Earthworm Lifecycle

A species of the earthworm can be found on every continent in the world. They burrow through soil and help keep it healthy. Some species of earthworm can grow over 13 feet long, all though most are a lot smaller than that. Earthworms have been dissected in science rooms throughout the world, although if dissection is not an option, you can use lifelike plastic figures to represent the earthworm lifecycle.

Earthworms have both organs needed for reproduction; the term used for this is hermaphrodite. When earthworms mate they lay next to each other and pass mucus like substance that allows each worms organs to be fertilized. After the earthworms mate they form eggs inside their bodies, then the worms separate and form cocoons which seal when they rolls off of the worm. The cocoon is buried underground and the hardened walls protect the forming worm.

The worms hatch as smaller earthworms that lack reproductive organs; this is the main difference between newly hatched worms and the fully developed. The worms start to develop reproductive organs after they are hatched. They are able to use their reproductive organs at around 12 months. Earthworms can sometimes live for more than 10 years depending on the species. In the United States earthworms range in color from red to brown, and in other countries they can be blue or green.

Check Out These Large Earthworms

What is Magic Snow?

Magic snow is an absorbent polymer that is safe and non-toxic, it has the ability to expand up to 40 times its original volume. The snow starts out as a simple powder that looks similar to sugar or salt. The magic happens when water or other liquid is introduced to the magic snow, which quickly expands to absorb the liquid.

How is it Used?

Hollywood uses it for special effects, many people use it to decorate for parties, and thanks to its low price you can use
magic snow for fun. When using magic snow, use it on a dish, bowl, cup, test tube, or anything else that will help you contain the magic snow. First place the magic snow into the container of your choosing, next sprinkle a small amount of magic snow into the container. Then add a small amount of water and watch it grow. Use more in the following trials once an idea of the amount the magic snow expands is gained.

Example





Do not let magic snow into drains or pipes; it will expand causing them to clog. The best way to dispose of magic snow absorbent material is to put it in a plastic bag and then in the trash. Do not rinse the container you use for magic snow creation in the sink, even a little can cause clog. However if you do accidentally clog a drain, a small amount of bleach will clear the drain.

Hermit Crabs

The following information is general care information for a hermit crab and is provided by Heath Scientific. Heath Scientific has a full supply of live critters for educational institutions and home school environments. See the Live Critter section of our website.

If you want detailed information on caring for a hermit crab, visit the Hermit Crab Care Blog.

Temperature – 72-88F

Light Requirements – Indirect sunlight (Classroom lighting)

Feeding – Prepared invertebrate diet, supplement with fresh fruits and
vegetables.

Habitat – As a “tree crab” they live on land in coastal areas where it is
warm and humid.  They return to salt water to lay their eggs.

Handling – Crabs don’t bite but they will pinch very hard.  Handle them by
their shell.  They may be placed on the floor for exercise.  If they are
inactive, dip them in warm water and they will become active again.

Care – Hermit crabs need little care other than daily food and water
changes.

When an adult butterfly emerges from its chrysalis, it secretes a red liquid that often drips down to the bottom of the habitat.  This is not blood.  It is actually a liquid known as meconium that is the natural secretions created while in the chrysalis.  This is natural and you should explain this to children during a butterfly life cycle project so that they do not think the butterfly is injured or that something is wrong with the experiment.

When butterflies emerge from the chrysalis, they are considered adult butterflies.  Care and feeding of adult butterflies is important to successfully complete a butterfly life cycle experiment.  Adult butterflies do not have jaws that allow them to chew plant material as they did when they were caterpillars.  Instead, they have a long, straw-like tongue called a proboscis through which they can consume liquid material. Butterflies are an example of an insect that goes through complete metamorphosis.

The caterpillars diet normally consists of one type of plant, depending on the species. The most popular butterfly used in classroom studies is the Painted Lady, Vanessa cardui. They are available through many different sources and they are a cost effective option. In nature, the larva feed on the mallow plant. In classroom studies, a prepared diet is the best option. The caterpillars each constantly during this time period. The larval stage lasts approximately 4 weeks. The habitat should not be too large as this will make it difficult for the caterpillars to find the food source. If this happens, the larva could starve. One unusual characteristic of the caterpillar is that it has 8 pairs of legs to assist in climbing. After the last molt, only the front 3 pairs will remain.

After the 3-4 weeks spent as a caterpillar, the larva will attach itself upside down and form the crysalis. When the chrysalis has hardened, they should be transferred to a larger container, normally a net type habitat. The filter paper that the larva attaches to can be attached to the top of the net using a paper clip. In 7-10 days, the adult butterfly will emerge.  A few hours will pass before the adult is ready to fly.

When your butterflies emerge from their chrysalis, you should place a shallow container of sugar water into the bottom of their habitat or butterfly net.  They will consume this during the week to 10 days you have them in the habitat prior to release.

Though butterflies can adapt to a fairly wide range of temperatures, it is best to keep their habitat at room temperature and away from direct sunlight through windows.  The time periods listed above can vary depending on the temperature, amount of food and the concentration of larva.

Ant History

Ants are insects that evolved from wasp-like creatures over 100 million years ago. Today there are over 12,000 species of ants that have been classified.

Ants form colonies that range in population from a few dozen living in small natural cavities to millions that live in larger structures they build in the ground. The colonies consist of three types of ants. Sterile, wingless females, fertile males, and fertile females referred to as queens. The sterile female ants serve as soldiers or workers in the colony.

Ants work together in colonies to build their habitat and recreate. The process can be fascinating to watch for children and adults alike. Due to the fact that most ant colony behavior takes place beneath the ground, humans must use ant habitats or ant farms to observe ant colony behavior.

Ant Farming

The ant farm is designed to study ant and ant colony behavior by offering a great observation tool for the classroom or just for fun. Myrmecologists study ant behavior, and with an ant farm you can take a look into the world of myrmecology (the study of ants).

Ant Farm Types

The Ant Farm by Uncle Milton is a classic ant farm that has a green farm scene with a clear viewing pane surrounded by a green frame. The farm is usually filled with sand, dirt, or other media. These ant farms have a low price point making them accessible to classrooms and families of all budgets. In order to properly care for your ants, you will need to open the ant farm and make sure the ants have food and water. The down side is that this increases the chances of the ants getting out of the farm and into places you do not want them.

In recent years the Ant Farm has been modernized with improvements to visibility. A modern alternative ant farm is the AntWorks Illuminated Habitat

AntWorks Illuminated Habitat

The AntWorks ant farm is completely see through thanks to a gel that NASA developed when studying ants tunneling at zero gravity. The gel holds nutrition and water so that you do not have to provide the ants with nourishment. The AntWorks Illuminated Habitat is available with either red, green, or blue gel. The setup also includes LED lighting in the base so that you can view the ants at night. All of this is housed in a tightly sealed 6.5L x 6.0W x 1.25D clear acrylic habitat to minimize ants escaping into your house, lab, or classroom.

Set Up

Set up of the green AntWorks Illuminated ant farm was easy using the provided instruction manual. After assembling it and testing the LED lights the next step was to go out and find some ants. There are two options for getting your ants, you can either send in the coupon provided with the kit or find your own ants. After finding the ants, they were put into the ant farm which was covered with a towel for 3 days to allow the ants to get used to their new home. After adjusting to life on the ant farm the ants have created a spectacular tunnel system that looks even better in the dark with the LED lights on. They are fascinating creatures to watch and learn from.

For more information, Wikipedia has in depth information about insects including ants . You can always call Heath Scientific as well.

In a previous post on warblettes, we conducted a small experiment demonstrating the absorption characteristics of warblettes.   There is a small summary below that you can use as a refresher, or you can view the actual warblette experiment.

Warblettes Lab Activity

As mentioned in the previous post, warblettes are co-polymers that absorb up to 200 times their volume in water.  Warblettes are perfect for science fair experiments, in the classroom, or just as a fun activity for your family. Warblettes, which are sometimes referred to as water marbles, are non-toxic and come in clear, red, blue, green, and yellow colors.

The basic absorption experiment we posted on warblette absorption is a simple experiment that uses household objects.  Warblettes can be used for much deeper science and educational learning.  Heath Scientific has created a lab manual for this purpose.

The warblette lab activity book has activities for every age student. There are 13 activities ranging from math and graphing to cellular biology. You can use warblettes to demonstrate potential and kinetic energy, change over time (graphing), man-made and natural polymers, and light refraction. The labs include explanations and procedures. If needed, modify the activities to fit your students abilities or needs.

The Labs Cover:

1.) Calculating Volume – Math
2.) Observation Skills
3.) Polymers and Water Absorbtion
4.) Absorption of Household Liquids
5.) Water Absorption and Time
6.) Water Absorption and Temperature
7.) Advanced Measurement – Volume, Calipers, Averaging, and Reading Charts
8.) Graphing – Line Graph
9.) Potential Energy – Comparing Diameter to Rolling Distance
10.) Varying the Height of an Inclined Plane
11.) The Effects of Acidity on Water Absorbtion
12.) Light Refraction
13.) Density

Both the warblettes and the lab activity book are available at Heath Scientific, which has been providing educational supplies for over 20 years.

Warblettes are co-polymers that can absorb up to 200 times their volume in water. The warblettes water marbles are perfect for science fair experiments, in the classroom, or just as a fun activity for your family. These water marbles are non-toxic and come in clear, red, blue, green, and yellow. Heath Scientific offers a warblettes lab activity book that includes 13 activities that focus on different subjects like math, graphing, and cellular biology, perfect for science fair projects and classroom experiments. The procedures for running each experiment are explained and the labs can be modified to meet your specific needs.

Enough about the details lets take a look at the Warblettes in action!! As mentioned they are able to absorb 200 times their volume in water. Our experiment compares the warblette, aluminum foil from a chewing gum package,  and a piece of paper towel. This will show the differing amounts of absorption between the water marble and these other household items.

First the paper towell, foil, and the warblette were placed in water bottle caps, then each cap was filled with water.  (Note that we are using bottle caps as they are easily accessible in the home.  If you wish to measure liquid absorbtion in milliliters, a beaker or test tube will need to be used).  The items were left alone for 8 hours allowing them to absorb as much water as possible.

The picture below shows all of the items after 8 hours of absorption time. As you can see the aluminum foil absorbed no water, which was expected as metal is a virtually non-absorbent material. The paper towel absorbed a little more than half of the water in the cap. Paper towels are designed to clean up spills so it makes sense that this would be the case. Finally the warblette absorbed all of the water available in the cap, we even filled it a second time and it absorbed this too! The warblettes actually lock the water away so that they are not wet to the touch like the paper towel is.

Here is a picture of the warblette before the introduction of any water, as you can see it is very small in comparison to a dime.

This is the warblette at the end of the experiment; note the drastic size change after the absorption of water.

Warblettes have superior absorbent properties when compared with the aluminum foil and paper towel. This is an example of an easy and fun experiment that can be done with simple household items. The lab activity book offers more challenging experiments that are better suited for science fairs and classroom experiments. To find more experiments like these visit Heath Scientific, a family owned and operated company, which has been providing teachers, parents and students with educational supplies for more than 20 years. They offer warblettes and many other science supplies, science fair kits, and other fascinating products.