Water Safari: Belize Mangroves Missions

Water Safari

What Is This Game?

Have kids head out to Belize to explore a mangrove swamp. In this photo safari, kids earn points by taking pictures of specific plants and animals. The more points they get, the more digital stickers they can buy for their awesome collection!

Conversation Starters

Ask:
  • Would you rather be a predator or prey in a mangrove swamp? Why?
  • How does camouflage help prey? How does it help predators? What animals in your neighborhood have camouflage?
  • What happens when there are too many of one kind of animal or plant? What happens when there are too few of any one kind of animal or plant? How is this related to what you know about endangered species?
  • What are some challenges the plants and animals in your neighborhood face? How do they survive despite these challenges?

Explore Some More

Water Watcher

Visit a local lake, river, or stream. Quietly observe the shallow water at the shore, and look for examples of camouflaged animals. Frogs, fish, and many other animals often have camouflage, or colors and patterns that help them blend in with their surroundings. If you see any animals, watch what they do for a few minutes. Are any of the animals you see moving? How? Many animals will hold very still to avoid being seen–not just by people, but by other animals, too. How else do the animals you see in this ecosystem survive? After several minutes of looking and listening, make drawings or take notes in your field notebook about what the setting looks like and what animals you see.