Teaching ideas for the MESA gallery

Pick one of the ecosystems and try and build a food chain or food web using as many creature pictures as possible. You will need to include the categories of Producers, Filter feeders, Herbivores, Carnivores, Scavengers, Detritus feeders, and Decomposers.

Discuss the implications to the food web if some species don’t survive and others possibly grow in their population size as a result of climate change.

For each animal in the gallery find out if it lives in your area or where might be the closet area it has been identified.

Start your own Photo Gallery for your school so future generations have a record of the Biodiversity in your -School grounds, -Own back yard, -At the local park, -In the local stream ,creek ,estuary or river, -On your own beach, rocky shore or sand dune system.

Talk to some of the older members in your community if they have lived in your area for a long time and do an interview about what creatures they use to encounter when they were younger.

Invite a local Scuba Diver or nature photographer into your class room to show and demonstrate to you just how diverse your local area is and the changes they may have seen over the time they have been taking photographs.

Select 10 of the creatures and find out what current research is happening for that species or group of animals in Australia, if not somewhere else in the world and compile a summary report for your class.

Research any of the creatures from the Photo Gallery the list (Do at least 5)and research whether there is a government or non government body, group or society that works to conserve and educate about that creature or group of creatures e.g. Do you know what IFAW stands for?

Using some of the interesting marine and coastal facts from the fact sheets, other new eco facts you have learnt from your research, start working on an AUSSIE Marine and Coastal Ecosystems under threat-CALENDER for 2010.. to give to your friends and family.

Pick a creature or group (phyla) for each month of the year and for that month:

• Try to take your own photo if you can
• Write a poem about the life cycle
• Draw a picture of its ecosystem and habitat