NATIVE FISH IN THE CLASSROOM ______________________________________________ Manual and Activities Guide to Fishes of New Mexico Written by Angela P. James & Sara D. Blocker Edited by Thomas Sinclair U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE New Mexico Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office 2015 Fifth Edition Native Fish in the Classroom (Intentionally Left Blank) USFWS - New Mexico Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office Page | 2 Native Fish in the Classroom Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................................................. 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................................................... 8 INTRODUCTION TO GUIDELINES AND ACTIVITIES .................................................................................. 9 AQUARIUM SET-UP .............................................................................................................................. 10 Disease Control ............................................................................................................................ 10 Equipment List ............................................................................................................................. 10 Stage I – Aquarium Set-up ............................................................................................................... 11 Critical Water Quality Elements................................................................................................... 13 Teacher Reference: Water Quality Parameters .......................................................................... 16 Stage II – Imitating a River ............................................................................................................... 17 Stage III – Introducing Fish Species .................................................................................................. 17 Vacation Notes ............................................................................................................................. 19 AQUARIUM MAINTENANCE ................................................................................................................. 20 Water Changes ................................................................................................................................. 20 Cleaning Canister Filter .................................................................................................................... 21 CORE CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES ............................................................................................................. 22 Record Keeping – Weekly Inspection Chart ..................................................................................... 22 Student Worksheet: Weekly Inspection Chart ........................................................................... 23 Maintaining a Field Journal .............................................................................................................. 24 Student Reference: Creating a Field Journal .............................................................................. 26 SECTION 1 - PREPARING FOR YOUR FISH ............................................................................................. 27 Activity 1: Getting to Know Your Aquarium .................................................................................... 29 Student Reference: Getting to Know Your Aquarium ................................................................ 31 Student Worksheet: Getting to Know Your Aquarium ............................................................... 32 Student Worksheet: Find and Define ......................................................................................... 33 Activity 2: Testing Your Water ........................................................................................................ 34 Student Reference: Testing the Water – Ammonia and pH ....................................................... 36 Student Reference: Testing the Water – Nitrite and Nitrate ...................................................... 37 Student Reference: Testing the Water – The Nitrogen Cycle ..................................................... 38 Student Worksheet: The Fallen Nitrogen Cycle .......................................................................... 39 Activity 3: A Happy Home ............................................................................................................... 40 Student Worksheet: A Happy Home ........................................................................................... 42 Activity 4: Doing the Math .............................................................................................................. 43 USFWS - New Mexico Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office Page | 3 Native Fish in the Classroom Student Worksheet: The Thermometer ..................................................................................... 45 Student Worksheet: Degrees of Celsius and Fahrenheit ........................................................... 46 Student Worksheet: Calculating Water Volume ........................................................................ 47 Student Worksheet: Calculating Water Volume II ..................................................................... 48 Activity 5: Working Together for the Fish ....................................................................................... 49 Teacher Reference: Working Together for the Fish - Image 1 ................................................... 51 Teacher Reference: Working Together for the Fish - Image 2 ................................................... 52 Teacher Reference: Working Together for the Fish - Image 3 ................................................... 53 SECTION 2 – ALL ABOUT THE FISH ....................................................................................................... 55 Activity 6: Option I – External Trout Anatomy ................................................................................ 57 Teacher Reference: Native Trout ............................................................................................... 61 Teacher Reference: Nonnative Trout ......................................................................................... 62 Student Reference: An External View of a Trout ....................................................................... 63 Student Reference: Trout Anatomy Defined .............................................................................. 64 Student Worksheet: Trout Anatomy Double Puzzle .................................................................. 65 Student Worksheet: Trout Anatomy Crossword Puzzle ............................................................. 66 Activity 6: Option II - External Fish Anatomy .................................................................................. 68 Student Reference: Fish Anatomy Described ............................................................................. 70 Student Reference: Fish Anatomy Described (continued) ......................................................... 71 Student Reference: Fish Anatomy Defined ................................................................................ 72 Student Worksheet: Fish Anatomy Double Puzzle ..................................................................... 73 Student Worksheet: Fish Anatomy Crossword Puzzle ............................................................... 74 Student Worksheet: External Trout Anatomy ............................................................................ 75 Activity 7: Internal Trout Anatomy ................................................................................................. 76 Student Reference: External Anatomy Review ......................................................................... 77 Student Worksheet: Internal Trout Anatomy ........................................................................... 78 Activity 8: Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout Basics ................................................................................ 79 Teacher Reference: The Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout ................................................................ 80 Student Worksheet: The Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout ............................................................... 81 Student Worksheet: The Life of a Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout ................................................. 82 Activity 9: Option I – Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout 101 ................................................................... 83 Teacher Reference: Word Wall Vocabulary List ......................................................................... 84 Student Worksheet: A Family of Fishes ...................................................................................... 85 Student Worksheet: The Life Cycle ............................................................................................ 86 Student Worksheet: The Home of a Trout ................................................................................. 87 USFWS - New Mexico Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office Page | 4 Native Fish in the Classroom Student Worksheet: The Odds and Ends .................................................................................... 88 Activity 9, Option II - Middle Rio Grande Fish 101! .........................................................................