Unfortunately much of that impact is negative. Habitat destruction by human activity is the most important cause of species extinction worldwide. The main cause of habitat destruction include urbanization, agriculture, mining and logging. Animals are also affected negatively by the degradation and fragmentation of their habitats, even if this does not necessarily cause overt destruction of their habitat. Human pollution also has a tremendous influence on animal habitats.

 

For marine animals, including mammals like whales and seals, birds like petrels and albatross, and reptiles like the sea turtle, marine debris presents a serious threat to their habitat. Marine debris is a general term for garbage in the ocean and on the beaches. The majority of marine debris comes from the land, blown or washed into the water from beaches, parking lots and roadsides, or carried to the sea by rivers, sewage systems and storm drains. This marine debris, the majority of which are plastic items, can be carried enormous distances by wind and ocean currents, ending up on remote beaches, or in great garbage patches in the middle of the ocean. The use of plastics in consumer items and packaging has grown exponentially in the last fifty years. Plastic has become the world's most used material, and much of it is used for packaging and for single-use disposable items, such as plastic bottles, plastic straws and cutlery, and plastic bags. The impact of these items on marine habitats is staggering primarily due to the fact that plastics do not biodegrade. Many scientists estimate that plastics c an last 300-600 years in the environment, if not longer.

Marine debris is harmful for many marine species due to ingestion. Seabirds like the albatross, petrel and fulmar are particularly at risk, as they are surface feeders. They often mistake floating plastic for food items. Sharp items may cause internal damage, larger items may block the digestive system, and animals may starve to death because of the sensation of fullness created by a

stomach-full of plastic. Scientists report that small plastic particles in an enormous garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean out number plankton six to one. Sea turtles are another species at high risk, as they often eat plastic bags and balloons, which resemble jellyfish when floating in water. Other animals, like whales, dolphins, an d seals are also affected.

Marine debris also entangles many different animals, including fish, seabirds, turtles and marine mammals. Rope, netting, fishing line, and six-pack rings are common items that cause entanglement. Animals may suffer injury, infection or chronic pain from an entanglement, they may suffer impaired mobility, interfering with their ability to catch prey or escape predators, and, if they become severely entangled, they may die.

There is growing perception about the importance of conservation and the need to preserve natural habitats, as more and more animals become threatened, endangered, or extinct. Overpopulation, deforestation, pollution (air, water, and soil) and global warming are all factors that threaten natural habitats and biodiversity.

Many zoos promote their role in the conservation movement as vital, either through direct conservation projects, or as educators about conservation, using animals as ambassadors. Zoos have responded to the growing public interest in conservation by claiming that by keeping endangered animals, such as the gorilla or tiger, in captivity, they are ensuring the survival of the species. To actually succeed at such as endeavour, these captive bred animals would have to be re-introduced into the wild. To be successful, zoos would need to provide conditions that mirror natural habitats, including an enormous space to simulate a wild habitat, appropriate social groupings, interactions with predators and prey, and a large population to prevent inbreeding. Unfortunately, zoo facilities rarely even come close to mirroring the complexity of natural habitats.

According to one recent study of almost 6000 endangered species, only 120 species were even involved in zoo-breeding programmes world-wide, and of those, only 16 species were successfully returned to the wild. Clearly, zoos currently play a minimal role in the conservation of endangered animals.

Zoos also claim that their animals are 'ambassadors' for their species or habitat, and are educating the public about conservation. However, keeping animals in artificial conditions, inappropriate climates, or small, barren enclosures, is not conservation education. Watching a polar bear pace within a concrete enclosure in a tropical climate does not serve to educate the public about a polar bear's natural habitat, or the threats that polar bears face in the wild. To really understand the threats that wild animals face, we need to learn about their natural habitats, and find ways to preserve and protect these wild spaces.

Although some zoos may indeed be active in promoting conservation, and others may be part of the successful re-introduction of captive-bred animals into the wild, it is clear that zoos themselves are not the answer for thousands of endangered species around the world. Our efforts must concentrate on conserving the wild habitats of endangered animals, not on displaying wild animals in captivity.

A Bottle Cap for Breakfast? is designed to support the Grade 4 curriculum, Habitats and Communities. By learning about marine animals and their habitats, students will discover the positive and negative impacts of human interactions on these habitats. The workshop places a special emphasis on sustainability and stewardship, and encourages students to protect wild animals and the places where they live.

ACTIVITY	CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
All Activities and Group Discussion	Analyse the positive and negative impacts of human interactions with natural habitats and communities Identify reasons for the depletion or extinction of a plant or animal species, evaluate the impacts on the rest of the natural community, and propose possible actions for preventing such depletions or extinctions from happening Use appropriate science and technology vocabulary, including habitat, population, community, adaptation and food chain
"Perils of Plastic" Feeding Game	Identify factors that affect the ability of plants and animals to survive in a specific habitat Demonstrate an understanding of a community as a group of interacting species sharing a common habitat Demonstrate an understanding of habitats as areas that provide plants and animals with the necessities of life
"Will an Albatross Ingest this Item?"	Use scientific inquiry/research skills to investigate ways in which plants and animals in a community depend on features of their habitat to meet important needs Build food chains consisting of different plants and animals, including humans Demonstrate an understanding of food chains as systems in which energy from the sun is transferred to producers and then to consumers Classify organisms, including humans, according to their role in a food chain
A Whale's Stomach	Describe structural adaptations that allow plants and animals to survive in specific habitats Demonstrate an understanding of habitats as areas that provide plants and animals with the necessities of life

 

Acknowledgments:

 

 

 

A series of photographs of dead albatross chicks taken on Midway Atoll, a remote nesting site in the middle of the North Pacific. Every year tens of thousands of albatross chicks die on Midway from starvation, toxicity, and choking because of the plastic that their parents accidentally feed them.

 

 

5 Gyres mandate is to understand Plastic Pollution through Exploration, Education and Action. Check out their JUNKraft, a boat made from 15,000 plastic bottles that sailed from California to Hawaii to bring attention to the issue of plastic marine debris.

 

 

All the Way to the Ocean, by Joel Harper (2006)

    Although this colourful picture book is intended for a younger audience (K-3), older students will still learn a lot from it. The book explains how storm drains function, how pollution ends up in our waterways and oceans, and how this pollution harms marine habitats and animals.

 

Earth Heroes: Champions of the Ocean, by Fran Hodgkins (2009)

     This installmant of the Earth Heroes series feature the youth, careers, and contributions of eight scientists who explored the ocean. Each became a passionate conservationist, whether they were working to save otters, whales, sea turtles, sharks, sunfish, or other inhabitants of the deep.

Prince William, by Gloria Rand (1992)
    A young girl in Alaska rescues a baby seal hurt by an oil spill and watches it recover at a nearby animal hospital. Picture book format.

Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam and the Science of Ocean Motion, by Loree Griffin Burns (2007)
    Describes the work of a man who tracks trash as it travels great distances by way of ocean currents. The last part of the book describes the mounting problem of plastic trash in the oceans and how this debris is destructive to marine life.

Organize or take part in an environmental shoreline cleanup at a creek, river, lake or beach near your school. Make sure to keep track of the debris you find, and tally your results to find out what the most common type of debris wa