Issue 4 -- LAND, SEA, & AIR MAIL

December 2000

We may bundle up against the cold but many animals thrive in it. In fact, some could live no where else. Polar bears, beluga whales and walruses in the Arctic; penguins, leopard seals, and weddell seals in the Antarctic. These two polar environments are 12,430 miles (20,003 km) apart but warm-blooded animals adopt similar survival strategies. December’s LAND, SEA, & AIR MAIL explores cold landscapes and the animals that call them home.

This month’s classroom activities for K through 12 explores polar animals. Also review our information booklets on polar bears and penguins.

Cool School

Students at Palo Verde Magnet High School in Tucson, Arizona created an artificial wetland in their school’s central courtyard. Their outstanding effort was recognized earlier this year with the "My Own Backyard Award" presented by SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Awards. Check out the story.

Teaching about the environment is not always easy. Do you know a teacher who’s figured out a unique way to inspire students, communicate concepts, or encourage exploration? What about a school that has dedicated itself to a project? We want to hear about them. Please submit a Featured Teacher/School entry form.

Julie's Journal
Catch up with Juile Scardina, SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Animal Ambassador, who traveled to Alaska to film killer whales.

Conservation Partners: American Oceans Campaign
Dedicated to safeguarding the vitality of our oceans and coastal waters, the American Oceans Campaign works to increase public awareness on a number of environmental issues. See what’s happening with Steller sea lions in Alaska.

Have You Seen This?

Students and teachers from around the world travel to the poles. Here’s a few web sites that share their experiences in the Arctic and Antarctic.

Find out about an NSF-sponsored program that sends teachers to Antarctica and the Arctic to participate in ongoing scientific research. In addition to information on this program, this site has polar-related lesson plans and resources. http://tea.rice.edu/index.html

Honor student Jessica Dempsey traveled with researchers from the University of New South Wales to the AASTO, or Automated Astrophysical Site Testing Observatory, in Antarctica. Read her journal at University of New South Wales trip to Antarctic in January 2000.

Former teachers Ann Bancroft and Liv Arnesen will try to be the first women to trek across Antactica. Follow them at yourexpedition.com.

Go Environ-mental!

The Environmental Protection Agency has reported an increase of 0.6-1.2°F in Earth’s mean surface temperature since the late 19th century. And the 10 warmest years on record have occurred since 1985. What affect does this temperature rise have and is there anything we can do? Click here and find out.

COMING NEXT MONTH

Take a trip with a whale that has a three month vacation in Mexico! California gray whales, twice hunted to near extinction, travel the eastern Pacific from Alaska to Mexico and back again on their yearly migration to warm-water nursery lagoons. They will be swimming your way in January’s LAND, SEA, & AIR MAIL.

SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Animal Information Database
http://www.seaworld.org/ / http://www.buschgardens.org/