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Make InvestEGGators. Use a 3-D printer to print plastic eggs. Then, stuff them with tracking devices. Do the decoy eggs feel right? Sea turtle eggs feel ______.

hard

squishy

Correct. Sea turtle eggs have shells that feel rubbery.

Paint the InvestEGGators, so that they look like the real thing. What color will you paint the eggs?

white with a yellow glow

bright white

Correct. The yellow of the yolk almost shines through an egg’s thin, white shell.

Pack up the InvestEGGators. Then, head to the beach. It’s time to find a nest. When is the best time to go to the beach?

nighttime

daytime

Correct. Female turtles usually come ashore at night. They look for a dark, quiet place to dig a nest.

Find a sea turtle laying eggs. When the turtle is finished, plant an InvestEGGator egg in the nest. Where will you put the egg?

at the bottom of the nest

in the middle of the nest

Correct. The middle of the nest is low enough to stop predators from getting at it and high enough that poachers won’t leave it behind if they find the nest.

Track the InvestEGGator! Learning more about poaching routes will help stop the illegal trade of sea turtle eggs.

Try Again

On many Central American beaches, poachers destroy sea turtle nests. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to plant an InvestEGGator tracker in a sea turtle’s nest.

I Accept

07/06/2024 23:35:15

Years of civil war brought harm to the elephants. Now, they are reclaiming their home.

By Brenna Maloney

Before you read

National Geographic Explorer Dominique Gonçalves

Wildlife and Wild Places

Life Science

After reading the story, identify the ways scientists are working to protect the environment.

07/06/2024 23:35:42

NORTH
AMERICA

EUROPE

ASIA

AFRICA

SOUTH
AMERICA

AUSTRALIA

And it will be again. But from 1977 to 1992, Gorongosa National Park was a war zone.

Two years after the African country of Mozambique gained its independence from Portugal in 1975, the country was engulfed in a civil war. The war was a human war. But many animals suffered. This place that had teemed with life was now noticeably lacking in large animals, such as elephants, buffalo, zebras, and wildebeests. Where some 2,500 elephants had freely roamed, fewer than 200 elephants remained. And those that did were physically and emotionally scarred by war.

Mozambique is Dominique Gonçalves’ country. Gorongosa is her home. She, more than many, understands what the elephants suffered. She is a National Geographic Explorer and the manager of the Elephant Ecology Project.

ANTARCTICA

Mozambique

Gorongosa National Park

Elephants are known for their social bonds, intelligence, and memory.

"Animal behaviorists say that Gorongosa elephants have a culture of aggression,” says Gonçalves. “Although this is true, I prefer to think of it as a culture of protection. They have seen their families slaughtered. They don’t trust humans. They don’t trust vehicles.”

And really, why would they? At the height of the war, elephants were hunted for meat to feed soldiers. Their tusks were sold for guns and ammunition. Elephants became an instrument of war. Yet, these animals can live long lives, and they have long memories. Many elephants from that time are still alive today, and they remember. They were changed by war, and Gorongosa’s elephants are shaped by that legacy. As the park makes its recovery, elephants are beginning to thrive again. How will their experiences shape their future?

Matriarch Valda stands tall. But you can clearly see the bullet hole in her right ear—an injury she got in the war.

All in the Family

An elephant herd is like a large family. It’s made up of the oldest and largest female who leads her daughters and their offspring. She is the matriarch.

The females of the herd help each other with the birth and care of their young. A herd can have as many as 50 elephants in it. Male elephants, called bulls, form small, all-male pods in which they live and travel.

Dominique Gonçalves observes elephants in the field.

In Gorongosa, the elephants’ behavior is strongly influenced by their fear of people, which was created during wartime. So, they behave differently from elephants elsewhere. They stay away from open areas during daylight. They tend not to visit places where they feel vulnerable. If they encounter people, they fight or flee. Often, a matriarch will lead others to charge and chase vehicles. They trumpet loudly to scare people away.

Gonçalves has seen all of these behaviors, and she understands what they mean. “The social bonds between elephants are really complex,” she says. Like humans, elephants are capable of forming strong connections with their friends and family members. These relationships start between mother and calf and radiate out. Protecting the herd and keeping all members safe is the matriarch’s priority. Gonçalves learned this firsthand in the field.

07/06/2024 23:36:20

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