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Tying the Knot: How Do Horseshoe Crab and Red Knot Populations Affect Each Other?
In this study, scientists wanted to examine how the harvest of horseshoe crabs in Delaware Bay affects the red knot. The red knot is a migratory bird. The red knot feeds primarily on the eggs of horseshoe crabs during its stopover in Delaware Bay.
Tying the Knot: How Do Horseshoe Crab and Red Knot Populations Affect Each Other?
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In this FACTivity, you will learn about the migration of the red knot and why different areas where the red knot stops are important for the red knots’ survival. You...FACTivity – Tying the Knot
In this FACTivity, you will learn about the migration of the red knot and why different areas where the red knot stops are important for the red knots’ survival. You...
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Scientific modeling is used in medical, marine, space, and environmental science, among other fields. Scientific modeling helps scientists understand how things work now and how they might work in the...
Spotlight – Scientific Models in Adaptive Management
Scientific modeling is used in medical, marine, space, and environmental science, among other fields. Scientific modeling helps scientists understand how things work now and how they might work in the...
Glossary
View All Glossaryabundance
(ə bən dənt(s)): A large quantity; plenty.
arctic
(ärk tik): Of, relating to, or suitable for use at the north pole or the region around it.
arthropod
(är thrə päd): Any of a phylum of invertebrate animals (such as insects, arachnids, and crustaceans) having a segmented body, jointed limbs, and a shell of chitin that is shed periodically.
assumption
(ǝ sǝm(p) shǝn): A fact or statement taken for granted (that it is true).
breed
(brēd): To produce offspring by sexual reproduction.
conserve
(kǝn sǝrv): To avoid wasteful or destructive use of something.
estuary
(es chə wer ē): A water passage where the tide meets a river current.
gorge
(gȯrj): (verb) To eat greedily; to stuff oneself.
harvest
(här vǝst): To gather in a crop.
invertebrate
(in vər tə brət or in vər tə brāt): An animal (such as a worm, clam, spider, or butterfly) that lacks a backbone.
juvenile
(jü və nīl): Showing incomplete development.
land manager
(land ma ni jǝr): A person who manages land, specifically its natural resources; in the Forest Service, land managers maintain and improve the health, diversity, and productivity of the nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of current and future generations.
lunar cycle
(lū nər sī kəl): The changing appearance of the Moon as seen from Earth.
migrate
(mī grāt): To pass, usually periodically, from one region or climate to another for feeding or breeding.
migratory
(mī grǝ tȯr ē): Of, relating to, or characterized by moving, usually periodically, from one region or climate to another for feeding or breeding.
model
(mä dǝl): (noun): (1) Type or kind; (2) a system of postulates, data, and inferences presented as a mathematical description of an entity or state of affairs.
(verb): To make a simplified copy or representation of something to help aid understanding.
new moon
(nü mün): The Moon’s phase when its dark side is toward Earth.
objective
(əb jek tiv): (noun) An aim or goal.
pharmaceutical
(fär mə süt i kəl): Of, relating to, or involved in pharmacy or the manufacture and sale of medicinal drugs.
simulation
(sim yə lā shən): The imitation by one system or process of the way in which another system or process works.
strenuous
(stren yə wəs): Showing or requiring great energy.
structured
(strək chərd): Organized.
threshold
(thresh hōld): A level, point, or value above which something will take place and below which it will not.
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Conor McGowan
Population Ecologist
My favorite science experiences always involve being out in the field with the animals I am studying. The best one has to be when I trapped and banded waved albatross...View Profile -
Jim Nichols
Population Ecologist
One of my more interesting experiences occurred while working on a project on a big lake in central Florida that required collecting alligator eggs. I worked with a group of...View Profile
Standards addressed in this Article:
Social Studies Standards
- Global Connections
- People, Places, and Environments
- Production, Distribution, and Consumption
- Science, Technology, and Society
- Time, Continuity, and Change
Note To Educators
The Forest Service's Mission
The Forest Service’s mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. For more than 100 years, our motto has been “caring for the land and serving people.” The Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), recognizes its responsibility to be engaged in efforts to connect youth to nature and to promote the development of science-based conservation education programs and materials nationwide.
What Is the Natural Inquirer?
Natural Inquirer is a science education resource journal to be used by students in grade 6 and up. Natural Inquirer contains articles describing environmental and natural resource research conducted by Forest Service scientists and their cooperators. These scientific journal articles have been reformatted to meet the needs of middle school students. The articles are easy to understand, are aesthetically pleasing to the eye, contain glossaries, and include hands-on activities. The goal of Natural Inquirer is to stimulate critical reading and thinking about scientific inquiry and investigation while teaching about ecology, the natural environment, and natural resources.
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Meet the Scientists
Introduces students to the scientists who did the research. This section may be used in a discussion about careers in science.
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What Kinds of Scientist Did This Research?
Introduces students to the scientific disciplines of the scientists who conducted the research.
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Thinking About Science
Introduces something new about the scientific process, such as a scientific habit of mind or procedures used in scientific studies.
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Thinking About the Environment
Introduces the environmental topic being addressed in the research.
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Introduction
Introduces the problem or question that the research addresses.
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Method
Describes the method the scientists used to collect and analyze their data.
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Findings & Discussion
Describes the results of the analysis. Addresses the findings and places them into the context of the original problem or question.
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Reflection Section
Presents questions aimed at stimulating critical thinking about what has been read or predicting what might be presented in the next section. These questions are placed at the end of each of the main article sections.
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Number Crunches
Presents an easy math problem related to the research.
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Glossary
Defines potentially new scientific or other terms to students. The first occurrence of a glossary word is bold in the text.
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Citation
Gives the original article citation with an internet link to the original article.
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FACTivity
Presents a hands-on activity that emphasizes something presented in the article.
Science Education Standards
You will find a listing of education standards which are addressed by each article at the back of each publication and on our website.
We Welcome Feedback
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Contact
Jessica Nickelsen
Director, Natural Inquirer program -
Email
Lessons
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In this lesson, students will read and summarize four of the article’s sections. After the class reads the article and summarizes the sections, students should work in groups to create...Lesson Plan – Model Construction
In this lesson, students will read and summarize four of the article’s sections. After the class reads the article and summarizes the sections, students should work in groups to create...
Education Files
Project Learning Tree
If you are a Project Learning Tree educator, you may use “Habitat Pen Pals” and “Web of Life” as additional resources.
Additional Resources
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PBS Video Series About Red Knots and Horseshoe Crabs
Visit WebsiteA story of the interconnection of life: NATURE discovers how the plummeting number of horseshoe crabs affects the red knot, a tiny bird.