Shark Web Quest

Situation

Today you begin your task of becoming the leading HRA expert on sharks, skates, and rays.  Your focus today will be mostly on sharks, but there will be some information available for skates and rays. 

Task

You should answer the following objectives.  

The student will:

1. Describe general appearance and life history of sharks.

2. Explain the concept "negatively bouyant".

3. Describe how sharks swim compared to rays and skates.

4. Describe the sense organs of chondrichthyes.. Explain
       how their sense organs reflect the differences in their lifestyle.

5. Describe how sharks locate their food.

6. Describe some species of sharks and compare their      
    morphology with their habitat.

7. Distinguish between skates and rays. Describe how 
    skates and rays swim.

8. Describe local species of skates and rays.

9. Explain how skates and rays affect benthic ecosystems.

Resource Sites  

Here are the sources to help you complete your task.  

http://swfsc.nmfs.noaa.gov/frd/HMS/Large%20Pelagics/Sharks/main%20.htm
Note that this is a NOAA site-government site for research and statistics.  This is a trustworthy site.

This site is addressing sharks in the southwest, but the characteristics and life history would apply to nearly all sharks.   

http://www.elasmo-research.org/education/topics/lh_r_vs_k.htm
This site has lots of depth, some heavy reading, about life history strategies.  There are also several links to learn more about shark characteristics.  

http://www.pacfish.org/sharkcon/documents/gruber.html
Gruber, S.H.  This is a giant in the field of shark research.  This paper describes much basic information about sharks.  

http://www.sharkresearchcommittee.com/
Lots of basic information is presented on this site including some diet information and shark attack information.  

http://uncpress.unc.edu/chapters/schwartz_sharks.html
Some basic information about sharks, skates, and rays.  

http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/zoolab/Table_of_Contents/Lab-9a/Skates___Rays/skates___rays.htm
Basic information about reproductive strategies of skates and rays is in this site.

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/natsci/ichthyology/organizations/SSG/sharknews/sn6/shark6news7.htm
Ritter, E.K.  Tells about the relationship of life history and geologic history to management of sharks now.   

http://www.sharktrust.org/cgi/morphology.html
Fun morphology site!  Don’t play too long!  

http://swfsc.nmfs.noaa.gov/frd/HMS/Large%20Pelagics/Sharks/Pop%20Dynamics/shark%20LH.htm
Life history characteristics of 26 species of sharks.   

http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/vertebrates/basalfish/chondromm.html
This has some information about the caudal fin.

 http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/vertebrates/Doug/shark.html
This is a great white shark site that also addresses some general shark information and information about learning or studying sharks. 

Procedure  

1.  Set up a word document and copy and paste the objectives into your document.  

2.  Access the sites and copy and paste notes (with the site URL) into the different objectives.  

3.  Reread the objectives and see if you have enough information to adequately answer the objective.  If so, formulate your answer using your notes that you copied into document.  Give URLs when you use specific information in your answer.  

4.  If you don’t have the objective answered, then go back to the websites recommended and read on the next site for relevant information.  Repeat taking notes and writing your own answer to the objective.  

5.  How can this information be used in our development of learning stations for elementary students?  

6.  Be sure your name is on this document.  Save.  Save.  Save.  Save very often!   

7.  Email this document to your teacher at:  rdeele@hra.org or rmdeeley@cox.net.