Teachers Guide to Field Science in the Classroom: Using Scientific Tools and Databases to

Explore Okaloosa Ecosystems and Wildlife

Activity 2: Exploring Okaloosa Habitats

Key Question
What are the characteristics and distribution of the habitats and land cover types in our region?

Objective
Students explore the habitats around Okaloosa (using EOL and Google Earth) and generate questions about how
land cover and habitat might influence species.

Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to:
Use technology and data to explore ideas
Assess validity and utility of information
Develop scientific questions based on evidence

Grades 6-8 Time 50 minutes

Materials and Resources

Handout: Okaloosa Habitats
Camera Trap Data from Images.pptx
EOL Ecosystems Okaloosa page: http://education.eol.org/ecosystems/ecoproj.php?proj_id=4
EOL Mammals of Okaloosa County collection: http://eol.org/collections/110184
Google Earth: http://www.google.com/earth/
Files Pre-loaded in Google Earth: GIS data layers; habitat legend
downloaded to desktops or printed
Pens/pencils

Directions
1. Brainstorm habitats (5 minutes)
Have students think back to the camera trap images in Activity 1, and have students review
the definition of habitat. Provide the camera trap images again for students to review
[Camera Trap Data from Images.pptx]. Ask students to describe the types of habitats they see
as a class, using probing questions like Are there more trees or shrub-like plants? Accept
all ideas, which will be refined as students learn what habitats are in step 2. [Students should

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 come up with ideas like there are tall trees present or short/no trees present, lots of shrubs or
grasses, mostly sand, etc.]

2. Have students explore and describe Okaloosa habitats (10 minutes)

Give each student a copy of the handout Okaloosa Habitats. Project on screen for the class
the EOL Ecosystems Okaloosa page. Explain that EOL has developed this resource for
students to use as part of the new Okaloosa SCIENCE initiative. Have students use
information in this site and in this EOL Mammals of Okaloosa County collection to describe
the four common habitat types in their region (Question #1 on worksheet), including the
types of mammals commonly present. Discuss as a whole class the similarities and
differences among the habitats. Also use this time to explain that a habitat is often
categorized based on the types of plants and animals that live there as well as key
geographical features (e.g., soils, precipitation). The key habitats present in the Southeastern
Conifer Forests Eco-region include
Hardwood Forested Uplands
Pines/Sandhill
Coastal Uplands
Freshwater Forested Wetlands

Tip: You can ask students to also explore the Urban habitat category and compare it to these
four other habitats.

Have students keep their descriptions for Activity #3, as they need to reflect on what types of
mammals they think will be most abundant in Okaloosa. This will require an understanding of
the types of habitats it contains.

3. Explore habitats and land cover types using Google Earth. (10 minutes)
Introduce students to Google Earth. Show students how to zoom in and out, and turn layers
of data on and off. Show students the different habitat and land cover layers, using the
Habitat Legend.jpg and Google Earth. Showing the legend, explain that the Pine/Sandhill
habitat type does not have a color assigned; so land without a color layer that is within the
Okaloosa region is considered Pine/Sandhill habitat.

Ask: Which habitat type is most common in Okaloosa?

Ask: What is the difference between a habitat type and a land cover type?

Explain that the land cover typesnot designated as habitat types on the legendinclude
rural and urban. Land cover is the use of the land and not the vegetation (Question #2 in
worksheet). In this dataset, the land cover types are usually agricultural lands, forested sites
or developed lands that vary from sparsely settled to urban. Developed lands may include
backyards, schoolyards, military training areas, and larger properties that may have houses
embedded within our four main habitat types. Part of the camera trap research will include
collecting images and data from a variety of land cover and habitat types.

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4. Determine the habitat closest to your school. (5 minutes)
Next, project the map of the Okaloosa region using Google Earth. Find the location of your
school by typing the school name or address in the search box. Have students use Google
Earth to answer questions 2 and 3 on the worksheet. Ask the class how their answer to
question 3 (Which habitat is closest to your school?) compares to what they predicted in step
1. Were they right? Ask: What types of mammals have you seen around school? Does this
seem to fall in line with the habitats nearby?

5. List questions about Okaloosa wildlife and habitats. (10 minutes)

Remind students of what science is (see Activity 1) and to keep this in mind as they develop
questions about Okaloosa (Questions #4 and #5 in worksheet). Have students finish the
handout, and then discuss their answers as a whole class. Keep a running list of students
questions about Okaloosa wildlife, which will help them to think broadly about the
opportunities and possibilities for research using information from the camera traps, Google
Earth, EOL and other sources in Activity 3.

6. Data reflection (5 minutes)

Ask students to reflect on the differences and similarities between the data they used in this
activity and the camera trap images. Once theyve had a minute to think on their own, have
them list pros/cons of each in small groups and then share as a class. Ask them to keep
these ideas in mind moving forward as they use these types of data to answer a scientific
question and what the pros/cons might mean for their final conclusions.

Tips
Explain that the data layers are part of a GIS: Geographic Information Systems. In this type of
data system, points, lines and shapes have a location and data assigned to them. The map on
the EOL Ecosystem page for Okaloosa was created using a GIS, and these same data layers
have been loaded into Google Earth, where students can explore them at different scales.

Extension Ideas
Have students work in teams to practice using Google Earth tools. Have them use lat/long to
find locations, turn off/on layers, and measure distances to points from school. Students can
zoom in to identify differences in the satellite imagery for different habitat and land cover
types.

Standards/Benchmarks
SC.8.E.5.10: Assess how technology is essential to science for such purposes as access to
outer space and other remote locations, sample collection, measurement, data
collection and storage, computation, and communication of information.

SC.8.N.2.2 Discuss what characterizes science and its methods.

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SC.5.N.1.6 Recognize and explain the difference between personal
opinion/interpretation and verified observation.

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Okaloosa Habitats

Name____________________________________________ Date ______________________

Directions: There are many habitats within Okaloosa County. Natural areas can be divided into four
habitat types. There is also an urban habitat category which you can compare to these four habitat
types. Use Google Earth and the Okaloosa Ecosystems page on EOL.org to help you answer these
questions: http://education.eol.org/ecosystems/ecoproj.php?proj_id=4

1. What are the four main (non-urban) habitats in this region? Describe each.

2. What land cover types are included in the Google Earth layers?

3. Which habitat is closest to your school?

4. In which terrestrial habitat type in the region do you expect to see the highest number of large
mammal species? Explain.

5. What questions do you have about the habitats around Okaloosa County? What kind of data would
you need to answer these questions?