Cool Organisms Project

Some organisms are SO COOL and have traits that help them survive.  You are going to be choosing an organism to research and create 1 slide slideshow to display their coolness.  

Ideas:

• Animals that can camouflage can help them hide from predators or sneak up on prey.  Some animals that can do this are: Long-eared Owl, Arctic Fox, Arctic Hare.  Leopard, Giraffe, Crab Spider, octopus, squid and SO MANY MORE!

• The fastest animals:  The Pronghorn Antelope can travel at 60 mph - a track star!   unlike the Cheetah at 70 mph.  The Brown Hare can travel 48 mph but so can their predator the red fox.  The Wildebeest and the lion are at 50 mph.  In the ocean we have super fast Marlin and Sailfish.  The Spur winged goose can fly 88 mph.  Or the Frigate bird that can stay in the air for a week at a time.  Maybe you have a different fastest animal.  How does their speed help them with natural selection?

• Poisonous:  The Asian Tiger Snake is both venomous and poisonous.  Not good for the prey or the predator!  Hawksbill Sea Turtle,  Cane Toad, Dart Frog, and a Spanish Fly are also known to be poisonous.  But there are so many more!

• Smartest:   Who comes in with the smarts?  Crows, pigs, octopus, Parrots, elephants, chimpanzees, dolphins and Orangutans.  How do they use their intelligence to help them outsmart predators or catch prey? 

• Animals that are still alive today have some traits that help them adapt, change and survive in their environment.  Find an animal that has a cool or unique trait that helps them.  You can find adaptations in ants, fungus, glow in the dark bacteria, praying mantids and sloths (although not for their speed).  Find an animal that interests you and focus on their traits that help them survive.  Don't talk about how slow they are unless it in some way helps them.  

CONTENT Expectations:  You get one slide…

Pick an organism (animal might be the easiest) that has a unique or cool trait that helps it survive in nature (natural selection). 

• 3+ bullets that are fun facts about the animal in general (if it interests you then it will interest the class).  

• 1+ bullets that describe how their cool trait is natural selection. 

• 1 bullet: what ecosystem/ habitat does it live

• 1 bullet: food web, what are a few predators and what is it's prey.  

DESIGN/TECHNOLOGY Expectations: 

• Background: can be a picture, gradient or plain color.

• Quality information in bulleted easy to read form (no plagiarism).  Complete sentences are not necessary.  

• Multiple pictures of the animal.  Feel free to add a giphy.

• A short video hyperlinked (highlight the word, Ctrl K and paste the link)