Nature Merit Badge "Answers"

Nature Merit Badge “Answers”

In my experience it is really hard to teach about a topic that you don’t know a ton about. So, this is a cheat sheet for you to know a little bit more about the nature merit badge so that you can actually teach it to your scouts.

1.    Name three ways in which plants are important to animals. Name a plant that is important to animals that is protected by your state or region, explain why it is at risk.

a.     Plants are important to animals for many different reasons but here are some of the most basic and essential:

                                                             i.      Oxygen - Plants take the Carbon Dioxide in the air and turn it into Oxygen through photosynthesis. Animals need the Oxygen that comes from plants to breathe.

                                                           ii.      Food - Some animals need plants for food. These animals cannot create their own sustenance and so they need to eat plants to survive. Both herbivores and omnivores eat plants. An example of an animal that eats plants is a cow. Cows eat grass and alfalfa.

                                                        iii.      Shelter - Plants can provide animals with a place to live. Birds create their nests up in trees to keep their eggs away from predators. Beavers use sticks to build their homes.

b.    Plants that are important to animals and protected in your state/area

                                                             i.      Unfortunately, we do not all live in the same state. This makes this part of the requirement hard for me to help with.

                                                           ii.      BUT Here are some websites that might help

1.    https://plants.usda.gov/threat.html

a.     This website lets you look at plants that are protected by state

2.    https://www.usbg.gov/gardens/rare-and-endangered-plants-gallery

a.     Example: Tampa mock vervain -> Butterflies

3.    https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/Rare_Plants/

a.     This is the forest service website and it explains why some plants are rare

Wood Rose

2.    Name three ways in which animals are important to plants. Name an animal that is protected by your state or region, explain why it is at risk.

a.     Animals are important to plants

                                                             i.      Pollination – Bees, humming birds, and butterflies are some animals that help to pollinate plants. This is where some of the plants pollen gets on the animal and is transferred to another plant by the animal. Pollination is essential for some plants to create new seeds.

                                                           ii.      Fertilization – Manure (animal poop) brings more nutrients and organic material to the soil which helps plants to grow.

                                                        iii.      Dispersing seeds – Some plants can send their seeds to new places without the help of animals but many have adapted to use animals to do the work for them. Animals can eat fruit with seeds in it and disperse the seeds of the plant through their feces or they can have seeds stick to their fur and fall off in a different place.

b.    Animals that are protected near you and why

                                                             i.      Unfortunately, we do not all live in the same state. This makes this part of the requirement hard for me to help with.

                                                           ii.      Some helpful websites

1.    https://www.fws.gov/endangered/

2.    https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/directory?sort=extinction_status&direction=desc

3.   http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/content/animals/kidscorner/endangered_animals/endangered_game.htm

3.    Explain the term “food chain.” Give an example of a four-step land food chain and a four-step water food chain.

a.     Food Chain: a hierarchical series of organisms each dependent on the next as a source of food.

                                                             i.      Think of it like this: I like to eat steak. Steak comes from a cow. Cows eat alfalfa hay. Alfalfa hay gets nutrients from the soil, water and the sun.

1.    Me -> Cow -> Alfalfa Hay

2.    See how it is a line of organisms? The line is like a piece of chain, they are all linked together in a line. That is a food chain

b.    Land Food Chain (4 Steps)

                                                             i.      Pick an animal that is a predator (eats other animals) then pick something that they would eat. Then ask yourself what would their prey eat and so on.

                                                           ii.      Example: Hawk -> Snake -> Mouse -> Wheat

c.     Water Food Chain (4 Steps)

                                                             i.      Same as above but with water Predator -> Prey -> smaller prey -> plant

                                                           ii.      Killer whale -> Seal -> Fish -> Krill -> Phytoplankton

4.    Do all the requirements in FIVE of the following fields

 (All of these different fields have a requirement where you need to identify different species/types and a creative aspect. They are all pretty straight forward)

a.     Birds

b.    Mammals

c.     Reptiles and Amphibians

d.    Insects and Spiders

e.    Fish

f.      Mollusks and Crustaceans

g.     Plants

h.    Soils and Rocks