Get ready to start your Expedition!

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2 Get ready to start your Expedition! What is an Expedition? An Expedition is a guided, themed interactive tour of a specific area of the Zoo. Please note: You will not see the entire Zoo on your Expedition. You are free to stay as long as you like after the Expedition is complete. Where do I go when I get to the Zoo? Your buses will be instructed to pull up and unload at the front gate. Check in with an admissions associate and they will contact your Expedition guide. After payment is settled with the admissions gate, your guide will walk with you to the start of your Expedition or provide a map with the marked location and time of your Expedition. Pre-visit materials provided: 1. Please review the background information in this booklet. It gives you a brief overview of the animals you will be seeing during your program. 2. Please review the Teachers Guide PowerPoint for the Expedition. It is included with the pre-visit packet and provides a visual walk through of the program and the standards and curriculum connections. 3. Please show the Expedition Invitation Video for the Expedition you have chosen to get your group excited about coming to the Zoo. It gives a sneak peak at what students will be doing and gets them thinking about questions we ll be discussing. 4. Please use our Pre- and Post-Visit Lessons provided when you registered. They integrate inquiry science lessons, the Expedition and the relevant CC Domain or Module texts this Expedition supports.

3 Watery Habitats Around The World Ocean Habitats: The oceans contain the greatest diversity of life on Earth. They span a wide range of temperatures from freezing in the polar regions to warm in the tropics. Many animals at the Seneca Park Zoo such as the California sea lions and African penguins rely on ocean habitats for food. Humans also rely on oceans for food and fishing provides a livelihood for over 200 million people worldwide. Wetland Habitats: Wetland habitats are varied and found all over the world, including Rochester, NY! A wetland is a location where the land is covered by water. It maybe be salt water, fresh water or a combination of salt and fresh water known as brackish water. Wetlands include bogs, swamps, marshes and more! Polar Habitats: Ice and snow provide an important role in the life of polar animals. Polar bears rely on sea ice to seasonally hunt for seals. They use snow to create dens used to raise cubs. Polar regions can be difficult with bitterly cold winds and temperatures deep into the negatives.

4 Polar Bear Range and Habitat: Polar bears live in arctic regions of U.S., Canada, Norway, Greenland, and Russia. Lifespan: In nature polar bears live years and in zoos years. Physical Appearance: They are kept warm by of blubber and fur that covers everywhere except for their black nose, mouth and foot pads. They are designed for the cold, but can overheat with exertion or a warm Arctic day. Their fur is oily and water repellent. The large paws on a polar bear act as snowshoes and they are bow legged and pigeon-toed to maintain balance. Smell most important sense for detecting prey and they can smell seals up to 20 miles away! Diet: Polar bears are carnivores. Their primary food is ringed seals but also eat other seals, walrus and whale carcasses. At the Zoo they are typically fed twice a day and receive a beef based diet that is vitamin fortified, polar bear chow, mackerel, capelin and vitamins. On Mondays they get a special diet of bones and fat and on Wednesdays they get turkey and chicken. They like treats such as apples, squid, kale, berries and melon. Social Structure and Communication: Polar bears are solitary animals. Adults have no natural predators. Conservation: Polar bear populations are vulnerable and decreasing. Artic ice loss is a concern because they use the ice to hunt their main prey, seals. Global climate change is significantly contributing to this arctic is loss.

5 California Sea Lion Range and Habitat: Sea lions life in waters along Pacific coastline from British Columbia to northern Mexico. Lifespan: They can live up to 17 years in nature and average 22 years in Zoos. Physical Appearance: Sea lions (vs true seals ) have external ear flaps. Front flippers support their body and they can rotate their rear flippers under their bodies, which allows them to walk on land. Their bodies are long and streamlined for swimming and they have good vision underwater. A 3-4 layer of blubber provides warmth, buoyancy and energy when food is scarce. Diet: In nature, they are opportunistic feeders chowing down any available fish, squid or octopus. At the Zoo, they are feed three times a day and gobble up mackerel, capelin, squid for a treat, salt tabs and vitamins. Social Structure and Communication: Sea Lions are gregarious. They breed in dense colonies on shore and males set up territories and defend them. They bark and may use some form of echolocation. Conservation: Sea lions are not endangered but are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Their enemies are orcas (killer whales), sharks, and humans who once exploited sea lions for their skin and oil.

6 Sandhill Cranes Range and Habitat: Sandhill cranes range across North America, extending into Cuba and far northeastern Siberia. They inhabit primarily open fresh water wetlands. Lifespan: They generally live 10 years or more with a maximum around 20 years. Physical Appearance: These birds have long legs and can stand at inches tall with a wingspan of 5 to 6 feet. Diet: Sandhill cranes are omnivores, eating a wide variety of plant tubers, berries, grains, small vertebrates such as amphibians, mammals, reptiles, birds, and invertebrates such as insects or worms. Chicks forage primarily on a diet of insects during their early stages of rapid growth. At the Zoo, they eat Mazuri Crane Pellets, cracked corn, pigeon mix, crickets and mealworms. As a treat they get mice! Social Structure and Communication: Sandhill cranes have dramatic courtship dances and are monogamous for multiple years. Conservation: The population of sandhill cranes is increasing. It is one of the few crane species in the world that is still common.

7 Other Resources: Seneca Park Zoo: Information on the animals you will see on your Expedition World Wildlife Fund: Photos, video and information on many habitats H2O Hero: Information about watersheds and actions kids can take National Geographic: freshwater/ Information about freshwater resources 50 Simple Things: Ideas for actions students can take to care for Earth s resources