Field Trip at Rocky Point

Field Trips

Adaptations and Ecology of the Intertidal
Field Trip
at Rocky Point, Mexico

Introduction

In this activity you will research specific organisms found in the intertidal zone in the Northern Gulf of California at Rocky Point. This will not only allow you to investigate the peculiar adaptations of an organism but also allow you to think about how these adaptations help the species to survive in this particularly harsh ecology. You will learn about the special problems associated with life in the rocky intertidal zone and the adaptations that help organisms to cope.

Instructions

You will be given the name of an organism found at Rocky Point. Your goal is to discover and describe at least three problems your organism must deal with due to its habitat. You then will describe a corresponding adaptation that solves each problem that your organism possesses. You also need to classify your organism from Kingdom down to Genus species.

On the due date, come to class with a to scale model of your organism and all of the information regarding its adaptations and how it solves its special problems. Be able to place your organism in the appropriate place in a model rocky intertidal zone.

All of the information will be typed in 10 pt. font on a 3x5 card. Bold and/or underline certain words and organize as needed for clarity. The content on the front of the card should include the organism’s common name followed by its classification. Then briefly state each problem overcome and each specific adaptation. Number them and you need at least three. On the back of the card include your name and the works cited.

You must have at least three sources and you may not use encyclopedias—bound or CD-rom. You may have only one internet source. Make sure to include books, periodicals and interviews as sources. (There are some great experts at the U of A that can help you, but you can’t use me!!) I have a bibliography of good Gulf of California/Sea of Cortez handbooks that you can reference next week if you get stuck finding information on your organism.

See the attached rubic for how you will be graded. Refer to it often to make sure that you are meeting the activity requirements.

Organism’s Adaptations Evaluation Standards

FORMAT

Points 4	Points 2 or less
title in place	title in place, but not informative
title reflects content	no title
content is typed	easy to read, but not typed
layout enhances content typed	difficult to read
layout logical	no logical order
proper length	too long or too short

CONTENT

Points 4	Points 2 or less
problem w/ insightful adaptation	problem and adaptation go together
problem w/ logical adaptation	unclear link b/t prob & adaptations
more problems/adaptations than required	fewer than required problems and adaptations
3 problems, 3 adaptations	too few problems & adaptations
classification is complete	elements of classification missing
model is creative accurate, pertinent, to scale	classification poor or not done

WORKS CITED

Points 4	Points 2 or less
extra sources	fewer than required number of sources
required number of sources	too few sources or no sources
wide variety of sources	not enough variety
MLA format, including pages	sources below grade level
MLA format, pages omitted	improper format or non recognizable format

The University of Arizona
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics
General Biology Program for Secondary Teachers
warder@email.arizona.edu