Day 2: Movement

Words

All organisms move, although not all move quickly enough for us to see. Today we’ll concentrate on what organisms do—especially animals, as they move a lot—and why. We’ll start with a couple of videos of spectacular tropical animals and how they behave:

Video: “Bird of Paradise Courtship (BBC Planet Earth)” (3:24)

Video: “Tree Kangaroo – A Life Among the Clouds (PBS Nature)” (10:35)

One of the most impressive feats of animal behavior we have so far discovered is the incredible migration of the Arctic tern. Here is a scientific paper that tracked their annual journey.

Reading: “Tracking Arctic Terns Sterna paradisaea Reveals Longest Animal Migration (Egevang et al 2010)”

Works

Today, look for movement. What do you see—what is waving, crawling, flying, creeping, or running? What are they moving for?