We are very excited to have you and your students visit us at Sound to Sea. To help you prepare your students for their field trip, we have compiled some suggested lessons. Some of these lessons are intended to introduce your students to barrier islands and the different habitats that they will be exploring. Other lessons introduce important concepts that may be applied during their time at Sound to Sea and can also be applied to your local area. The Bogue Banks Barrier Island Wall Mural……………………………………………….2-6 Students design and create a large wall mural of a cross-section of a barrier island. Name Tags and Journals……………………………………………………………………….7 Students design and make name tags and journals for their trip.

Website Scavenger Hunt…………………………………………………………………..…….8 Students explore the Sound to Sea website and learn more about their upcoming trip. Learning to Look, Looking to See……………………………………………………...……….9 Students describe differences seen in an environment and give reasons for the importance of looking closely to any environment. What’s for Dinner? …………………………………………………………………………….10 Students list and analyze sources of foods and generalize that all animals depend on plants as a food source, either directly or indirectly. Litter We Know………………………………………………………………………………...11 Students collect and evaluate ways litter pollution can endanger wildlife and propose ways they can eliminate these dangers. Interview a Spider………………………………………………………………………………12 Students use interview techniques, research and write to develop natural history information about wildlife species. Wetland in a Pan……………………………………………………………………………13-14 Students make a model that demonstrates the flood-buffering and filtering effects of wetlands. Moving Ocean……………………………………………………………………………….15-26 Students predict the patterns and characteristics of surface ocean currents. Vocabulary…………………………………………………………………………………..27-29

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The Bogue Banks Barrier Island Wall Mural

Objectives: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to: 1. Practice math skills such as using grids, division, and fractions 2. Practice map skills to identify Bogue Banks 3. Create a wall mural of a large barrier island cross-section 4. List the habitats and their characteristics that they will observe at Sound to Sea.

Materials: Map of North Carolina, paper, copies of page 5, A large sheet of paper, ruler, pencils, crayons or markers.

Procedure: Artists, today and in times past, have used the grid method to transfer small drawings to a

larger canvas. Students should practice by first enlarging the rabbit drawing (at the end of this section) either individually, or in pairs.

Have the students look at a map of North Carolina. Ask them to find the outer banks and trace the barrier island system with their finger. Then have them look for the island labeled Bogue Banks. Explain that this is the barrier island they will be visiting. (For an extension you could have them label a blank map either of the island names or of the habitats found on a barrier island).

Explain to the students that the basic goal is to end up with a big island drawn on the large grid squares that looks like the Bogue Banks Gridded Guide Map page. Discuss with the students the grid method of enlarging and decide how big to make their grid squares so that the mural will fit on the appropriate wall or piece of paper. Because the goal is to make it fairly large, the mural should be no smaller than 2 feet tall by 7 feet long. The grid will be 4 blocks tall and 14 blocks long, regardless of the block size. To figure out the block size, use the following equation:

Height of mural = Block size 4 blocks tall Then, to figure out the mural length: Block size x 14 blocks = Mural length

Number the grid blocks vertically from top to bottom (1-4) on the left-hand side. Number the grid blocks horizontally from left to right (1-14) on the bottom. Numbering the grid keeps students from losing their place when transferring from the mural guide page and drawing parts of the island in the wrong blocks on the large grid.

The key to this procedure is to make sure that island outline crosses the large grid blocks in proportionately the same place as in the guide map blocks. Fractions are important because students will have to judge whether lines cross blocks half way over or 1/3 of the way over, etc. Sometimes, it helps to put marks or dots where lines cross blocks and then connect the dots by (looking at the guide map) drawing between them the best that you can. Also, when students work in pairs, one can be drawing and the other checking for accuracy (and periodically, they can switch).

Briefly discuss the five habitats at Sound to Sea and list (for each habitat) plants and animals that they think they might find at Trinity Center. Below are definitions of the habitats and examples of some of the plants and animals that can be found in each:

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Beach: The part of the shore of an ocean, river, or lake washed by the tide or waves.

Common plants: Sea rocket, sea elder, sea oat, American beach grass, pennywort, salt meadow hay.

Common animals: Coquina clam, jingle shell, ponderous ark, whelk, lettered olive, bluefish, menhaden, mackerel, mole crab, ghost crab, shrimp, keyhole urchin, brown pelican, willet, sandpiper

Maritime Forest: A forest community within range of salt spray. (Maritime means “near the sea.”)

Common plants: Red maple, devil’s walkingstick, American beautyberry, musclewood, common witch hazel, American holly, Yaupon holly, eastern red cedar, partridgeberry, Virginia creeper, loblolly pine, live oak, poison ivy, muscadine grape.

Common animals: Grey squirrel, raccoon, opossum, grey fox, striped skunk, marsh rabbit, Southern toad, green treefrog, Eastern glass lizard, Carolina anole, rough green snake, barred owl, red-tailed hawk, Carolina chickadee, mockingbird, Northern cardinal

Ocean: A vast body of salt water that covers more than 70% of the earth’s surface.

Common plants: Sargassam, deadman’s finger

Common animals: Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, moon jelly, cannonball jelly, brown pelican, sand dollar, Southern stingray, clearnose skate, dolphinfish, mackerel, herring gull, flounder, bull shark, lettered olive, horseshoe crab, sea urchin

Pond: A quiet body of water shallow enough that sunlight can reach the bottom.

Common plants: sedge, common cattail, common elodea, Southern milfoil, saw grass

Common animals: Mosquito fish, channel catfish, sheepshead minnow, blue gill, dragonfly nymph, mayfly nymph, damselfly nymph, water striders, water boatman, giant waterbug, mosquito, midgefly, whirligig beetles, kingfisher, egret.

Salt marsh: Low-lying wetland that is frequently flooded by salt water.

Common plants: saltmeadow cordgrass, common cattail, wax myrtle, glasswort, spike grass, eel grass

Common animals: meadow mouse, marsh rabbit, raccoon, marsh crab, marsh periwinkle, ribbed mussel, fiddler crab, mud snails, blue crab, shrimp, eastern oyster.

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Sound: A semi/enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open sea. Common plants: Sea lettuce, Dead man’s fingers seaweed, sea hair, dictyota

Common animals: Common spider crab, shrimp, parchment worm, sea cucumber, sea squirt, sponge, hermit crab, mud snails, blue crab, whelks, scallop, Eastern oyster, Quahog clam, barnacles, comb jelly, pipefish, flounder, pinfish, menhaden, silverside, double-crested cormorant, great blue heron, great egret, belted kingfisher

Students may want to research each organism on their list prior to illustrating it on the mural or use their imagination and creativity as they draw. Remind the students to draw their plant or animal to scale in relation to the rest of the mural. For example, make sure that a student's drawing of a fish doesn't take up the whole pond on the mural. The school group can choose to bring the mural to Sound to Sea, where we will display it or hang it in a central location at school to view before their trip.

While at Sound to Sea students will discover more about each habitat and can rearrange drawings from their expectation-session and add new ones to the mural when they get back to school.

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Name Tags and Journals

Name Tags Students should wear their name tags while at Sound to Sea. Consider establishing a size guideline and having students make name tags using recycled or reused one sided paper. Attach a loop of yarn so students can wear them around their necks. Students can be responsible for designing and making their own name tags. Alternatively, students can either draw names out of a hat and make a name tag for a fellow student or teacher, or make a name tag for a student in one of their three groups -- their cabin, dining room table, or habitat study group. If you choose to have students make name tags for their habitat study group members, they could also come up with a group name. Each habitat study group could draw one of the five habitats from a hat and come up with a name that relates to that habitat, like a plant, animal or other part of that habitat. It is helpful if the name tags include: habitat study group number, dining hall table number and dorm information.

Journals Much of our scientific and historical knowledge comes from the journals of folks who lived in the past. For example, John White's drawings (of Native Americans in the northeastern part of North Carolina in the late 1500s) and comments are extremely important because they represent some of the earliest written information we have about coastal Native Americans. Many early explorers were really scientists because they kept journals filled with notes about and drawings of plants and animals they observed. Students can make journals to bring with them to Trinity Center. Once at Sound to Sea they can make drawings of plants and animals they observe during their habitat study classes and take notes about the specific habitats. Journals should include several pages for each of the five habitats (Sound, Salt Marsh, Pond, Maritime Forest, and Beach). Students can take time after dinner or in their cabin before lights-out to write poems, record their feelings, and describe cabin life or other activities. When they return to school, students can use the information in their journals to provide details for a newspaper article or a story with fictional characters from the barrier islands.

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Website Scavenger Hunt Purpose: To introduce students to the Sound to Sea website and what they can expect while here. Materials: Computers with internet access, pencils, print-out of scavenger hunt

Website Scavenger Hunt

Go to www.trinityctr.com/soundtosea. On the left toolbar, click on “Kid’s page” 1. Which Sound to Sea staff member is from the furthest away from North Carolina? 2. Which Sound to Sea staff member grew up closest to your home town?

3. What habitats will you visit during your trip?

4. What can cause barred owl feathers to turn pink? 5. How much does the average raccoon weigh? 6. How does a spider crab camouflage itself? 7. Which sound animal is able to change color to make the sand? 8. Which pond animal does not have mouthparts as an adult? Why? 9. How does a giant water bug eat its prey?

10. Explore 3 different websites found on the “Links” page and write one thing that you

learned from each site:

Website #1: Interesting fact:

Website #2: Interesting fact:

Website #3: Interesting fact:

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Practicing Observation Skills: Learning to Look, Looking to See (From “Project WILD”)

(Grades K-8) Objectives: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Describe differences seen in an environment as the result of casual versus detailed observation

2. Identify the importance of looking closely at any environment. Materials: Note pads or paper, pencils, pens, markers or crayons Procedure:

Cover a desk, bulletin board or other wall display, with a large cloth or sheet of paper before students come to class. Ask the students to write down all the things they thought they saw there before the area was covered. When their lists are completed, ask them to turn over their papers. Remove the sheet. On the backside of their first lists, have the students make a new list of what they see. What kinds of things did they remember? What kinds of things were most often missed? Brainstorm why they think this happened.

Have the students go outdoors and pick one spot near a tree, a fence, a brook, a field, etc. Each student should find a spot alone, at least 50 feet from the closest human neighbor.

Instruct the students to record everything they “see.” The students should look in a broad sense of the word- seeing, touching, listening and smelling. A few hints to increase the senses include: cupping hands around their ears to simulate animal hearing has a dramatic effect on abilities to hear; blindfolding seems to cause a compensation toward better hearing as well; moistening the undersurface of the nose and upper lip area increases smelling ability.

Allow approximately 15 minutes for observations, less for younger students. Use an agreed upon signal to indicate when the time is to return to the group.

Bring the students together for a discussion, centering on the process they went through as well as their list of sightings. Did they focus on any one area for a long time? Did they continue to shift their gaze? How did they focus their hearing and smelling?

Talk with the students about the joy and importance of seeing as fully as we can- as a way of appreciating, respecting, and learning more about the world in which we live. Older students: Discuss the importance of careful observation of our environments beginning with the basis for our fundamental life support systems- air, water, soil, plants, and animals.

Optional, with older students: Talk about the process of continuing to develop our senses as being a life-long process for each of us. Sensing more in our surroundings can help us detect changes in our environment, in turn this can cause us to become better, more aware and informed decision makers.

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Food Web Lesson: What’s For Dinner? (From “Project WILD”)

(Grades 3-7) Objective: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Recognize where their food originates from. 2. Understand that all animals, including people, depend on plants as a food source,

either directly or indirectly. Materials: Notebooks or paper, pencils, pens, markers or crayons Procedure:

What’s for dinner? Ask students to go home and make a list of everything that they have for dinner on a particular evening. Or, they can invent a dinner menu of their choice.

In the classroom, ask the students to work alone or in groups to analyze where their food comes from. Every food from their dinner menu should be traced back to a plant. As each item on a menu is examined, ask the students to create a flow diagram or chain which shows the major sources of each food from the product they eat all the way back to the plant origin. For example: Me -> Milk -> Cow -> Grass. Some chains will be short; others will be long. Sometimes the students may not be sure what particular animals eat for food, so they will need to do some research to find out.

Have a general discussion with the students. “What are some of the things you have learned from this activity?” After the students have described things they have learned, encourage them to make two conclusions about plants and animals. 1) all animals, including people and wildlife, need food; and 2) all animals, including people and wildlife, depend upon plants for food. (Listen for the insight that ultimately plants need animals too! The decay of animal life after death into nutrients in the soil provides sustenance to plants as well!)

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Trash Lesson: Litter We Know (From “Project WILD”)

(Grades 4-6)

Objectives: By the end of the lesson, students will be able to: 1. Identify and evaluate ways that litter pollution can endanger wildlife 2. Propose ways they can help eliminate litter pollution.

Materials: Large sheets of paper, glue, different types of litter, work gloves, trash bags. Procedure:

Divide the class into three or four teams. Ask each team to bring a collection of litter to class in a bag or collect litter during class

time. Suggest the students look around their house, in parks, camping areas, or school grounds. Advise students to wear work gloves. Caution them about hazards such as broken glass and medical wastes. NOTE: They should not take things out of garbage cans.

Have the teams make and display collages of these items. Ask each student or group to choose one or two items that they collected and evaluate its

potential effects on wildlife in the area. Encourage the students to research general effects of litter on wildlife. It may be helpful

to have each student group concentrate on a specific ecosystem (i.e. the ocean) for their investigations. It may also be of interest to collect information about the quantity of litter collected from local litter collections or national trash clean-up events.

Discuss the effects litter has on wildlife. Suggest that the students make a “pros and cons” list for specific types or pieces of litter. For example, a plastic soda bottle in the ocean may serve as an artificial habitat for goose barnacles and algae (a pro) however over time the plastic bottle will break down and leach potentially harmful chemicals into the water (a con). Optional: Ask a wildlife expert to join the class for the discussion. If available, show a film or provide additional reading material on the subject.

Propose and evaluate ways that people can eliminate litter pollution. What can students do personally as individuals, or as groups and family units to eliminate or reduce their own litter?

Further Discussion (optional):

Discuss alternatives to litter. For example, can manufacturers make cans with openings other than pop-tops? Could they devise another method for packaging six-packs? How could people fishing have more control over losing their fishing lines? How can individuals be instructed about the dangers as well as the unsightliness of littering? What progress has been made in recent years? What actions are still needed?

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Article Investigation: Interview a Spider (From “Project WILD”)

(Grades 5-8) Objective: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Use proper research, interview and reporting methods and create a written report using these skills

2. Understand that wildlife ranges in size and occurs in a variety of forms, colors and adaptations.

Materials: Writing and research materials Procedure:

Optional: Invite a local newspaper reporter to talk with your students. Ask him or her to describe what a reporter does and especially talk about the techniques of interviewing and writing used.

Have the students brainstorm a list of wildlife species. Check the list to make sure it includes many different types of wildlife. Optional: Make available a list of native species to help them focus on nearby animals they might not have readily been classified as “wildlife.”

Work with the students to establish a research, interview and reporting format for their use as reporters. For example:

Research: Each team of students should:

Decide what animal to “Interview” Write a list of questions to ask. Use reference materials to take notes for appropriate responses to the questions.

Interview: It’s time to conduct the interview! Each team of reporters selects an animal to study. The team will first need to gather information about the animal. They can do that by actually observing the animal, consulting resource materials or both! One student asks questions while the other student assumes the role of the wild animal and responds to the interviewer’s questions. Students then switch roles. Remind the students to convey the perspectives of the interviewed animal without projecting inapplicable human attributes. Reporting: Now it’s time to organize the information gathered through the process of researching and interviewing the animal. Each team should use its notes as the basis for writing a newspaper article about the wild animal they interviewed.

Discuss the diversity of wildlife the students chose to write about and some of the interesting facts they learned about their animals. Ask students to define wildlife to show his or her understanding of the term, including that wildlife can range from microscopic forms to those many tons in size and occur in a variety of forms, colors and adaptations.

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Wetland Activity:

Wetland in a Pan (From “WOW!: The Wonders of Wetlands”) (Grades 3-12)

Objectives: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Define what a wetland is 2. Describe interrelationships among precipitation, runoff and wetlands 3. Relate the importance of wetland functions to their own needs in their daily lives

Materials: Modeling clay, long shallow pan (tip: a long 13” by 9” sturdy metal or glass pan with smooth, flat bottom or perhaps a rolling paint pan), scraps of indoor-outdoor carpeting or florists “oasis” foam or sponges, watering can or similar device, cup of soil and jar of muddy water To make model:

Spread a layer of modeling clay in half of the baking pan to represent the land. Leave the other half of the pan empty to represent a lake or other body of water such as a river or ocean.

Shape the clay so that it gradually slopes down to the water. Smooth the clay along the sides of the pan to seal the edges. You can also form meandering streams in the clay that lead into the body of water.

Cut a piece of indoor-outdoor carpeting [or sponge or florist’s foam] to completely fill the space across the pan along the edge of the clay. This represents a wetland buffer between dry land and open water. Tip: Be sure the wetland fits well. The model won’t work if there are large spaces under the wetland or between it and the sides of the pan.

Procedure: Discuss with the students what a wetland is and what types of plants and animals you

might find there. Present the wetland model and point out its features. Explain that wetlands, like all

habitats, are very complicated natural systems. They perform some very important functions such as filtering pollutants, reducing flood damage, and preventing soil erosion. Some wetlands, at times, recharge underground water supplies. Explain that the model will demonstrate some of these functions in a very simplified way.

Ask the students what effects “rain” will have on the model and what they think will happen to the rainwater? (Rain will run downhill and end up in the body of water.)

Fit the piece of carpeting or sponge into the wetland area, slowly sprinkle some “rain” on land, and let the students observe and describe what is happening. Some of the water is slowed down by the wetland (carpeting). The excess water slowly flows into the body of water. Point out, if the students have not already, that the wetland absorbed some of the water (pick up the wetland and squeeze some water out to prove it).

Discuss what the students think will happen if the wetland is removed? (The water will not be absorbed; it will flow more quickly into the body of water.) Remove the carpeting and water. Pour the same amount of water on the model at the same spot and rate as before. Have the students note any differences. The water should fill the body of water much more quickly and may eventually overflow and flood the land. That’s because it is

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no longer buffered by the wetland Explain that most wetlands are shallow basins that collect water and slow its rate of flow

and retain water for a time. This slowing process helps reduce flooding and also helps prevent soil erosion.

Ask the students what might happen if a wetland is destroyed and houses are built there, what might happen to the houses during a severe rainstorm? Why? (They might be flooded because the wetland will not be there to absorb and slow the rush of water from higher ground.) In many areas, wetlands are drained and filled in, and houses and marinas are built right along the water. Without a wetland buffer, these developed areas particularly along the coast are often subjected to severe flooding and erosion, especially during violent storms.

Pour the water from the last demonstration out of the model and replace the piece of carpeting. Explain that this demonstration will be just like the first, except that soil will cover the clay. Ask what they think will happen to the bare soil when it rains? (The rain should pick up and carry some sediment over the land and into the body of water.)

Spread soil over the clay and make it rain or pour muddy water from the jar onto the land. Explain that this water represents polluted runoff. Ask the students to compare the water that ends up in the body of water with the water in the jar. Explain that the soil particles were trapped by the carpeting, making the water in the body of water much clearer. The “uphill” side of the wetland should be coated with trapped sediment.

Remove the carpeting, pour out the water, and try the experiment again. What happens without the wetland in place? Ask the kids why all the dirt particles end up in the body of water this time. The thick mat of plant roots in a wetland helps trap silt and some types of pollutants much as the carpet or foam did in the model. Without a wetland, excessive amounts of silt and pollutants can end up in lakes, rivers and other bodies of water.

Extension: Discuss with students:

How might muddy water affect fish? (Makes it harder for them to see and breathe with clogged gills, and could lead to their death.)

How might other animals and plants be affected by the muddy water? (Settling sediment smothers oysters, plants do not get sunlight needed for growth, birds and other animals who eat fish or plants have less to eat if food sources die or can’t be seen in muddy water, etc.)

How would boats and ships be affected by muddy water? (The mud settles out and eventually fills channels important for navigation.)

How might all of this affect you? (Decrease in natural resources and food sources; decline in quality drinking water; impacts on recreation such as swimming and fishing; change in aesthetics; change in community economy, such as shipping problems that affect jobs and industry, etc.)

How can we prevent these undesirable effects? (By protecting wetlands and helping to make their benefits known!)

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Moving Ocean:

Ocean Currents (From “The Maury Project: Wind-Driven Ocean Circulation”) (Grades 7-12)

Objectives: By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Define gyers, currents, and upwelling 2. Describe the typical gyre circulation pattern found in each of the major ocean basins. 3. Describe the relative speeds, temperatures, and directions of the currents comprising a

typical gyre. Materials: Current Cards, Global Ocean Basin Chart, Global Ocean Surface Current Chart, pencils, markers/crayons Procedure:

Cut out sets of Current Cards, enough for every group to have a set of cards. A set can either be all the Pacific Ocean Basin or Atlantic Ocean Basin or just Northern or Southern hemisphere of each ocean. Groups will be able to exchange and share cards throughout the activity. Sort them into four groups by Northern and Southern Hemisphere and Atlantic and Pacific Ocean Basin. For example, all four Northern Hemisphere Atlantic cards should be together in one group and all Southern Hemisphere Atlantic in another group.

Copy enough Global Ocean Basin Charts for each student/group. Introduce the activity by discussing ocean currents including flow direction in each

hemisphere, temperature and speed. Depending on the age group and background knowledge, the group can make predictions about the characteristics of currents or specific information about ocean circulation may be given.

Explain that currents in major ocean basins are driven by the prevailing wind systems. The basins are defined and contained by continental boundaries and deflected by the Earth’s rotation. The currents flow in large, roughly circular patterns called gyres. The gyres play an important role in redistributing heat from the low to the high latitudes, thus influencing ocean temperatures, weather and climate.

Explain that this activity will help determine and visualize major ocean gyres and their characteristics.

Give each student group a stack of Current Cards. As a group go over the information on the back of the cards to identify characteristics, such as direction of flow and temperature, of each current. As a group decide how to represent the flow (arrow), temperature (color), and speed (size of arrow) of the currents.

Give each group a Global Ocean Basin Chart and instruct them to draw in their currents on the Chart. Remind them to use the Characteristics of the currents to determine flow, temperature and speed.

Once a student group has completed one current, have them switch cards with another group or challenge them to predict what the currents will look like and their characteristics in the opposite hemisphere or ocean.

Continue the activity until all groups have all ocean currents illustrated on their Global Ocean Basin Charts. A copy of the Global Ocean Surface Current Chart may be

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provided to double check their illustrations To complete the activity, discuss each group’s findings and have them describe

characteristics about each gyre. Further Discussion (optional):

Brainstorm how the temperature fluctuation of the gyres affects distribution of animal and plant species.

Discuss and predict relationship of gyre temperature fluctuations and weather patterns. Challenge the students to predict changes in temperature and thus speed of the gyres as ice caps/glaciers melt (cooling the water at the poles) and how that may affect species distribution and weather patterns.

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Vocabulary

Abiotic: A non-living factor in an environment; something that is not alive and has never been alive; ex. Light, water, temperature Adaptation: A change, over time, of the structure, function or behavior of a plant or animal, which enables it to survive in its habitat. Aquifer: An underground bed of saturated soil or rock that yields significant quantities of water. Barrier Islands: Islands which parallel the coast and act as barriers for protecting the mainland from the full effects of ocean forces. Biodegradable: Capable of being broken down by biological agents, especially bacteria. Bivalve: Two-shelled, two siphon mollusk. Clams and scallops are bivalves. Brackish: Moderately salty water; seawater that has been significantly diluted with fresh water. Canopy: The layer formed by leaves and branches of the forest’s tallest trees. Carnivore: An animal that eats other animals to obtain nutrients and energy. Community: All plants and animals living in a particular area that interact with each other. Consumer: Organisms that do not make their own food but eat other organisms. Crepuscular: Organisms that are active at dawn and dusk. Crustacean: A member of the invertebrate group of animals called Arthropod characterized by jointed legs, segmented bodies, and a hard external skeleton. Include: shrimp, crab, barnacles Debris: Carelessly discarded refuse; litter. Decomposer: Bacteria and fungus that chemically break down dead plant and animal matter and use it as a source of energy and nutrients. Detritus: Plant, animal and other matter, such as bacteria, that has been broken into small pieces to make a rich mud. Diurnal: Organisms that are active by daylight. Ecology: The study of the interaction of organisms and their physical and biological environment. Estuary: A water area where salt and fresh water mix, such as in the coastal sounds near the river mouths of North Carolina.

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Filter Feeder: An animal which strains or filters water flowing through or around its body to capture suspended food particles. Gastropod: A member of the group of invertebrates called Mollusks, which includes snail-type animals and others which have a one piece shell or no shell, and a broad ventral "foot". Whelks and sea slugs are gastropods. Grazer: An animal which moves slowly over a surface, feeding on organisms found there. Ground water: Water found in spaces between soil particles underground. Gyre: A spiral oceanic surface current driven primarily by the global wind system and constrained by the continents surrounding the three ocean basins (Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian). Habitat: The arrangement of food, water, shelter or cover and space suitable to animals’ needs. Herbivore: An animal that eats only plants to obtain its nutrients and energy. Inorganic: Compounds or substances that contain no carbon and are not of animal or plant origin; they are essential in living processes and are obtained by plants primarily from soil and water. Intertidal: The area along a shoreline that is exposed at low tide and covered by water at high tide. Limiting Factor: A biological or physical factor that limits the growth of an organism. Marine: Of or relating to the oceans and salt water. Mollusk: A hard shelled, soft bodied organism. Niche: The particular way in which an organism obtains its food, shelter and special behaviors; an organism's way of life. The role a species plays in a community. Nocturnal: Active at night. Omnivore: An animal that eats both plants and animals. Operculum: A lid-like covering which serves as a protective "door", sealing the opening to the shell of gastropods when the animal withdraws into the shell. Organic: Substances or compounds containing carbon, derived from plants and animals; they are a source of energy and nutrients, especially for consumers. Phytoplankton: Drifting plants in the ocean.

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Plankton: Drifting organisms in the sea. These can be as small as microscopic algae or as large as an 1800 pound sunfish. Population: All of the organisms of a kind living together in an area. Producer: Plants, including algae, that are able to produce food from basic raw materials. Radula: The rasping organ inside the mouth of gastropods which is covered with small "teeth"; used for scraping, tearing, boring, and ingesting food. Raptor: A predatory bird with good eyesight, talons and a sharp beak. Salinity: A measurement of salt dissolved in water. Salt marsh: A low coastal grassland frequently inundated by the tide. Scavenger: Animals that eat the remains or wastes of other organisms. Sound: Areas of water which separate the mainland from the outer barrier islands. Species: A group of organisms distinct from all other groups of organisms that is capable of reproduction and producing fertile offspring. Substrate: A surface available for living things; the bottom material on or in which an organism lives or to which it is attached. Understory: The layer of plants growing under another higher level of plants. Vertebrate: An animal with a segmented spinal column or "backbone" containing a central spinal cord; fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Watershed: The land area from which surface runoff drains into a stream. Wetland: Lands where water saturation is the dominant factor determining the nature of soil development and the types of plant and animal communities. Zooplankton: Drifting animals in the ocean which include the larval stages of many larger animals; feed on phytoplankton and other zooplankton and, in turn, are an important food source for larger animals in marine food webs.