Poster/booklet:
The second activity will consist of asking students to do some online research about Saint Francis' Satyr butterfly, an endangered species found in North Carolina. Several reference sites will be provided for the students. After doing some research, students will be asked to individually create a small poster or booklet that explains what they think can be done to help this endangered population. This should contain a small paragraph within the booklet or on the back of the poster to include writing skills in the activity, the paragraph should answer some of the next questions:
The questions to ask the students while they are completing their poster/booklet are as follows. The desired answers follow each question.
1. What kind of ecosystem do these butterflies live in?
Answer: The butterflies live in the Fort Bragg area. Their natural habitat is marshy and has little woody vegetation (open forests).
2. What environmental factors are affecting the butterflies? Do these factors have a positive or negative affect on the population?
Answer: The butterflies live in the artillery impact zone at Fort Bragg. The fires from the artillery burn down a lot of the vegetation in the area which is good because the butterflies prefer open forests as their habitat; however, the fires are also negatively affecting the population because many butterflies are killed in the fires.
3. Construct a plan to help protect this endangered species.
Answer: The artillery impact zone could be moved to a different location, one where populations of animals are less likely to be harmed. Also, conservationists could work to keep the woody vegetation down in the butterflies' environment so that they have open forests to live in without the danger of artillery fire which can destroy the butterflies as well as the vegetation.
4. What is one thing that is being done to help these butterflies?
Answer: One main thing to help these butterflies from going extinct, is managing their surroundings and environments. Also, current people are surveying possible habitats for the butterflies to relocate or start living at.
5. What are some other animals that are endangered that you are aware of?
Answer: Some animals that I know are endangered along with the Saint Francis Butterfly include humpback whales, tigers, and polar bears.
The following picture is an example of a poster that we created for the lesson:
The questions to ask the students while they are completing their poster/booklet are as follows. The desired answers follow each question.
1. What kind of ecosystem do these butterflies live in?
Answer: The butterflies live in the Fort Bragg area. Their natural habitat is marshy and has little woody vegetation (open forests).
2. What environmental factors are affecting the butterflies? Do these factors have a positive or negative affect on the population?
Answer: The butterflies live in the artillery impact zone at Fort Bragg. The fires from the artillery burn down a lot of the vegetation in the area which is good because the butterflies prefer open forests as their habitat; however, the fires are also negatively affecting the population because many butterflies are killed in the fires.
3. Construct a plan to help protect this endangered species.
Answer: The artillery impact zone could be moved to a different location, one where populations of animals are less likely to be harmed. Also, conservationists could work to keep the woody vegetation down in the butterflies' environment so that they have open forests to live in without the danger of artillery fire which can destroy the butterflies as well as the vegetation.
4. What is one thing that is being done to help these butterflies?
Answer: One main thing to help these butterflies from going extinct, is managing their surroundings and environments. Also, current people are surveying possible habitats for the butterflies to relocate or start living at.
5. What are some other animals that are endangered that you are aware of?
Answer: Some animals that I know are endangered along with the Saint Francis Butterfly include humpback whales, tigers, and polar bears.
The following picture is an example of a poster that we created for the lesson: