Bird of the Week

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikebaird/ / CC BY 2.0

I was walking along the river when I caught sight of this bird of the week, the Great Blue Heron. This large, grayish-blue wading bird is widespread in the United States. This is not the first time I have seen one along the Kanawha River. They eat fish primarily but may also dine on invertebrates, reptiles, smaller birds, and small mammals. The Great Blue Heron uses its long beak as a spear to catch its prey.

Game Design Project Pick of the Week

I am going to start doing Project Picks of the Week so you, the students, can see how proud I am and how proud you should be of the work being done in his class.

The project I want to spotlight for my students this week belongs to Jon. His Water Models project showed great artwork, excellent information, and a sense of humor in the presentation. Good Job, Jon!

Mammal of the Week

My mammal this week (or month as the case may be) is the West Virginia Northern Flying Squirrel. This endangered species is one of the few species of gliding squirrels in the United States. They use thin membranes stretched between their fore and hind limbs to aid in jumping and gliding from tree to tree.

End of the First Nine Weeks

Biology students the end of the first nine weeks has come and gone. Some of us have not excelled to the best of our ability. Let's use this as a jumping on point and get into gear as we head towards the end of the first semester.

Student Bloggers

Just thought I should give props where props are due, to some of my student bloggers. First I want to applaud Alexandra Cruikshank for being one of the first t start leaving comments on other students' blogs. Secondly, I want to say thanks to Kelley for writing some really good blogs that put out equally good and insightful information and insights. Miranda, thanks for showing how easy it is to put links on your blog. And I also want to thank Daisye for blogging not only about class but on a very personal level. Great job guys!!!

Bird of the Week

The bird I have chosen for this week is one we see almost every day if we look up along the highway. Its the turkey vulture. Vultures are often seen as vile and disgusting but in truth, they are remarkable. Turkey vultures can smell a carcass from miles away. They actually have on of the largest olfactory lobes in the animal kingdom. And, they are large. If, like me, you have ever had one swoop low as it passed over you, you "feel" this bird passing over you.

Mammal of the Week

The mammal I chose this week is not native to West Virginia. I was, however, inspired by a picture sent to me through email. For this week I chose the moose. The moose is the largest member of the deer family. Moose live in the northern and western mountain ranges of the United States as well as Canada. Their antlers are palmate, which make them very different from the branch-like antlers or other members of the deer family.

Below are the two email pictures I received that inspired its selection. And, yes, it is a normal size, single lane dirt road.