Redgrave and Lopham Fen: 13th June

Today we continued our investigations into The Great Outdoors when we went to Redgrave Fen. We had 4 activities during the day all run by volunteers from The Suffolk Wildlife Trust. 

We went to the meadow and recorded different plants and insects that we found. We were looking for the following plants:

We played a game to help us understand the role of insects in pollination. Each team had to take on the role of a bee and collect nectar from different plants and we saw how they transferred pollen to fertilise different plants whilst they did this.

We also looked for insects in the meadow and kept a record of the different varieties we found.

We found this very striking moth with red and black markings:

and identified it in the book below:

A grasshopper!

There were lots of varieties of bees, but they were quite difficult to catch:

We then walked to the nearest water to do some pond dipping. 

We used a chart to identify the different creatures that we found.

We were shown how to use the net without harming or startling the animals in the water.

We found lots of sticklebacks. Some were pregnant.

Here is a caddisfly larvae that looks like a piece of wood:

After lunch we went to investigate the woodland. There were some clues to help us find out out which trees our leaves came from...

We looked carefully around the woodland for trees and insects.

We ended our time in the woods by playing a game where we had to find a tree that we had touched when blindfolded.

We went back to join the rest of the class and played a game to help us understand the food chain.

What a great day!