Bell task
Swap your fact file with someone in your group and peer assess each other’s work using SIR.
Strength (something they did well)
Improvement (something they could work on) Respond (swap back and respond to the
feedback you have been given)
Success criteria:
Who they are
What they did
Details of their journey (weather conditions, equipment needed etc.)
Did they make it?
If not, why?
Any interesting facts about their journey
2) To be able to create an Antarctic food web
3) To be able to explain why the biodiversity of
Antarctica is unique
Today’s BIG Question:
What is unique about Antarctica?
1)To be able to identify Antarctica’s
plants and animals
Starter – Watch the clip and write a list of at least 5 facts about
Antarctica and the Emperor penguin.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-U8h1SCDbU
2) To be able to create an Antarctic food web
3) To be able to explain why the biodiversity of
Antarctica is unique
Today’s BIG Question:
What is unique about Antarctica?
1)To be able to identify Antarctica’s
plants and animals
Main Activity – a learning carousel
Working in groups, go round the carousel and complete the tasks to find out what is unique about Antarctica. Don’t forget to use classroom voices and listen for the timer!
1 MINUTE TO READ THE
WORKSHEET SECTION AND 8
MINUTES TO COMPLETE TASK
2) To be able to create an Antarctic food web
3) To be able to explain why the biodiversity of
Antarctica is unique
Today’s BIG Question:
What is unique about Antarctica?
1)To be able to identify Antarctica’s
plants and animals
Homework - due next lesson
Write an acrostic poem describing Antarctica – don’t forget to use
adjectives, similes, metaphors, personification... Be creative!
Plenary – Odd one out!
Watch the clip and make a note of the flora and fauna that are NOT found in Antarctica in the back of your books
Have any of your post-it questions been answered this lesson?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hObov-E540o 1 min
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrgqRKRvms
E 3 mins
2) To be able to create an Antarctic food web
3) To be able to explain why the biodiversity of
Antarctica is unique
Today’s BIG Question:
What is unique about Antarctica?
1)To be able to identify Antarctica’s
plants and animals
Task 1 – Biodiversity of Antarctica (fauna)
The term biodiversity refers to the variety of life (plants and animals) on Earth at all its levels and the processes that sustain it.
We are going to look at the biodiversity, in terms of fauna, of Antarctica. Endemic species are those only found in that particular location.
Endemic fauna
Non-endemic fauna
Task 1 – Biodiversity of Antarctica (fauna)
Looking at the images of Antarctica’s fauna on the other sheet, match the descriptions and names below to the images in order to categorise them on your worksheet.
Adelie penguin – small size with distinct all-black head with bright eyes. Think John Lewis, Christmas 2014! Eat krill, fish and squid.
Crabeater seal – medium-sized seal with smooth, pale grey fur (no distinctive markings). They don’t eat crabs, but they do eat krill!
Wandering albatross – largest wingspan of any bird allows them to travel great distances. Predominantly white, often black wing tips.
Krill – small, semi-transparent marine crustacean (shrimp-like).
Elephant seal – Males are large with elephant trunk-like snout that masks large teeth used for fighting other males.
Right whale - member of the baleen whale species (large size) which feed using distinctive baleen plates in their mouth to sieve their prey (mainly krill) from the water they take in.
Emperor penguin – not to be confused with the King penguin which has the darker orange chest and head markings, these are the largest penguins and have more modest paler yellow markings.
Chinstrap penguin – the clue is in the name!
Blue whale – largest marine mammal, long and sleek with a small dorsal fin. Light grey/blue in colour whilst on the water surface, they appear luminous aqua blue when seen underwater. Survive on a diet of krill – eating their own body weight in a day!
Orca/Killer whale – large, distinct black and white whale capable of propelling itself far out of the ocean to attack prey which include: minke whales, seals, penguins, fish .
Antarctic Petrel – little bigger than a pigeon, these distinct dark grey and white birds are capable of swooping down on surface water prey such as small fish and krill with their small, hooked beaks.
King penguin – large, elegant ‘dinner jacket’ penguin with dark orange markings on head and chest.
Antarctic dragonfish – little is known about these orange, deep-sea fish. Not fished commercially.
Weddell seal – large seals who are good divers and can spend large periods of time underwater. Distinct grey and white markings, clear, expressive, facial features.
Snow petrel – pigeon-sized, all white.
Wingless midge – one of a small number of terrestrial invertebrates, all well-adapted to harsh conditions including being tiny (0.2 – 13mm in length).
Leopard seal – large seals with spot markings and sharp teeth for killing and eating wide variety of prey including other seals and penguins. Not the best divers, they ambush their prey - capable of high speeds. Few predators.
Antarctic skua – large, predominantly dark grey with lighter markings. Reputation for being aggressive, they will prey on unguarded penguin eggs and chicks. They will also dive for fish and krill.
How do animals survive in Antarctica’s harsh and hostile climate? One of the processes all living things go through in order to sustain themselves is adaptation – they change in order to survive in their environment.
Task 2 – Unique Animal Adaptations
Or changes in behaviour.
Change can be physical changes that happen over
generations...
Emperor Penguin
I am warm blooded, so I have adapted to ensure that I retain as
much of my body heat as possible.
• Four overlapping layers of scale-like feathers.
• Form large huddles to share body warmth and shelter from the blizzard winds.
• Small extremities - very small bill and flippers, which means less blood is required to these areas, thus less heat is lost.
• Large size (larger the animal, the smaller the surface-area : volume ratio) means less relative area there is to lose heat.
• Thick fat/blubber layers for insulation.
• When its really cold, emperors rock backwards onto their heels so only a small area touches the ice.
• Stiff tail feathers for support when standing.
• Males and females alternate feeding times in breeding season.
• Able to dive for long periods for food by greater ability to store oxygen in blood.
• Streamlined body for fast swimming.
• White underside and black above makes them harder to see in water.
Task 3 – Biodiversity of Antarctica (flora)
Biodiversity is the different types of life (plants and animals) found on earth. We use it as a measure of the variety of organisms present in different locations – the higher the biodiversity in a place the better!
We are going to look at the flora of Antarctica – both on the continent itself and surrounding ocean.
Biodiversity of flora is limited here compared to other places around the world...
Lichen (flora)
• 3 main species in continental Antarctica.
• Formed as a result of a symbiotic association between fungi & algae.
• Very slow growth rate
• Adapted so that they can still photosynthesise while frozen.
• When covered in snow, lichens can still absorb water either from the saturated atmosphere or the snow itself.
• Able to survive long periods of drought.
Moss (flora)
• Not as widespread as lichens, but well adapted to the continent’s climate e.g. tightly-packed stems and
shoots to minimise water loss.
• Need snow cover to protect them from wind,
windblown ice and snow particles – if removed, growth rates decrease.
• Good indicator of climate change and sensitive to atmospheric pollution.
Marine phytoplankton (flora)
• Microscopic single cells that produce energy from sunlight.
• Around 350 species in Antarctic waters.
• Important role in influencing global climate as the Southern Ocean absorbs carbon dioxide by its take up by the
phytoplankton.
• And, they release compounds that promote cloud formation
(clouds reflect much of the Sun’s energy).
Task 4 – Antarctic Food Web
A food web is a series of interconnected food chains - it shows what eats what in a habitat. The flows of energy in the food web are represented by arrows, so once
something is eaten by something else, the energy flows from the prey to the predator for example. Start at the bottom where the producers can be found...
Producers are at the base of food webs – they convert sunlight into energy – often producers are plants. In Antarctica’s case, these are the marine phytoplankton that live in the Southern Oceans.
Krill are the Antarctic’s primary consumers – they consume (eat) the producers. They are large and there is an abundance of them drifting around in enormous swarms. Due to these factors not only do birds and fish feed on them, but many large animals such as seals, penguins and baleen whales do too.
Phytoplankton are abundant in Antarctic waters due to the deep waters bringing great upwellings of dissolved nutrients which are like fertilizers for the phytoplankton. The 24-hour sunlight in summer months adds to the favourable conditions.
Primary consumers are eaten by secondary consumers such as the Antarctic Cod, Antarctic petrel, Adelie
penguins and Weddell seals – last three also eat fish! Top level consumers such as Leopard seals will eat some of the primary consumers as well as secondary consumers – just look at that Orca eating a seal!
Krill
Top Level Consumers
Task 1 Antarctica’s Unique Fauna
Match the pictures to the names of the animals, then categorise Antarctica’s fauna into either mammals, fish, birds or
invertebrates and complete the table below (you only need to enter the animal’s name). Extension – underline endemic fauna in red and non-endemic fauna in green.
Mammals Fish Birds Invertebrates
Antarctic cod
Task 2 Unique Animal Adaptations
Annotate the drawing below to show how Emperor penguins have adapted to survive in Antarctica’s hostile climate. Extension – underline physical changes in red pen and behavioural changes in green pen.
Task 3 Antarctica’s Unique Flora
Discuss then answer these questions using bullet points:
1. Why is it that lichens can grow in Antarctica, but not trees?
2. How does moss indicate climate changes such as global warming?
3. How do marine phytoplankton influence the weather?
Challenge - The continent of Antarctica is less biodiverse than the surrounding Southern Ocean. Why do you think this is?
Task 4 The Antarctic Food Web
Using the information sheet, create a basic food web for
Antarctica. Don’t forget the arrows and to label the plant/animal and its level in the web!
Challenge – which is the most important species in the Antarctic food web and why is it so important?.
Task 1 Antarctica’s Unique Fauna
Match the pictures to the names of the animals, then categorise Antarctica’s fauna into either mammals, fish, birds or
invertebrates and complete the table below (you only need to enter the animal’s name). Extension – underline endemic fauna in red and non-endemic fauna in green.
Mammals Fish Birds Invertebrate
Crabeater seal King penguin
Task 2 Unique Animal Adaptations
Annotate the drawing below to show how Emperor penguins have adapted to survive in Antarctica’s hostile climate. Extension – underline physical changes in red pen and behavioural changes in green pen.
Task 3 Antarctica’s Unique Flora
Discuss then answer these questions using bullet points:
1. Trees cannot grow in Antarctica, but lichens have adapted so that they can. What are their three main adaptations?
2. Moss needs the snow cover in order to grow - why?
3. What might happen to the moss if the temperatures in the Antarctic increased?
Challenge – How are marine phytoplankton able to change the weather?
Task 4 The Antarctic Food Web
Using the information sheet, create a basic food web for
Antarctica. Don’t forget the arrows and to label the plant/animal!
TOP LEVEL CONSUMERS SECONDARY CONSUMERS
PRIMARY CONSUMER PRODUCER
Challenge – which is the most important species in the Antarctic food web?
Stiff tail feathers for support when standing.
