are searching for food. Some animals such as birds and lizards dig through the sand mound in front of the burrow to look for food like insects. Other species use the sand mounds to rest on or take dust baths. Tapirs (a large species related to horses and rhinos) and white-lipped peccaries (pig species) like to sleep on the large sand mounds, and giant anteaters will dust bathe in the sand mounds. 3. Giant armadillo burrows are very important to these animals. Giant armadillos are the only animals in these habitats that dig large burrows. What would happened to these other species if giant armadillos no longer lived in the habitats they shared? W If there were no giant armadillos to dig burrows, the other species would no longer have a home to protect them, making them vulnerable to predators. W Animals that forage in the sand mound for food would have fewer food resources. W Animals would no longer have sand mounts to rest on. 4. Have the class explore examples of other ecosystem engineers, including any that might be found in your area. Here are some examples: Woodpeckers are ecosystem engineers because they excavate several holes each year and rarely nest in the same one in consecutive years. This creates many openings for secondary cavity nesters such as bluebirds, tree and violet-green swallows, chickadees, nuthatches, house wrens, wood ducks, squirrels, and owls who cannot excavate cavities themselves. These animals are highly dependent upon the availability of the woodpecker s abandoned nest cavities. For more information, visit:

4 LESSON 3. ECOSYSTEM ENGINEERS giant armadillo educational resources Activity 1: Ecosystem Engineers (continued) Beavers are one of the best known examples of ecosystem engineers. Ask the class to explore the traits that make beavers ecosystem engineers. Beavers live in dams made from trees that they cut down. These dams change water flow and create ponds and wetlands by damming streams. What affect does this have on other plants and animals? W When ponds form it kills the plants that have been submerged underwater. Water plants can begin growing in the wet areas. There are more water resources available to local animals. Species that require more water will move into the area, like water birds. Burrowing tortoises dig burrows like armadillos, although their burrows aren t as large. These burrows are used by smaller animals like rodents, rabbits, and snakes. Kelp (ocean algae) is a large, fast growing algae that lives in the ocean. When kelp grows, it creates a forest underwater. Kelp attracts smaller invertebrates and fish that eat its blades and hide in the plants from predators. Larger fish then move into the area to eat invertebrates and small fish. 5. Explain that humans can also be ecosystem engineers. Ask the class to think of ways humans might alter an ecosystem. Collect these answers on a chalkboard, white board or large sheet of paper. Have students discuss if the actions are positive or negative for the environment and notate them on the list. Ask the students what actions they can take to become beneficial ecosystem engineers! W Some examples of how humans alter ecosystems include cutting down trees and building houses, building parks and gardens, changing water flow by building dams, and creating waterways when we dig channels for boats. W Children can become beneficial ecosystem engineers by adding birdhouses, owl boxes, bat boxes, and toad abodes to their yard (links to instructions found in extension activity). All of these animals are beneficial to humans too, since owls eat rodents that are pests to humans, and bats and toads eat pest insects like mosquitos.

5 giant armadillo educational resources BECOME AN ARMADILLO AMBASSADOR Learn more about giant armadillos and tell your friends! You can learn more about the giant armadillo by going to the Pantanal Giant Armadillo Project s website at org.br/. The site has information about giant armadillos and fun activities for kids. Tell your friends and family! Most people don t know giant armadillos exist. Share this amazing species with your friends and family and tell others about the important role that armadillos play in their environment. You could even include giant armadillos in a school report or science fair project. Then, be like an armadillo and become a beneficial ecosystem engineer in your backyard. Use the materials and instructions below to build a habitat for native species like birds, owls, bats, and toads as a class or at home. Resources for how to build native animal shelters: Birdhouses: Barn Owl Nest Box: ftp://ftpfc.sc.egov.usda.gov/ca/news/publications/wild_habitat/owl_nest.pdf Screech Owl Nest Box: Bat Box: Toad Abode: Bat Box Bird House Toad Abode

6 Tapir Ocelot Agou* Tayra

7 Red Foot Tortoise Tamandua Collared Peccary 6 Banded Armadillo

8 Naked Tail Armadillo Puma Seriema Giant Anteater

9 White- lipped peccary 9 banded armadillo Crab- ea*ng fox Coa*