Educator's Guide to the Assembly Program: REPTILES ALIVE! www.reptilesalive.com ©ReptilesAlive! LLC 1/20 Program overview The Reptiles Alive! assembly program is a wildly exciting and educational introduction to a wide variety of reptiles from all over the World! Your students will meet live animals from Africa, Asia, Australia, North America and South America while they learn snake secrets and laugh at our lizard stories and turtle tales. This program is recommended for providing students with a general understanding of reptiles and amphibians. Please explore our other programs if you'd like to focus on specific regions or habitats. Below is a list of possible animals your students might meet during this program: American Toad 1. Snakes(2-3) Australian Treefrog Ball Python Spotted Salamander Giant Madagascar Hognose 3. Lizards(1-3) Black rat snake Bearded dragon Bullsnake Blue tongue skink Corn snake Tegu Desert King snake Water Monitor Lizard Honduran milk snake 4. Turtles/Tortoises(1-2) Kenyan sand boa Leopard Tortoise Nelson's milk snake Russian Tortoise Burmese Python Snapping Turtle Boa Constrictor Spiny Softshell Turtle Box Turtle Northern Diamondback Terrapin 2. Amphibians(1-2) 5. Crocodilians (0-1) American Bullfrog American Alligator Depending on the duration of your program, students will meet 5-6 animals (30 minute show) or 7-8 animals (45 minute show). For detailed information on individual animals please visit our website at www.reptilesalive.com and click on “Animals”. The following content provides you with materials that will aid you and your students in getting the best out of our program including:facts, vocabulary, suggested resources and activities which can be adapted for different age groups and SOL needs. www.reptilesalive.com ©ReptilesAlive! LLC 2/20 Introduction to REPTILES Reptiles are animals from the class Reptilia. Reptiles inhabit every continent on Earth with the exception of Antarctica. There are 4 orders of the class Reptilia: 1. Chelonia – Turtles and Tortoises 2. Crocodilia – Alligators, caimans, crocodiles, gavials 3. Rhynchocephalia – tuatara 4. Squamata – amphisbaenians, lizards, snakes Characteristics: Reptiles have a backbone. They are vertebrates. (Image 1) Reptiles are covered in scales. Reptiles breathe air with lungs. Most reptiles lay eggs. Some reptiles give birth to live young. (Image 5) Almost all reptiles are cold-blooded or ectothermic. One of the exceptions is the leatherback sea turtle, which can regulate its body temperature to some degree. (Image 3) Most reptiles do not protect their eggs or young Introduction to AMPHIBIANS Amphibians are animals from the class Amphibia. There are over 6,500 species of amphibians, and they inhabit all continents except Antarctica, living in varied habitats such as rainforests, rivers and streams, deserts and alpine environments. There are 3 orders of the class Amphibia: 1. Anura – frogs and toads 2. Caudata – newts and salamanders 3. Gymnophiona – caecilians Characteristics: Amphibians have a backbone and an internal skeleton made of bone. They are vertebrates. (Image 2) Amphibians are cold-blooded or ectothermic. They cannot internally regulate their own body temperature. Most amphibians start life as an aquatic larvae (tadpole) breathing the water with gills and then go through metamorphosis to become adults with lungs which breathe air. Exceptions include the lungless salamanders, such as the red back salamanders, that lay their eggs on land and even guard them!(Image 4) Most amphibians do not have scales (the exceptions are some of the caecelians) and their skin is permeable (that means molecules and gases can pass through their skin). www.reptilesalive.com ©ReptilesAlive! LLC 3/20 REPTILES vs AMPHIBIANS Image 1: Snake skeleton Image 2: Frog skeleton Image 3:Turtles basking on a log Image 4: Life cycle of a frog Image 5: Scales! www.reptilesalive.com ©ReptilesAlive! LLC 4/20 WHAT DO REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS HAVE IN COMMON? HOW ARE THEY DIFFERENT? Shared characteristics of reptiles and amphibians: 1. Vertebrate animals that have internal skeletons made of bone. 2. Ectothermic. 3. Most do not protect their eggs or young (except crocodilians and a few others). Differences between reptiles and amphibians: 1. The skin of amphibians is glandular, highly permeable to air and water, and is usually covered in slimy mucus. The skin of reptiles is covered in dry keratin scales and is not very permeable to air or water. 2. Amphibian eggs do not have a shell and are usually laid in water. Reptiles either lay shelled-eggs on land or give birth to live young. 3. Amphibian young are born physiologically different from their adult form and must go through metamorphosis to develop into adults. Reptiles do not go through metamorphosis. www.reptilesalive.com ©ReptilesAlive! LLC 5/20 Reptiles Are Important to YO" Most species of reptiles serve as both predator and prey. The boa constrictor starts life as a tiny baby at the bottom of the food chain and provides food for other animals. As the boa grows larger, it nears the top of the food chain and helps to control populations of other animals. Food webs in most of our planet’s ecosystems depend on reptiles. Certain reptiles are considered crucial for the way they modify their habitat. Desert tortoises dig burrows that spiders, snakes, rodents and other creatures need to survive the harsh desert conditions. Alligators dig “gator holes” during droughts that provide critical habitat for fish, amphibians, turtles and other wetland species. Without reptiles, many other animals would disappear. Some herbivorous reptiles act as seed dispersers and help plants. A few reptiles are also known to act as pollinators. As the olive white-eye bird has become scarce, the blue-tailed day gecko (Phelsuma cepediana) is now the main pollinator for the rare plant Trochetia blackburniana on the island of Mauritius. Reptiles help humans in other ways as well. Doctors utilize reptiles to help people every day. Snake venoms are used to make medicines that treat cancer, heart disease, and other illnesses. Crocodiles and alligators are being studied for their ability to resist bacterial infections. Lizards with the ability to regenerate lost tails are helping scientists discover how to help people with injuries. Farmers depend on snakes and lizards to reduce populations of rodents and insects. By eating rats , mice, and insects, reptiles serve as protectors of crop lands. Scientists and engineers are studying gecko feet to learn how they are able to walk up walls and upside down on ceilings. A gecko robot that can walk straight up a glass wall has already been built. In the future, look out for more amazing inventions based on gecko feet. www.reptilesalive.com ©ReptilesAlive! LLC 6/20 Reptiles Alive! Di$tionar% a Adaptation: characteristics and behaviors that help an animal or plant survive. Albino: the complete or partial lack or melanin (dark color) in the skin. Amphibian: ectothermic, vertebrate animals (frogs, salamanders & caecilians) that typically have moist, slimy skin, usually lay jelly-like eggs in water, and go through metamorphosis to become adults. Amphisbaenians: a group of elongate, snake-like reptiles. Antivenin/Antivenom: medicine derived from snake venom used to treat venomous snakebites. c Caecilians: a group of legless, snake-like amphibians found mostly in the tropics. Carapace: the hard upper shell of a turtle, crustacean, or arachnid. Carnivore: an animal that eats other animals. Competition: a demand by two or more individuals for the same resource (food, water, shelter). Conservation: protecting natural resources. d Deforestation: to clear a forest of all trees and vegetation. Decomposer: organisms that eat or digest dead plants, dead animals, and animal wastes. e Ectothermic: (cold blooded) an animal that has a body temperature dependent on the temperature of the environment. Endothermic: (warm blooded) an animal that has the ability to maintain its temperature above the temperature of the surrounding environment. Extinct: a species that once existed that has died out completely. f Fang: a specialized tooth with a closed canal or groove that channels venom into a bite. www.reptilesalive.com ©ReptilesAlive! LLC 7/20 h Habitat: a combination of climate, plants, geology and other factors combined to create an animal species home. Herbivore: a plant-eating animal. Iguanas and tortoises are herbivores. Herp: a reptile or amphibian – from Latin “to creep or to crawl”. Herpetology: the scientific study of reptiles and amphibians. Hibernation: a state of inactivity or torpor, usually involving physiological changes, that many animals enter to survive winter. k Keratin: hard, tough material that makes up reptile scales, mammal hair, and bird feathers. m Metamorphosis: a process of physiological change that some animals (including amphibians) go through to become an adult. i Invertebrate: an animal that does not have a backbone or spine n Natural Resources: material supplied by nature. Nocturnal: animals that are active at night and sleep in the day. p Photosynthesis: the ability of plants and certain other organisms to create complex organic materials (including sugar) by using sunlight, water, carbon dioxide, and inorganic salts. Plastron: the bottom part of the shell of a turtle or tortoise. Poisonous: an organism that contains a substance that can cause irritation, illness, or death if another organism handles or eats it. Most amphibians are