I am excited to share this weeks adventures! There really was not a specific treasure we went looking for, but I found an app that connects the community together by helping to identify wildlife that you find and sharing on the app. So we set off into the mountains to see what we could find and it turning into a very informative, physically challenging, and fun science lesson! iNaturalist is an awesome app and I will be using it long after this Blog is terminated. If you look at the third picture, these are icons denoting where someone has seen an critter and marked its location, with a picture and a description. Is the animal still there? Not usually but it was fun looking for them, we managed to find a Curve-faced Wind scorpion! However, most excitingly as we rested on a mountain cliff face a Red-tailed Hawk flew beneath us screaming into the desert air! The video shows the hawk, I hope it works... It was an amazing adventure and the iNaturalist app really help us learn about our natural surrounding... have you ever heard of a Tarantula Hawk? Now I have and its cool! It is actually an indigo blue and orange wasp that kills tarantulas! There is so much life in the desert, and its a real treasure! You just have to get up and go find it! Until nect time...
Andy
Andy, I enjoyed your post but I did not like that you wrote of terminating the blog. I kind of like to think that these will remain up and that we may be able to visit them from time to time. I have enjoyed learning about geocaching and we are going to the mountains this weekend on a day trip so I will now download the iNaturalist app. Your blog and others have opened my mind to ways of learning that I had not used previously. Thank you for that.
ReplyDelete-Mandy
Hey Andy,
ReplyDeleteOnce again you come through with a great app find for finding a reason to go outside. This as all the others you have posted seems to be a great way to spend time with the family, I am curious to see how it works for myself were we live. I love the way these types of apps keep people connected, by what they have discovered and makes them want to keep going.
As also ways keep it up!
Walt
Andy,
ReplyDeleteThis is the other Andy...I have heard of the tarantula hawk. My understanding is stings the tarantula with venom that paralyzes. It then lays its eggs on the body for its young to feed off of the tarantula when they hatch. Your blog is great to show others to get their families out and about and not just sit at home. The fact you point out that not only is this quality family time but great exercise, learn to navigate and educate...you can't ask for anything more...well...a steak and beer would be great too...
v/r
Andy E.
Andy,
ReplyDeleteVery cool app this week. I have seen something similar that hunters use to track game in a social environment, but I think that this app is very interesting from an educational perspective. As a kid growing up in the outskirts of Las Vegas, I spent many days exploring with my friends. One of our favorite pastimes was heading out with a five-gallon bucket and an old golf club to search for the coolest creatures we could find. The end of the day had us all gathered, where our parents couldn’t see, and trading lizards for tarantulas, snakes for scorpions, etc.. Today, I am terrified of what hides under the desert brush, but as a kid I was fearless. I wish I had this app when I was a kid, I would have ruled the neighborhood! Thanks Andy.
-Donny
Andy,
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a fun app. You should try it on the Guadalupe trial. It is about 90 minutes away. It is the highest point in Texas but more exciting is you will see tons of wildlife along the trails. Every time I have gone I have seen a tarantula the size of my hand on the trail. I think you and the kids would love the hike. Plus at the top you get to sign the book that shows everyone that has made it to the top. Thanks for exposing me to another cool app.
Andy,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. I think I am going to be like you and continue to use these apps long after this class is over and you discontinue your blog. The apps you share each week are a great way to spend family time. I'll be honest when I first visited your page and learned of your topic, I was not sure how you were going to relate it to education and how it would fit in to our class, but honestly this blog has been the most adventurous and fun to explore with my children especially in the midst of a pandemic. It sounds like you come across some interesting creatures with this app and it makes it very educational. Again, thanks for sharing. I look forward to the next blog.
Anthony