YSI Visit

Last Friday, the Youth Science Institute turned our GLC into a zoo!  Arthropods, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals were all under one roof! We learned that animals have amazing adaptations that help them survive on earth! I was very impressed with the students' courage.  They were eager to pet each critter (We did not pet the tarantula).  Don't worry parents, we washed our hands right after.  Here are the animals that we saw.

This is a tarantula. Like all arthropods, it has an exoskeleton. An amazing adaptation of this animal is that it shoots the hairs off its back to scare away predators. Who knew that hairs could make excellent arrows!  We also learned that tarantulas have sharp fangs to puncture the exoskeleton of insects.

This is a toad. It is an amphibian because it has wet skin and lives part of its life in water and part of its life on land. An amazing adaptation of this animal is that its skin oozes out poison to ward off predators.

This is a Californian newt. An amazing adaptation of this amphibian is its reddish-brown skin, which allows it to camouflage in the mud. It also has a yellow underbelly, which it shows to predators to say "Watch out...I'm poisonous!"

This is a California king snake. We learned that this reptile earned its name "king of snakes" because of its incredible adaptations. The California king snake can eat other snakes! Not even rattlesnake venom can stop it! It can unhinge its jaw to eat snakes that are the same size or even bigger than him!

This is a Western Pond Turtle.  An amazing adaptation of this animal is that its skeleton is fused to its hard shell, which keeps it safe.  We also learned that these animals are becoming endangered.  When people release their pet turtles into the wild, they bring diseases to the Western Pond Turtle.

This is a millepede.  One adaptation of this creature is its hard exoskeleton.  That means, it wears its skeleton on the outside!  This skeleton acts as an armor that protects the millepede!  

Finally, we saw a chinchilla. This was the only mammal in the GLC other than us humans. We learned that the chinchilla has the softest fur in the world. One might guess that this makes her well adapted for being petted, but she was actually quite timid and shy. I guess her soft hair is just for keeping her warm!

The YSI visit came at a perfect time. Next week, students will select an animal to do an in-class research report. Today, YSI taught us about different types of animals and how their adaptations make them well suited for their environment. Now, we are ready to find adaptations in our selected animals. Stay tuned to see what we discover!