mayfly in the classroom 1 home learning project
TRANSCRIPT
Mayfly in the Classroom 1 Home learning project
Whilst we find ourselves currently unable to visit you in school, we
wanted to bring the Mayfly in the Classroom project to you at home. This
fascinating project is usually aimed at primary school aged children
learning about life cycles, adaptation, habitats and food chains but it can
be enjoyed by all ages.
Where you see the green fish we have added in some Mini
Project ideas. You will also notice some Key Words in orange – these
might be new words for you to learn.
Firstly, a little background on the project. We want to help you to
understand the importance of rivers, not just for wildlife but for people
too.
Mayfly in the Classroom 2 Home learning project
Why are Rivers Important?
Transport
Historically, before railways and aeroplanes, rivers were a vital transport
link to enable people and goods to be moved from one town to another.
People still travel along rivers today, mostly for pleasure.
Leisure
Today we enjoy our rivers through a variety of leisure activities including
riverside walks, angling, swimming, kayaking and even narrowboat
holidays.
Wildlife
Rivers provide excellent habitat for wildlife. They are home to lots of
plants and animals including yellow flag iris, otters, water voles,
kingfishers, herons, white-clawed crayfish and of course, many fish and
invertebrate species.
Fresh Water
Rivers are very important for storage of fresh water – a precious
commodity necessary for all life on earth. Rivers help to drain away
surface water to prevent flooding and they provide water for farmers to
irrigate their crops. They carry water and nutrients around the earth as
well as playing a vital part in the water cycle.
Think of all the ways we use water in our everyday lives and
make a public information leaflet listing ways people could save
water
Energy
In the past many mills used fast-flowing river water to power machines in
factories where flour, paper, cotton and even gunpowder were produced.
Today river water is dammed in hilly places like Scotland and used to
produce hydro-electric power.
Mayfly in the Classroom 3 Home learning project
The River Witham
The main river in Lincolnshire is the River Witham, it is approximately 82
miles long and has many tributaries (streams and drains) flowing into it.
The source is just south of Grantham near a village called South
Witham. The Witham flows northwards through Grantham and then
Lincoln where it begins to flow back in a southerly direction towards
Boston. In Boston it joins the Haven River and flows out to sea at the
Wash.
Find out the name of your local river and do some research
on the history of the river and write an illustrated newspaper
article.
Mayfly in the Classroom 4 Home learning project
Mayflies
Some of the smallest creatures that live in the river are the
mayflies.
There are 51 different species of mayfly in the UK split into 6 different
families, the most common ones can be seen in the table below:
Mayfly in the Classroom 5 Home learning project
Some Amazing Mayfly Facts
• Mayflies have been around for more than 300 million years –long
before dinosaurs even existed!
• Mayflies live under water in streams and rivers for most of their
lives (as nymphs)
• They absorb oxygen through gills along their sides
• They eat living plants or detritus (tiny pieces of dead plants and
animals – nature’s litter)
• Amazingly, mayfly nymphs transform into adult insects that can fly!
• In their adult form they do not eat
• Some species can lay up to 10,000 eggs!
• A mayfly can moult (shed its skin) up to 50 times during its life as it
grows
• Unlike other insects, mayflies have 4 stages in their life cycle
Mayfly in the Classroom 6 Home learning project
One of the mayfly’s main predators is the brown trout - find
out about the life cycle of a brown trout and draw or cut out
images showing the different stages- make sure you get
them in the correct order 😊
Mayfly in the Classroom 7 Home learning project
Why Are Mayflies Important?
• They are an indicator species, warning us of pollution – mayflies
need clean water to survive so if there are no mayflies in the river it
may be polluted
• They are a vital part of the river food chain – many other creatures
and their young survive by eating mayflies
Choose your favourite River Creature, find out more about it
and fill in the Fact File and Food Chain Worksheet (page 21).
Mayfly in the Classroom 8 Home learning project
Setting up your very own Mayfly aquarium
at home – what you will need.
For river or stream dipping:
➢ A net – if you do not have one you can make one
countryfile magazine -how to make a pond-dipping net ➢ A tray to collect your creatures in – an old ice cream tub will do ➢ A turkey baster and/or a plastic spoon to carefully collect up your individual creatures ➢ A bucket to carry home your creatures, substrate (stones & sand from the riverbed) and river water
➢ An identification guide to work out what you have found eden rivers trust Name-That-Minibeast
or opal explore nature freshwater identification chart
➢ A magnifying glass or bug pot will help you get a closer look at what you find
To make your aquarium:
➢ A 2- litre plastic bottle with the top 10cm cut off and
a hole pierced through the lid
➢ An air pump with a no-return valve, tubing, and an
air stone – available from Amazon or pet stores
➢ A container to stand the aquarium in as a water
bath, a thermometer and some freezer packs to
help keep the water cool (below 21o C)
➢ Some water, substrate (stones with algae on and
sand) and plant detritus from the river/stream
➢ A twig for the mayflies to climb out of the water
➢ A small paintbrush and a clean takeaway box with
airholes in the lid
Mayfly in the Classroom 9 Home learning project
Shopping List Suggestions:
Pond dipping net https://www.nhbs.com/search?q=pond%20net&hPP=60&idx=titles&p=0&fR%5Bdoc_s%5D%5B0%5D=false&fR%5Bhide%5D%5B0%5D=false&fR%5Blive%5D%5B0%5D=true&qtview=221470
Sample tray https://www.nhbs.com/search?q=%20tray&hPP=60&idx=titles&p=0&fR%5Bdoc_s%5D%5B0%5D=false&fR%5Bhide%5D%5B0%5D=false&fR%5Blive%5D%5B0%5D=true&qtview=159614
Turkey baster https://www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-acrylic-turkey-baster/p/0036854
Air pump with no- return valve, air stone and tubing
https://www.nhbs.com/search?q=%20tray&hPP=60&idx=titles&p=0&fR%5Bdoc_s%5D%5B0%5D=false&fR%5Bhide%5D%5B0%5D=false&fR%5Blive%5D%5B0%5D=true&qtview=159614
Magnifying bug pot https://www.nhbs.com/search?q=Bug%20pot&hPP=60&idx=titles&p=0&fR%5Bdoc_s%5D%5B0%5D=false&fR%5Bhide%5D%5B0%5D=false&fR%5Blive%5D%5B0%5D=true&qtview=160960
Freshwater name trail – Identification Key
https://www.nhbs.com/the-freshwater-name-trail-book
Mayfly in the Classroom 10 Home learning project
Mayfly Nymph Identification
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Safety First!
Adult supervision is required at all times.
Kick Sampling
➢ Find a safe place to access the river or stream – ensure the bank
is not too steep (Be sure you are not trespassing on private land)
➢ Check the water is clear so you have a good view of the riverbed
➢ Check the water is less than 30cm deep and not flowing too fast
➢ Be aware of stinging plants and insects – wear trousers and long
sleeves
➢ Small children should be accompanied into the water
➢ Move slowly in and around the river to avoid slips, trips and falls
➢ Take care when using equipment – water-filled trays can be heavy
➢ Fresh wounds should be covered with a waterproof dressing
➢ No face touching or fingers in mouths, thorough handwashing
immediately after this activity and before eating is necessary to
prevent possible micro-bacterial infection
Aquarium Building
➢ An adult should cut the top from the bottle and pierce the lid (sharp
knife/scissors required)
➢ Care must be taken with water around the air pump which will be
plugged directly into the mains
Mayfly in the Classroom 12 Home learning project
Kick Sampling
Once you have your kit ready and you’ve found a safe place to access
the stream or river you are ready to collect your first kick sample.
1. Put some river water into your tray ready for your creatures
2. Carefully stand in the water with the head of your net placed
down onto the riverbed, downstream of you, no more
than 30cm away from your kicking foot
3. Balancing firmly on one leg, lift your kicking foot
slightly off the ground and kick back and forth to
gently scuff the bottom of the river bed so that any
creatures in the substrate will be dislodged and will
flow into your net
4. Try moving to different spots in the stream and kicking
again – try to avoid collecting too much silt
5. You can also try pushing your net gently underneath any
overhanging vegetation on the bank to collect any creatures
that might be hiding there
6. Once you have been sampling for a few minutes take your net
carefully to your tray, tip it over and shake the net into the water
in the tray to make sure you have rinsed off all of the creatures
7. Step carefully out of the river/stream whilst you let the
water in the tray settle and then you can have a good look at
what you have found
8. Use your spoon or turkey baster to gently move creatures
into a bug pot or old jam jar (with some water) so you can
have a closer look – use the identification charts to help you
work out what you have found (see links to free i.d. charts on
page 8 and Mayfly guide on page10)
Mayfly in the Classroom 13 Home learning project
9. Put some water and substrate (small stones and sand from the
riverbed) into the bucket and add in any Mayfly Nymphs you find
(ideally you will have 4 to take home)
10. Don’t forget to carefully return the other creatures and water
back to the river where you found them
11. Wash your hands!
Setting up your aquarium
Once you are back at your home you can begin
making a home for your Mayfly nymphs
1. Place the substrate into the bottom of your
bottle
2. Pour in the river water
3. Add a little bit of plant detritus and a twig sticking
out of the water
4. Carefully add in your Mayfly Nymphs – be sure to record how
many of each type you found
5. Mark a line with a felt pen to show the water level
6. Push the tubing with the air stone through the hole
in the lid
7. Connect the tubing to the non-return valve and then
this should be attached to the pump with another
length of tubing
8. Carefully push the top of the bottle upside down into the bottom
of the bottle and ensure that the air stone is below the water
level, but that there is space above the water level for the
emerged mayflies
Mayfly in the Classroom 14 Home learning project
9. The air pump can now be switched on and needs to be
running for the entire duration of the project
10. The aquarium should now be placed into the water bath with
cold tap water to help keep the temperature below 21oC
11. Congratulations! Your aquarium is complete 😊
Don’t forget you need to check on it every day to make sure the Mayflies
have everything they need to survive (see daily checklist below).
Make a River Collage using natural materials or anything you
can find at home (see worksheet page 20)
Mayfly in the Classroom 15 Home learning project
Why Daily Checks are Important
Bubbles
It is important to keep the aquarium as close as possible to the mayfly’s
natural habitat. Because the water in the bottle is not flowing like the
river/stream we use an air pump to add some movement and oxygen.
The air stone helps the bubbles to disperse throughout the water.
The mayflies would not survive for very long without the pump adding
oxygen to the aquarium.
Temperature
The mayflies are used to cool river/stream water, so it is important that we
don’t let the aquarium water get too warm, this is why we use a water bath.
We can change the cold, tap water in the water bath each day and/or add
a frozen cool pack. If you have two packs one can be in the freezer whilst
one is in the water bath and you can swap them over each day.
It is also a good idea to keep your aquarium away from direct sunlight.
Water Level
You can top up water lost from your aquarium by evaporation, using tap
water which is the same temperature as the aquarium. The tap water
must have been left in an open container for at least 12 hours before
adding it (this allows any of the toxic dissolved chlorine to evaporate).
Emergence
If any sub-imagos emerge you can gently remove them using a
small paintbrush - keep them in your takeaway tub (with the
aerated lid) in the fridge. They can be kept here for up to a
week until release day. They may even moult to become an
imago during this time.
Mayfly in the Classroom 16 Home learning project
Daily Checks Record Sheet Number of nymphs added to aquarium Body shape (draw or paste photo)
Food required? (highlight)
• Detritus (d)
• Algae on substrate
How do the nymphs move? (highlight)
• Agile Darter
• Stoneclinger
• Burrower
• Creeper
Baetidae (olives - max 4)
Heptageniidae (flatheads - max 3)
Ephemeridae (burrowers - max 3)
Ephemerellidae (d) (crawlers - max 2)
Week 1
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Aeration bubbles? (Yes/No) Did you make any adjustments?
Water Level – did you top up the water? (Yes/No)
Temperature less than 21oC? Yes/No
Did you need cool packs? (Yes/No)
Mortalities – did any mayflies die? What did you do?
Did you add fresh food? (yes/No)
Sub -imago emergence? (yes/no) How many?
Any other notes
Mayfly in the Classroom 17 Home learning project
Week 2
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Aeration bubbles? (Yes/No) Did you make any adjustments?
Water Level – did you top up the water? (Yes/No)
Temperature less than 21oC? Yes/No
Did you need cool packs? (Yes/No)
Mortalities – did any mayflies die? What did you do?
Did you add fresh food? (yes/No)
Sub-imago emergence? (yes/no) How many?
Any other notes
Mayfly in the Classroom 18 Home learning project
Release Day
The mayflies can take a week or more to emerge as sub imagos
and not all of them will emerge in this time.
Your emerged mayflies can be kept for a maximum of 7 days in the
fridge before they are released.
Return to the river where you collected your samples to release your
adult mayflies.
Adult mayflies should be gently placed on bankside vegetation.
Any surviving nymphs that have not yet emerged should be carefully
released back into the river along with the water and substrate.
Whilst at the river take time to look out for any of the resident mayflies
emerging or flying around.
Don’t forget to print out and complete your
certificate! 😊 (page 24)
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Additional Activity Sheets
➢ River Collage Project
➢ River Creature Fact File and Food Chain
➢ Mayfly Life Cycle Wordsearch
➢ Marvellous Mayflies Crossword
➢ Mayfly in the Classroom Home Learning Project
Certificate
For more information about the project please see
https://www.wildtrout.org/content/mayfly-classroom
We’d love to see how you got on with your
projects. Please do share your project
photographs and artwork with us.
Find us on Social Media @LincsRivers or
email [email protected]
Mayfly in the Classroom 20 Home learning project
River Collage Project
Using natural materials and/or materials you can find at home to
make a collage of a river or stream (including the riverbed and the
surrounding bankside vegetation) with different habitat types:
➢ Smooth pebbles and cobbles (stones larger than
6cm)
➢ Weed
➢ Gravel
➢ Silt
Think about the types of plants and animals that might
live there?
Draw and cut out each of the mayfly nymphs from the table on page 4.
Match your cut outs of the various nymphs to the correct microhabitats in
your collage
➢ Include birds, fish and spiders and other mayfly predators to your
collage – think about where they should go
➢ Include adult mayfly pictures (sub-imagos and imagos) on the
collage – these can be on the water surface or on nearby
vegetation
You might also want to include a birds’ nests with chicks being fed
mayflies by parent birds.
Think about the food chains and lifecycles involved.
You might even want to include areas of pollution (e.g. chemical spills,
discarded litter etc.) Do you think there will be living creatures in that
area of the collage?
Perhaps you can work together with your family to create your collage.
Mayfly in the Classroom 21 Home learning project
My favourite River Creature is __________________________
Draw a picture of your creature in the box:
All about my favourite River Creature:
It has _____ legs.
It has _____ tails.
It does/does not have antennae.
My creature leaves the water to grow up? Yes or No
My creature eats…
Plants – it is a herbivore
Animals – it is a carnivore
Plants and animals – it is an omnivore
Dead things (detritus) – it is a decomposer or detritivore
Mayfly in the Classroom 22 Home learning project
These animals eat my creature:
This is my creature’s Food Chain
Write or draw your answers in the boxes
My creature eats this as food:
My creature:
Predator
Predator/Prey
Mayfly in the Classroom 23 Home learning project
Mayfly Life Cycle Wordsearch
Find the words in the puzzle
imago sub imago
egg emerging
hatching spinner
dun water
swim moult
crawl wings
fly nymph
Mayfly in the Classroom 24 Home learning project
Once you have completed the Project you should be able to
answer the questions to complete the Crossword
ACROSS
DOWN
1. Mayfly nymphs have these to help them breathe under water
5. Mayflies have been around since before the __________
6. The tank where we keep our Mayflies _____
7. The name of the main river in Lincolnshire
9. Mayflies are a very important part of the f___ c____
11. A mayfly can do this up to 50 times in its life
12. It is important to keep the water t____ below 21o C in the aquarium
14. Where animals make their home
15. The number of stages in the mayfly life cycle
16. These are important for wildlife, transportation, leisure and water storage
19. Another name for a spinner
20. Another name for a sub imago
2. The word we use to describe the sand and gravel that makes up the stream or riverbed
3. The type of sampling we used to find mayfly nymphs
4. B____e is the Latin name for the olive agile darter
8. All i_____ have six legs
10. Nature’s litter d________
13. Mayflies are a very important indicator species as they help us to detect p______
17. The first stage of the mayfly life cycle
18. A mayfly nymph has three of these
