My Mystery Bug

Task:
In class we were given images of bugs without any information about them. Our job is to do some investigating to find out what this bug could be. 

Here is an image of the bug that I was given: 

 

Process:
My searching process began with me trying to find websites that would help me detect this bug. I found many great websites, but none that were able to help me find what I was looking for. After looking online for websites, I also tried to find apps on my phone. I wasn't getting much information from the apps either. By this point of looking at different bugs I was pretty confident that this was some kind of beetle. Then I went to Google and searched this bug by its different characteristics. I still wasn't seeing any bugs that were similar. I continued to look online, on youtube, even Facebook and Instagram. I ended up back on Google images and started to find some similar beetles:

  
Conclusion: 
Still I knew these beetles were not the same exact one that I was looking for. I continued with the search and came across a beetle that is extremely similar. Other than the color differences which could simply be the camera that captured them, I believe that my bug is a Leaf Chafer Beetle. 

Information: 
🐛Their scientific name is Chrysophora chrysochlora.
🐛 They live in Northern regions of South America, the Rainforest's of Peru and Ecuador.
🐛The mature Leaf Chafer Beetles eat flowers and leaves.
🐛They typically range from 0.98-1.57 inches.
🐛My image is of a female, the males are larger. 

🐛They belong to the scarab beetle family 

Sources:

http://www.lifeintherainforest.org/shining-leaf-chafer-beetle
http://www.wikiwand.com/en/Chrysophora_chrysochlora


Children's literature:

Snakeskin's, Birds Nest, Butterflies, and Seeds

Snakeskin:

I investigated the skin of the larger snake that was on display. The skin of this snake is about 101cm long and 5cm wide! Although I am extremely afraid of snakes, I decided to feel the skin anyway. The snake skin feels a bit rough, and is also very light. The skin also has a white and tan pattern on it, though it is difficult to see in a picture. 

Activity:

I would watch this video with the children. This is a fun song, and gives great information about snakes.

Birds Nest: 

Here are two images of a birds nest, one image from the top view, and another of the side view. The nest is about 4 inches wide. The materials that the nest is made up of is things such as mud, twigs, grass, and I even saw some what looked like tree bark.

Activity:

Read the children a book about nests, and have the children make nests for themselves in groups. Provide materials children can use such as cardboard, blankets, rope, etc. 

Butterflies:

This is a Swallowtail butterfly. This butterfly stood out to me because I have never seen this kind before. The butterfly is yellow and black, and has beautiful wings. These wings are about 3.25 inches long from the top of one wing to the top of the other. The body of this butterfly is about 1.5 inch. 

Activity:

This is a video with a fun song that explains the different stages, parts, and other fun information about butterflies.

Seeds:

This is an image of two different seeds. This sort of caught my eye because I am use to seeing seeds that look similar to the image on the right. When I saw the image on the left I started to compare them. One thing that the seeds have in common is they are somewhat similar in their size. Both seeds have different shapes, different colors, and obviously grow different plants. 

Activity:

A fun way to use these seeds in the classroom would be to plant them. The children could predict what each seed would grow to be, and continue observing what each plant is doing as it grows. The children can then compare their drawings/observations to what the plant looks like when fully grown. Children have amazing imaginations, you never know what they might come up with!