Riparian Preserve Field Trip

Our first field trip with the Biology class was to the Riparian Preserve in Gilbert.  We needed to collect some pond water to grow different microorganisms in and there are not a lot of natural ponds and/or lakes around here.  So when several moms told me about the Riparian Preserve, I went to check it out.  It is really beautiful and educational.  There is a main lake where you can actually fish.  And we saw many ducks and a turtle in the water.  The Riparian Preserve is a place where they reclaim groundwater and pass it through several different marsh-like bodies of water in order to clean it.  Then it is used for all different purposes.  We also saw a great blue heron and many white egrets, as we explored the area.

The kids seemed to have a good time, as they found a pool of water with some fish left in it.  They caught 2 of them and decided to return them to the lake.  Not sure if they both made it into the water, but....

We did collect the water we needed for the experiments that we will be doing this coming Friday and the kids seemed to enjoy the time.  The weather was perfect - cloudy with a nice breeze - very odd for the middle of August.

We are also talking about going to the Botanical Gardens when we are studying the Plant Kingdom, and Biosphere 2 during our holiday break.  So far, this Biology Co-op is going well and we all seem to be enjoying it.