Making science as clear as mud Making science as clear as mud (February 18, 2004)

Kids learn what life lurks in the baylands

by Dana Green

In a new science class at the Baylands Nature Interpretive Center, students can get down and dirty with one of their all-time favorite substances: Mud.

During the two-hour program, called "Discovery Dock: What's in that Muddy Water?", students visit the bay at low tide to collect water and wind data, study birds, learn the animal and plant life of the mudflats, and collect water samples to be examined at the center's laboratory. The class is designed for second grade- to high school-age students.

Naturalists at the center developed the new class to take advantage of low tide, when the water recedes and the hidden world of the mud flats is exposed.

"You can scoop up a handful of mud and be holding 10,000 animals ... that's how rich it is," Chief Naturalist Deborah Bartens said.

Students are broken into small groups and given binoculars and lab equipment to take to the dock. Once there, they learn the characteristics that make a marsh. Students collect data on wind speed, mud temperature, and water salinity; locate mussels, snails, and driftwood; and observe plants such as purple pickleweed that thrive in the muddy environment.

Students also get an opportunity to examine a rope hanging off the dock encrusted with worms, crustaceans and copacods.

"We never know quite what we'll see when we pull it out of the water," Bartens said.

The class emphasizes that the marsh is a fragile and unique environment, with each organism dependent on others for survival. Students leave with a new appreciation for the bay ecosystem, according to naturalist Linda Drey-Nightingale, who teaches the class.

"It's not just muddy water, it's teeming with life," Drey-Nightingale said. "They start to see how everything has its place."

Winter offers a rich variety of animals and plants for observation. Some classes come out twice a year to catch the different seasons, Drey-Nightingale said. "In winter the kids will see 12 different birds on their 20-minute walk to the dock."

Back at the lab, students observe flatworms, one-eyed shrimp, nematodes, and other creatures under the microscope. The class ends with an interactive slideshow depicting life on the marsh.

More than 1,000 students and individuals went through classes at the interpretive center last year. Drey-Nightingale said many teachers bring their classes back year after year.

"I always emphasize that the kids are scientists, that they are the ones out here discovering," she said. "Once they come, they're hooked."

The Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Interpretive Center is located east of Highway 101 at the end of Embarcadero Road. Classes are taught Monday, Thursday, and Friday mornings from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m..

For more information on group nature programs or to make reservations call 650-329-2506.

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