Small Fry to Go - Week #2; In the Redd

Just hanging out! After a week in the roller jar our newly hatched sacfry have been released into the trough of the Labitat (lab+habitat). Students note that they seem to be very fragile and they are just lying on the bottom trying to look invisible. In a stream the sacfry would stay grouped together for safety in a pebble nest known as the ‘redd.’ They can wiggle around but they mostly lie on their side in groups as they use up their onboard nutrition. One of the students noted that the belly of the sacfry is like having your lunch box packed for a week and always available when you need it!

Hundreds of students and their teachers are visiting their fry at least once a day. Since the labitat/habitat is located near the lower school lunch area, students are able to visit the site numerous times. Our resident site facilitator, Max Henson, teachers and parents are available to help students understand the nurturing process required for our tiny fry. Max, know locally as Big Fry West Coast, has hung a mirror above the trough so that passers-by get a great overhead view of the sacfry as they develop.

Twice each day students and their teacher perform water quality checks of pH, nitrates, nitrites, alkalinity, dissolved oxygen, and temperature. Students remove at least 10 gallons of water from the labitat each day and replace it with 10 gallons of dechlorinated water. Students observed that the fry are changing quickly. They record their daily measurements, activities, and observations in their scientific journals for review with classmates and parents.

This week students had their first opportunity to communicate and debrief with me via a scheduled weekly Google Hangout video conference chat. From my office in Marietta, Georgia, I was able to talk to Lisa Noon's 5th grade students to answer some of their questions that arose during the week.  Prior to the video conference students were asked by the Big Fry via email to observe the fry for a few days and then to predict how they would need to change to reach adulthood. Students were quick to suggest anatomical changed. Physiological changes were harder to "imagine.”

The sacfry are hanging around but students and their teachers are in high gear and full speed ahead.  The next big events will be the button up, swim up, and the start of feeding!

Fins up!

Tom Schmeltzer AKA the BigFry

Owner, Small Fry to Go

SmallFrytoGo.net

Ph#: 770-595-7903