A Warming Gulf of Maine: Investigating Impacts on Predators and Prey
Provided by: Gulf of Maine Research Institute|Published on: October 30, 2024
Grades: 6, 7, 8
Type: Lesson Plans
Subjects: Biology, Earth and Space Sciences
Authors: Gulf of Maine Research Institute
Region: Maine - Coastal
Languages: English
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- In this 6-lesson module, students will explore food webs in the Gulf of Maine and how ocean warming affects them, adding to a model in SageModeler to demonstrate these relationships.
- Students will simulate a stomach-contents analysis, play a game to model the Gulf of Maine's food web, compare stomach-contents datasets in the fall and spring, analyze data to determine the impact of temperature on the habitat in the Gulf of Maine, adapt the game to model a food web in a warming Gulf of Maine, and write a claim, evidence, and reasoning statement to demonstrate their learning.
Teaching Materials
Positives
- Though it requires additional materials and cleanup, the "messy" version of the stomach contents analysis activity will be engaging and memorable for students.
- Students will learn to use SageModeler, which is a great tool for modeling relationships that can be used outside of this module.
Prerequisites
- Before teaching this module, the resource recommends that students know about food webs, possibly through the module Models, Food Webs, and a Warming Gulf of Maine.
- Students should also understand the greenhouse effect and that it is warming the oceans.
- Teachers will need various materials for the labs, such as colored beads, envelopes, containers, spoons, and colored pencils.
- The stomach content analysis video and image in the Lesson 1 slides do show a fish being dissected.
Differentiation & Implementation
- To practice constructing graphs, students can turn their data collection table from the stomach contents analysis to make bar graphs or pie charts.
- Advanced students can design other modeling games to demonstrate the relationship between the warming Gulf of Maine and the species of fish.
- After this lesson, students can research how land-based ecosystems and food webs are impacted by climate change.
This resource explores how rising temperatures in the Gulf of Maine impact the food web. Climate change is a central focus throughout, and the resource highlights how different species are impacted. All figures are well-cited, with most based on primary data from NOAA. A web-based model graphically maps relationships between species with warming waters. This resource is recommended for teaching.
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Resource Type and Format
Scientist Reviewed
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