Astoria
Park Elementary School Mrs. Sandy Beck,Teacher Alien Invaders In this class, students will learn about "Florida's Most Unwanted" – plants, animals, insects and microbes from other parts of the world that find their way to our shores. They will learn how to identify these aliens, discover where they came from, track their pathways and learn why they are "unloved" and how to keep them out of our backyards, parks and natural areas. Students will work with Judy Ludlow, a biologist from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Bureau of Invasive Plant Management, to survey the invasive exotic plant species on our school campus and go on a field trip to discover the aliens that lurk at a nearby park, the Lake Jackson Mounds Archeological State Park. Students will also meet and learn about some of the invasive exotic animal species that are making life hard for Florida's native birds, reptiles, mammals, amphibians and insects. Using interdisciplinary as well as critcal and creative thinking skills, each student will create a field guide to our area's invaders as well as participate in a restoration project, replacing some of Astoria Park's invasive exotics with native species. Important Vocabulary for This Class: Glossary Invaders Crossword Puzzle #1 – Answers can be found in the Glossary. Field Trip Information and Permission Form Background Information
All exotics aren't bad, but some are horrific. Natural boundaries, like mountains and oceans, once kept species from moving beyond their home range. But when people began traveling around the globe to trade and settle new lands, they took plants and animals with them. Florida’s first European settlers brought crops and livestock from their homelands, including horses, cattle, wheat, sugarcane, oranges and tomatoes. While these and many other non-native species, behave nicely and put food on our table, others, without the natural predators, seasonal changes and diseases that controlled them on their home turf, become “invasive." Invasive non-native plants spread rapidly, outgrowing and destroying our native plants. Invasive exotic birds and other wildlife take over native species' habitats and food supply and sometimes even kill and eat them! Florida’s Unique Vulnerability During the last century, the flood of exotic species taking root in Florida spiked with the increase in world trade. Exotics have been brought in either intentionally, as ornamentals or pets, or accidentally, as hitchhikers that arrive at our busy international airports, seaports or through the mail. Our warm climate and already disturbed areas make the Sunshine State exceptionally vulnerable to the escape and spread of exotic plants and animals. More than 1.5 million acres of Florida's remaining natural areas have become infested and overwhelmed with non-native plant species. One third of all plant species in Florida are now exotic, and more than 100 of those have become invasive. Forty-five species of exotic reptiles and 58 species of exotic birds are living and breeding in Florida. So what's the problem with destroying and replacing native species? * Without anything to stop them, invasive plants can take over and cover acres and acres. When this happens, no other plants or the animals that depend on them survive.
Invasive exotic species are responsible for destroying more natural habitat each year than is lost to development! Invasive exotic species are also responsible for the extinction of many native species, and extinction is forever! Invasive exotic species destroy our natural biodiversity. --------------------------- Astoria Park Elementary Program for Gifted and Able Learners |
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