Ecology
Your job is to gather as much information as you can about the Ecology of the San
Juan River. You and your team will become the experts and you will share that
information in three ways.
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You will teach your class about your subject
You will teach the river trip about your subject
You will create a chapter for the Colorado Plateau field guide for the other
students
Below are some questions that will guide your research and lesson design. Also
below you will find the Arizona State Standards that should help guide your
research.
Native and non-native species of plants and animals. What organisms are new to
the area and what organisms have been there long enough to adapt? Tamarisk leaf
beetle/tamarisk. What is the history of the Tamarisk? Fish of the river, native and
non-native. What fish are living in the river now and what fish have lived there
before? Navajo Dam, what affects did placing a dam have on the river? Fluctuations
of flow and effects. How is the dam regulated? What was the river like before dams
were put in? When were dams put in? How has the water changed since the dam
was built? What is stream-bank erosion and why is it important? How do cows
effect the San Juan river?
AZ state standards science
PO 1. Analyze environmental risks (e.g., pollution, destruction of habitat) caused by human
interaction with biological or geological systems.
PO 2. Analyze environmental benefits of the following human interactions with biological or
geological systems:
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habitat restoration
construction of dams
PO 3. Propose possible solutions to address the environmental risks in biological or geological
systems.
PO 4. Evaluate data related to problems associated with population growth (e.g., overgrazing, forest
management, invasion of non-native species) and the possible solutions.
PO 5. Predict how environmental factors (e.g., floods, droughts, temperature changes) affect survival
rates in living organisms.