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Overview:
When studying endangered and threatened species and habitats, students should become familiar with programs that strive to preserve biodiversity, such as captive-breeding programs and species-survival plans adopted by zoos, aquariums, and other institutions. This lesson asks students to research and assess these programs.
Connections to the Curriculum:
Geography, biology, current events
Connections to the National Geography Standards:
Standard 8: "The characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on Earth's surface"
Standard 14: "How human actions modify the physical environment"
Time:
Two to three hours
Materials Required:
- Computer with Internet access
Objectives:
Students will
- discuss their feelings about zoos;
- discuss the reasons why some species are threatened with extinction;
- research and answer questions about captive-breeding programs and species-survival plans; and
- write reports assessing the success of species-survival plans for four species.
Geographic Skills:
Acquiring Geographic Information
Organizing Geographic Information
Analyzing Geographic Information
S u g g e s t e d P r o c e d u r e
Opening:
Discuss as a class how students feel about zoos. Do they think zoos serve important purposes, or are they opposed to zoos? There will probably be a variety of opinions in the class, but try to keep the discussion time to under ten minutes.
Ask students to state some of the human-induced causes of species extinction, and list their responses on the board. If a more thorough review is necessary, they can refer to the Bagheera Web site before compiling this list.
Development:
Inform students that many zoos are involved in captive-breeding programs that try to breed endangered or threatened animals to be reintroduced into their natural habitats. Have any students heard about these programs? If so, ask them to describe some of the things they already know about them.
Have students, either individually or in groups of two or three, use the Internet or print materials to research basic information about captive-breeding programs and species-survival plans. As they conduct their research, they should answer the questions below. The following Web sites will be helpful:
American Zoo and Aquarium Association (especially the press releases listed at the bottom of the home page)
Captive-Breeding and Reintroduction
Good Zoo Guide Online
End of the Ark?
Questions to answer:
- What is a captive-breeding program, and what are the goals of this type of program?
- What is a species-survival plan, and what are the goals of this type of plan?
- How can captive-breeding programs and species-survival plans contribute to biodiversity and the health of ecosystems?
- What are some difficulties with captive breeding?
- What are the arguments against captive breeding programs?
- In which situations are artificial habitats beneficial? In which situations might they be harmful?
Discuss students' responses to the above questions.
Closing:
Ask students to pretend that the director of a wildlife conservation organization has asked them, individually or in groups, to assess the success of species-survival plans for four species. Have them choose species and research these species’ survival plans at the American Zoo and Aquarium Association's Web site.
Suggested Student Assessment:
Students should compile their findings into two- to three-page reports that address the following questions:
- What animals have you studied, and what are their natural ranges and habitats?
- Why are these animals threatened?
- What are the difficulties with breeding these animals in captivity and with maintaining their populations in the wild?
- Do you think this species-survival plan has been successful so far? Why or why not?
- How might each of these species-survival plans help the overall biodiversity of the regions where these animals naturally live?
Students can supplement their reports with maps showing the natural ranges of the species they have studied. Blank world outline maps can be found at the Xpeditions atlas.
Extending the Lesson:
- Have students use the American Zoo and Aquarium Association's Web site or another resource to find one animal that has been successfully bred in captivity and one animal for which captive breeding has not been successful. Ask them to compare and contrast the two animals' basic needs and breeding programs and to try to assess why one animal has been successfully bred in captivity while the other has not. They can extend the investigation to see whether the animal that has been successfully bred in captivity has also been successfully reintroduced into its natural habitat.
- Have students research and report on the genetic and behavioral difficulties that zoos often face when trying to breed animals in captivity. For example, why do zoos often transport their animals to other zoos that are hundreds or even thousands of miles away in order to breed? Why might two healthy animals of the opposite sex fail to reproduce?
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