Desert Discovery Labs

Exploring Adaptation

(Offered at the Museum Only)

Desert plants and animals display a fascinating variety of adaptations that help them thrive here. Take a guided tour to explore how plants deal with the temperature extremes and aridity of their desert home. Then meet some live desert animals and identify their secrets to success as desert dwellers.

Lab Objectives:

Through the examination of desert plants, live animals, and preserved specimens, students will:

Explain what factors contribute to the Sonoran Desert's aridity.
Understand that adaptations are heritable traits expressed by populations of organisms through time.
Describe at least 3 adaptations cacti have that enable them to survive the aridity, scant and variable rainfall, and temperature extremes of the desert climate.
Describe how native shrubs and trees are adapted for desert survival.
Develop an appreciation for the behavioral and physiological adaptations resident animals have for desert survival.
Consider what effects rapid environmental change (i.e. global warming) could have on organisms adapted to specific environmental conditions.

Arizona Academic Standards Correlation:

Science Standards:

Strand 1. Inquiry Process: Concept 1: Observations, Questions, and Hypotheses
Concept 2: Scientific Testing (Investigating and Modeling)
Concept 3: Analysis and Conclusions
Concept 4: Communication
Strand 4: Life Science: Concept 1: Structure and Function in Living Systems
Concept 3: Organisms and Environments
Populations of Organisms in an Ecosystem
Interdependence of Organisms
Concept 4: Diversity, Adaptation and Behavior
Biological Evolution

Amphibians and Reptiles

Compare and contrast lizards and snakes, frogs and toads. Examine live specimens to identify structural and functional characteristics. Discover the amazing adaptations these creatures have for feeding, movement, locomotion, reproduction and maintaining a safe body temperature in the desert.

Class Objectives:

Through the examination of live animals, preserved specimens, and artifacts (skeletons, eggs, etc.), students will:

Compare the characteristics of reptiles and amphibians to those of the other three major groups of vertebrate animals.
Differentiate between reptiles and amphibians.
Identify and describe adaptations reptiles and amphibians have for growth, movement, sensing and obtaining food, protection, and reproduction.
Analyze specific adaptations local herps have for success in the Sonoran Desert environment.
Determine some of the effects of human choices on reptile and amphibian populations.

Arizona Academic Standards Correlation:

Science Standards:

Strand 3: Science in Personal and Social Perspectives: Concept 1: Changes in Environments
Strand 4: Life Science: Concept 1: Characteristics of Organisms
Structure and Function in Living Systems
Concept 3: Organisms and Environments
Populations of Organisms in an Ecosystem
Concept 4: Diversity, Adaptation and Behavior
Biological Evolution
Concept 5: Matter, Energy, and Organization in Living Systems (Including Human Systems)

Arizona Minerals

Examine these building blocks of nature in this hands-on introduction to geology. Identify and classify common Arizona minerals using basic analytical tests for hardness, specific gravity, cleavage and streak. Discover the importance of minerals to plants and animals, and uses in our everyday lives.

Lab Objectives:

Through the examination and analysis of rock and mineral specimens, household materials and live animals, students will be able to:

Distinguish between a rock and a mineral and describe characteristics of each.
Identify the three main categories of rocks and describe the conditions by which they travel through the rock cycle.
Identify different minerals from the Sonoran Desert Region using physical property tests.
Explain how minerals are formed.
Recognize the minerals that provide raw materials for specific man-made items.
Give examples of the cycling of matter between abiotic factors (minerals) and living organisms within an ecosystem.

Arizona Academic Standards Correlation:

Science Standards:

Strand 4: Life Science: Concept 3: Organisms and Environments
Populations of Organisms in an Ecosystem
Interdependence of Organisms
Concept 5: Matter, Energy, and Organization in Living Systems (Including Human Systems)
Strand 6: Earth and Space Science: Concept 1: Properties of Earth Materials
Structure of the Earth
Geochemical Cycles
Concept 2: Earth's Processes and Systems

Bat Research Simulation

120 minute lab - can be taught as one 2-hour session or two 1-hour sessions
Become a bat researcher and learn how scientists study bats in the field. Collect your own model bats, take measurements, identify species and compare your data to actual bat data from the Sonoran Desert. You will then get to identify trends in bat populations, and discover why it's important to learn more about these commonly misunderstood animals.

Lab Objectives:

Bat Natural History:

Describe at least 5 characteristics of bats.
Demonstrate understanding of bat diversity.
Develop an appreciation for the importance/value of bats to humans and the ecosystem as a whole.
Describe ways in which humans impact bat populations.
Describe dangers to bats.
Explain strategies for species preservation.

Research Methodology:

Utilize measurement tools and methods.
Practice data collection and organization.
Compare collected data with established data set.
Use critical thinking skills in data analysis.
Create hypothesis based on data and comparative species information.
Propose conservation strategies based on data and resulting hypothesis.

Arizona Academic Standards Correlation:

Math Standards:

Strand 2: Data Analysis, Probability and Discrete Mathematics: Concept 1: Data Analysis
Strand 3: Patterns, Algebra and Functions: Concept 4: Analysis of Change
Strand 4: Geometry and Measurement: Concept 4: Measurement

Science Standards:

Strand 1: Inquiry Process: Concept 1: Observations, Questions and Hypotheses
Concept 2: Scientific Testing (Investigating and Modeling)
Concept 3: Analysis and Conclusions
Strand 3: Science in Personal and Social Perspectives: Concept 1: Changes in Environments
Concept 2: Science and Technology in Society
Strand 4: Life Sciences: Concept 1: Structure and Function of Living Systems
Concept 3: Organisms and Environments
Concept 4: Diversity, Adaptation and Behavior

Registration Information & Form