Meet the American Toad

Well I just popped into school to check on the animals and I'm pleased to say, all is well in the science lab. The plants are green and healthy, the turtles are swimming around, the anoles are camouflaging, the walking sticks are having a population explosion (there must be more than 100 in the container now!) and the toads are sitting in their bowl of water.

So what are these toads exactly?

There are many toad species, but the toads in Room 409 are Eastern American Toads. They can be found in areas with lots of moisture and plenty of insects, like grassy areas and forests. A mature female toad is larger than an adult male, and her skin is much rougher in texture.  Males and females have spotted bellies, but males have darker throats. Toads have a very warty appearance, and the warts (raised swellings, not “real” warts) protect them from predators by secreting bufotoxin, an unpleasant white substance that is a mild, foul-tasting poison. By the way, YOU can't get warts from holding a toad, but you probably will get peed on.

Toads have knobs on their back feet that they use to shove dirt aside so they can sink into the soil and disappear. Sometimes students think the toads have escaped from their terrarium when they are in fact just nestled deep in the soil.

In addition to insects, toads like to eat worms, slug, spiders and just about anything they can fit into their mouths. And what likes to eat toads? Snakes, owls, skunks and raccoons. Toads can live up to 30 years! 

FINBACK WHALE STRANDED ON BEACH IN QUEENS

Heard the news today about a finback whale beached in the Rockaways neighborhood of Breezy Point, Queens. According to my naturalist friend Don Riepe, the 60-foot whale is very emaciated and not expected to live. Finbacks are solitary creatures and this one was discovered alone. Finbacks are found in all the world's oceans.

Finbacks, also known as a fin whales, are an endangered species and the second-biggest whale after the blue whale. But unlike blue whales, who feast on krills, finbacks also consume a range of schooling fish, including anchovy and herring.


Note: The whale has passed on. It died Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012.

TOP OF THE FOOD CHAIN, MA!

Fourth-Graders are learning about the food chain. Here a hawk devours a tasty mouse.
Hawks, owls, and eagles are just some of the ORGANISMS at the TOP OF THE FOOD CHAIN. That means they have few or no PREDATORS.

PREDATORS are hunters who kill and eat their PREY.
PREY are the animals that are hunted and eaten.

Ms. Seitz took these photos while in Australia.

THERE'S A CHILL IN THE AIR--AUTUMN IS OFFICIALLY HERE!

Although autumn began on September 22, it wasn't until this weekend that it really felt like fall. It's downright cold out there. Despite the chill, I ventured out to the Queens County Farm Museum to celebrate the harvest and pick up several pumpkins to carve and/or paint. They have a great working farm here--lots of cool-weather plants were still growing...leeks, lettuce, kale, broccoli and more. You can even buy fresh eggs from the farm's chickens. There are also animals on the farm and they love kind, gentle visitors. I especially enjoyed watching the pigs rummage around with their big, square snouts.

The Queens County Farm Museum dates back to 1697 and occupies New York City's largest remaining tract of undisturbed farmland. The 47-acre farm is the only working historical farm in the city and is the longest continuously farmed site in New York State. The site includes historic farm buildings, a greenhouse complex, livestock, farm vehicles and implements, planting fields, an orchard, and an herb garden. For more info, go to: http://www.queensfarm.org

Praying Mantis Feasts on Monarch Butterfly!

Hey fourth-graders! I've been thinking about our first unit, Food Chains, and lo and behold, I wake up this morning and find a praying mantis eating a monarch right in my backyard. A praying mantis is a stealthy hunter. Because it eats meat (butterfly is meat!) it is a carnivore. The butterfly eats nectar from plants and is therefore a herbivore. Do you know who might eat the praying mantis?

ARE YOU READY TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL?

I am!
After a great vacation in Israel and Jordan (that's me floating in the DEAD SEA!), I'm getting my lessons ready and preparing to go in and set up the room for you guys. I'm very much looking forward to seeing some of my former students and meeting my new ones. It's going to be a great year full of hands-on experimentation and learning.

So why is it so easy to float in the Dead Sea?
The Dead Sea has a LOT of salt in it. I saw chunks of salt some as big as snowballs! Salt water is heavier (denser) than regular water. People can float in regular water, but since salt water is even denser, it is even easier to float in the Dead Sea.

Summertime!

I hope everyone is having a good start to the summer. Well, I spent a few days up North and did a short hike at Mount Ascutney in Vermont. There I saw several butterflies flying around. I didn't know what they were, so I quickly tried to identify it when I got home. It is a White Admiral butterfly. We have Red Admiral butterflies in Brooklyn, but I've never seen a White Admiral. If you want to see some butterflies close to home, check out the butterfly bushes in the school garden on McDonald Avenue. I've recently seen Red Admirals and Painted Ladies there.

I also saw this pretty pink flower. I also researched it when I got home, and I believe it is a Deptford Pink. (Related to the carnation.)

Finally, I went to the Path of Life Garden in Vermont. It's a meadow-like garden with sculptures and paths. You follow the paths, which takes you through the stages of life from birth to childhood (you walk through a maze of bushes!) to middle age to death and rebirth. I got to sit with the Buddha for a while to reflect.