Nature Battles: The Northern Water Snake vs. The Bullfrog
On Thursday, May 10, I was out with my 5th grade students on the trails of Prince William Forest Park in Virginia. We were visiting different sites with bodies of water collecting data for our science investigation.
The goal of our investigation was to answer the question: "Is Lake 1 or Lake 4 a better habitat for a Bullfrog?"
I've done this same investigation once before, but this time it was most exciting. While at one of the sites, Lake 1, we were concluding our collection of qualitative data on the site when we heard a loud croak and a splash nearby.
I looked to see from a distance what the sound was, and I saw a large frog jump and land near the shore. My first instinct was to walk over quietly and direct the students to move quietly behind me so we could all investigate the sound we heard. When we got closer to the shore, I looked into the water and I saw the tail of a snake right next to a Bullfrog.
At that moment, I knew we were about to see something really cool go down.
The snake had just caught the frog by his front leg! We all watched the frog try to jump away but the snake did not give up. At first the students were all sad for the frog because they all knew if he couldn't jump away he was going to be eaten. I reminded the students that everyone has a right to eat and the snakes’ life was just as valuable as the frogs. We watched the entire thing from beginning to end; this took about 20-30 minutes.
In the end, when I asked students to share their opinions on the two habitats we investigated (Lake 1 and Lake 4) it was surprising to me that some of them still thought that Lake 1 was a better habitat for a Bullfrog. Their evidence was that there was a variety of habitat space for mating/laying eggs, and the presence of many Bullfrog tadpoles in the lake.
Stories
Fall Reflections from NatureBridge Yosemite
As an environmental science educator, I spend a lot of time teaching about nature, but this season I’ve been finding that as it turns out, nature has a lot to teach us, too. Sometimes I can let the trees, the meadow, and the lichen teach for me. They show us how to respect each other’s boundaries, how to celebrate differences, how to work together, and how to lean on each other’s strengths in order to exist in a new place. These lessons felt incredibly relevant to me heading into the first week of November, a notoriously busy time at NatureBridge Yosemite. I wanted to focus on messages of kindness and inclusivity with my students, I wanted them to feel a sense of belonging in this new space, and I also hoped that they would share those messages with others.
An Incredible 10th Anniversary of Evening on the Lake
On October 25, the Amazon Meeting Center in downtown Seattle buzzed with celebratory energy as over 300 NatureBridge guests and supporters gathered for the 10th anniversary of "Evening on the Lake," our signature Pacific Northwest fundraising event for our Olympic campus.
"Science became fun" at NatureBridge for Alum Laura Lomeli Russert
Laura Lomeli Russert is a NatureBridge alum who grew up in Groveland, CA and now calls Washington, D.C. home. Laura’s journey with NatureBridge began when she attended the Golden Gate campus as a young student with her class from Tenaya Elementary. Laura credits NatureBridge with shaping not only her love for nature but also her passion for education and science. "Science became fun,” she recalls. “You weren’t learning from a textbook anymore, and it became so much more real." Her hands-on, scientific experiences at NatureBridge laid the foundation for her eventual pursuit of a Ph.D. in psychology. “I feel like I owe a lot to NatureBridge."