The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 1 • Page 1 Station 1 CLASSIFYING BIRDS BASED ON OBSERVATION OF PHYSICAL STRUCTURES Objective Teams will categorize birds based upon observation of physical appearance and structures. Materials • Set of 9 bird images: Caribbean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) , Bronze-Winged Mannikin (Lonchura cucullata) , Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) , Domestic Duck (Anas domesticus) , Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) , American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) , Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata) , Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) , Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) Procedure • Examine images of different bird species and list their physical characteristics. • Make inferences as to how closely related they are to each other and categorize them based on these inferences. • Record your rationale for placing the birds into each category. In other words, explain why you thought some birds were more closely related than others.
36
Embed
Objective Materials Procedure - Field Museum...actually finches. Materials • Set of 15 bird images and corresponding DNA sequences: Darwin’s Finches (5 species), True Finches (5
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 1 • Page 1
Station 1classifying birds based on observation of physical structures
ObjectiveTeams will categorize birds based upon observation of physical appearance and structures.
Materials • Set of 9 bird images: Caribbean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber), Bronze-Winged Mannikin (Lonchura cucullata),
Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus), Domestic Duck (Anas domesticus), Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata), Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata), Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
Procedure • Examine images of different bird species and list their physical characteristics. • Make inferences as to how closely related they are to each other and categorize them based on these inferences. • Record your rationale for placing the birds into each category. In other words, explain why you thought some
birds were more closely related than others.
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 1 • Page 2
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 2 • Page 11
Station 2classifying birds based on beaks
ObjectiveTeams will categorize birds based upon beak length and depth. Beak length refers to the measurement from the base to tip of the beak. Beak depth refers to the measurement from top to bottom of the beak, measuring from the base of the beak.
Materials • Set of 9 bird skull images: Caribbean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber), Bronze-Winged Mannikin (Lonchura
cucullata), Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus), Domestic Duck (Anas domesticus), Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata), Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata), Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
• Metric ruler(s) • Graph paper • Colored pencils
Procedure • Measure the length and depth of beaks of the different species of birds. • Plot the length and depth measurements on a graph. • Compare and contrast the beak data as well as the observational data collected in station one. Predict what
types of food each bird would eat. • If desired, revise your classification of the birds from station one.
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 2 • Page 12
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 3 • Page 21
Station 3classifying birds based on niche
ObjectiveTeams will classify birds based upon the niche they occupy in their island habitat. The function of the beak (which corresponds to their niche) will be simulated using common tools and a variety of food items.
Materials• Common tools (representing different beak shapes)• Items of various sizes and shapes (representing different foods)• Stop watch
Procedure • Assign a “bird” who will use the tools to pick up scattered food during a given time period. Assign a “timekeeper”
to time 20-second foraging periods, noting start/stop. Assign a “recorder” to record the beak type (tool), total number and variety of food items scattered before foraging, total number and variety of food items collected.
• Have the student assigned as the bird turn away while team members scatter the food on a substrate. Be creative when setting up the substrate and scattering food. Consider texture, color and then begin foraging!
• After foraging, answer the following questions. If time permits, create charts and/or graphs to organize the data. 1) Which beak picked up the most food items? Why? 2) Which beak picked up the fewest food items? Why? 3) Based on the food items present in the habitat, what kind of bird would be most successful living in this
habitat? Please explain your answer. 4) If the food items represented insects, which insects would be at an advantage in this habitat? Please
explain your answer.
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 4 • Page 22
Station 4classifying birds based on variation in dna sequence data
ObjectiveYour team will classify birds based on the amount of variation between birds’ DNA. Physical appearance and structures can be subjective and lead us to make incorrect inferences about relatedness of species.
Materials • Set of 6 bird images: Caribbean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber), Galah (Eolophus roseicapill), Great Crested Grebe
• Set of corresponding DNA sequences (in envelope)
Procedure • Examine the Flamingo image and record observations of its physical characteristics. • Compare other bird images with the Flamingo and rank the birds in order from most related to most distantly
related to the Flamingo. Record your rationale for the ranking. • Open the envelope containing the DNA sequences. Find the Flamingo DNA sequence and then compare the
other birds’ DNA to the Flamingo’s. Rank order the other birds as most closely related to most distantly related to the Flamingo based on DNA. Record your ranking.
• Record responses to the following questions: Was your ranking of relatedness based on physical characteristics different from your ranking based on DNA? Which method do you believe is more valid? Why?
• Return the DNA sequences to the envelope for the next group.
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 4 • Page 23
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 4 • Page 29
C G G C A A G T T C G T A A T C C T C GCaribbean Flamingo • Phoenicopterus ruber
C G G C A A G C T C G T G A T C C T C GGreat Crested Grebe • Podiceps cristatus
T G C T G G C C C G C T T G C G T C T TGrey Tinamou • Tinamus tao
T G C C G C G C T C C T A C C A C G T ARoseate Spoonbill • Platalea ajaja
T A A A A T A G T T A T C T C T A A A CNorthern Cardinal • Cardinalis cardinalis
T A A T A T A G T T A T C T C T G A G TGalah • Eolophus roseicapilla
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 5 • Page 30
Station 5answering the research question
ObjectiveUsing DNA sequence data from 15 bird species, your team will form a conclusion as to whether Darwin’s finches are actually finches.
Materials • Set of 15 bird images and corresponding DNA sequences: Darwin’s Finches (5 species), True Finches (5 species),
and Tanagers (5 species)
Procedure • Examine Darwin’s Finches carefully. • Then examine True Finches and Tanagers against Darwin’s Finches. Which group of birds is more closely
related to Darwin’s Finches? Why? Consider various lines of evidence: 1) physical characteristics, 2) structural morphology, and 3) behavior/niche.
• Now look at the DNA. • As a team, develop an evidence-based conclusion answering the question, are Darwin’s Finches really finches?
Record your team’s conclusion and rationale.
The Field Museum • Chicago Center for Systems Biology The Case of Darwin’s Finches • Student Pages • Station 5 • Page 31