Discover the exciting field of wildlife biology through engaging presentations, games, crafts, photo slideshows, puppets, science experiments, and discussions! Wildlife biologists are scientists that observe and study the behavior of animals in their natural habitat. 

Learn interesting facts about the life-cycle, habitat, diet, and identification of animal groups and their food webs. Depending on the weeks joined, find out how to identify species through track and scat replicas, bones, feathers, turtle shells, and frog and bird calls. Live program animals will be introduced often and an optional craft or science activity will be provided for each class. 

Learners will be introduced to field research methods for animal observation, nature journaling activities, vertebrate classification, and the characteristics of amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Naturalist terms will be used that describe animal behavior (eg: carnivore, nocturnal), as well as animal classification terms (eg: invertebrate, amphibian, etc.). Listen to animal vocalizations, identify natural objects, and create artwork while exploring the many fascinating animals of the world together! 

The beginning of each class will be an opportunity for introductions, sharing, and guided discussion. Students may bring items to class to share related to environmental science such as natural items, books, animal toys or stuffed animals, pictures, artwork, etc. Ms. Amalia has traveled to every continent except Antarctica to search for wild animals in person and will be sharing pictures and stories from her experiences!

Weekly themes for 2024: 

September 18: Invertebrates
September 25: Amphibians 
October 2: Reptiles
October 9: Fish 
October 16: Sharks
October 23: Songbirds
October 30: Raptors
November 6: Hoofed Mammals
November 13: Rodents, Rabbits, & Bats
November 20: Wild Cats
November 27: Bears and Wolves
December 4: Mustelids 
December 11: Marsupials and Monotremes
December 18: Primates

The following Nature Explorers animals may occasionally make live appearances: 
Scaly: the Corn Snake
Slimy: the Tiger Salamander
Lizzie: The Leopard Gecko

Classes may run up to five minutes over the scheduled time depending on learner discussion and questions.