6th Hour
Milkweed is the host plant for Monarch butterflies. On this milkweed is two caterpillars, which will go through complete metamorphosis.

Owl Selfie

5th Hour
We had a chance to release an Eastern Screech Owl back to the wild. Unlike burrowing owls, screech owls are strictly nocturnal. Nocturnal means they sleep all day and are awake at night. All owls can turn their heads almost 360 degrees. Screech owls earn their name because they screech when they are upset. The Sawgrass Nature Center gave us a supply of frozen mice to supplement the young owl until he hunts on his own. Screech Owls camouflage really well when in trees. Screech owls are fascinating creatures. We can't wait to see the little guy off on his own.

A Golden Opportunity

4th Hour
Here is a Golden Orb Weaver Spider with a student from 4th hour. We like having them in our NWF certified wildlife habitat because they are pretty, they eat dreadful bugs, and they spin golden webs. Which is awesome. This one made a web in a wild coffee plant. Some fashion designers made a dress from their gold webs. It took over a million spiders and eight years to make. The Golden Orb has venom like all spiders, but not enough to seriously injure a human. But still, Komari should be careful!

Fun in the Sun

3rd Hour
YOPO (You Only Plant Once)
Our students put in work 25/8. Here we have our 3rd hour students working hard in their assigned beds. We are growing Mammoth Sunflowers, okra, radish, green beans, eggplant, tomatoes, and red hot chili peppers. Some Callaloo has volunteered to grow there too! It is only the beginning and we are already harvesting. Strawberry season is around the corner. All of our students are excited to work in the garden.

Using Forensics to Figure Out a Hawk Attack!

     Ms. Dietz's 2nd hour witnessed the aftermath of a hawk attack today. We were heading out to the garden to water the raised beds when a few students saw a pigeon staring at them. Ms. Dietz initially thought it was a fledgling learning to fly, but she was wrong. A student said the pigeon's wing looked injured. Luckily, the pigeon could still flutter to safety. Then, a student named Janine found pigeon  feathers AND a hawk feather. It was definitely an attack! When we checked on the pigeon again, it had flown to its nest, where we could hear its babies calling. It is a good thing for those babies their parent survived.

The Start of a New Growing Year

Welcome to Environmental Wellness for the 2013-2014 school year!  First we had to prepare the soil by pulling weeds and adding compost.  Our classes measured out the square feet and attached string to the raised beds.  Then came the fun part...we planted seeds.  We planted lima beans, carrots, radish, lettuce, tomatoes, Bok Choy, and sugar cane.  Now we are watering and waiting for them to grow so we can eat them!

Pigeon Encounter

     Early in the morning, a teacher brought a pigeon that couldn't fly to Ms. Dietz.  She did not know what was wrong with it.  Miss Dietz examined the bird and proclaimed that it is a fledgling pigeon.  Fledgling means that it is ready to leave the nest and it is learning to fly and live on its own.  Its parents were probably still close by, keeping an eye on it.  The teacher did the right thing by bringing it to Miss Dietz.  The area where the teacher found the bird was not safe, it had many cars and human traffic.  Miss Dietz said we could take pictures of it if we were quiet and gentle.  The class behaved very well around our avian visitor, and we released it in the butterfly garden near a pigeon nesting area.  We saved a fledgling pigeon.