Students will unscramble the names of each bird illustrated in the activity book and then list the species code by each bird name. Then they can write why they think the bird has that particular name and species code. The children will become familiar with the birds included in the activity book and learn about the different names they have.
Background
All birds have a scientific name, common names and a species code. Each bird has one scientific name which is in Latin or latinized. A scientific name includes the genus and species and usually describes distinctive features of the bird. Birds may have several common names depending on where they live. These names often describe the bird's physical features, song, or behavior. Sometimes both scientific and common names honor a person who discovered or first described the bird. Four letter species codes were developed for each bird to simplify recording data.
White-crowned SparrowBird Scramble Species Code Search
activity guide
paper/pencil
Procedure
- Complete the bird name scramble activity on page 23 in the activity guide.
- Complete the Species Code Search activity on page 24 of the activity guide.
- Write the species code by each birds name on your list.
Discussion
Knowing that bird names are often descriptive, can you tell why these birds have that particular name? Can you figure out how the scientists decided the species code for each bird?
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