Duck tales

Duck tales

Pencil and paper
Overview
Connecting to the Curriculum
Marking Student Responses
Working with Students
Further Resources

This picture shows and labels some features of a female mallard duck that help it stay alive.

A duck’s features are all the parts of its body that, put together, make it look like a duck, for example a broad flat beak to help it feed in the water.

a) In each box below, describe how that feature helps the duck stay alive.
 
 
 
 
b) Write your ideas about what you think might happen if each of these features was different.

What would happen if ...

i) Instead of a
broad flat bill
(beak) the duck
had a long beak
like a kiwi
 
ii) Instead of
webbed feet the
duck had small
feet like a fantail		 iii) Instead of
waterproof
feathers the duck
had feathers like
a sparrow		 iv) Instead of dull
colours the duck
had bright
colours like a
parakeet
 

 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Level:
3
Curriculum info: 
Science, Knowledge, Living World
Keywords: 
adaptation, birds, ducks
Description of task: 
Task: Describe on a chart how a duck's features help it to survive, then infer what might happen if these features were changed in some way. Assessment focus: how adaptations aid survival.
Curriculum Links: 
Science capabilities
The capabilities focus is brought about by the conversations you have and the questions you ask.
 
Capability: Gather and interpret data
This resource provides opportunities to discuss that predicting is not guessing, but applying science understandings or using provided information to make inferences.
 
 
Science capabilities: 
Gather and interpret data
Making Better Sense: 
Birds
Answers/responses: 
  Y6 (11/05)
a) i)
ii)
iii)
iv)		 Feathers keep a duck warm even in water.
Scoops and strains food from the pond, lake or sea
Enables swimming and easy, faster movement in water
Helps duck to blend in with its environment, therefore providing protection		 difficult
moderate
very easy
easy
b) i)
 
ii)
iii)
 
iv)		 This bill would not allow the duck to scoop up its food (mostly plants, but also small insects, snails, etc.) from the water.
This foot would not allow the duck to swim easily and survive in its water environment.
Lack of waterproof feathers means the duck would not be able to keep warm in water/becomes waterlogged.
The duck would not be camouflaged in its natural environment and would therefore be exposed to more dangers from predators.		 moderate
 
easy
difficult
 
moderate

NOTE: Answers to the above which said, "So it cannot feed/swim" were not accepted without an explanation to support their ideas. Results are based on a trial set of 175 Year 6 students in November 2005.

Diagnostic and formative information: 

Common responses about feathers
Students identified two science concepts related to the importance of waterproofing feathers: insulation and buoyancy.

  • An example of a correct detailed answer related to insulation is: "The duck spends most of its time in the water so it needs to keep warm, so the waterproof feathers stop the water getting to the skin and the duck getting cold."
  • 36% of students implied problems with swimming. They hypothesised the duck would drown without waterproof feathers because it would get too heavy in the water, or that it would not be able to go in or under the water. (NOTE: Shags/cormorants are one example of birds that swim that do not have waterproofed feathers. This is because they have to be able to dive to catch their food. They have other adaptations to ensure survival in the water.)

Common responses about beaks
For question b) i), most students commented on how the bill would be unsuitable for a duck, and that it might get in the way. Very few students commented that the duck would not be able to eat its current diet with that beak.
24% of students commented on feeding with a misconception about what a duck eats (most commonly bread or fish). Mallard ducks normally eat mostly aquatic plants, but also sometimes eat insects, plankton, and even snails as well as land plants. (Different species of duck will have variations in diet.)

Common responses about camouflage
The majority of students who answered correctly said that the duck would not be well camouflaged with the bright coloured feathers. 17% answered that the duck would be killed, implying that it would not be safe from predators, and 13% gave valid answers that implied camouflage without actually using the word.

Misconceptions

  • A duck's main diet is bread.
  • Birds depend on humans for food.
  • Mallard ducks eat fish.
  • If a bird had bright feathers male birds would get confused.

Next steps

  • If students identify that birds eat bread, further discussion is needed about what birds eat when there is no human intervention, and how their beaks and feet suit the type of food eaten in the natural habitat in which they live. Structural adaptations evolve over very long periods of time. However, animals will sometimes adapt their behaviour to take advantage of a changing situation. In this case, this means that some birds are able to take advantage of co-existing with humans, but this has not resulted in changes to their beaks.

The importance of air

  • Ducks need waterproof outer feathers to make sure the down feathers stay dry. Air is important for both insulation and buoyancy.
  • Keeping warm. If students do not connect keeping dry with keeping warm, investigate the different sorts of feathers and their purpose. Help them make links between trapping air and keeping warm. Observe how different animals such as cats and birds fluff up when it is cold. Reference to wet suits and insulation may help students to see how all of a duck's feathers work together to keep it warm in water.
  • Keeping buoyant. If students wonder whether ducks will drown, they could:
  1. Investigate how a wetsuit makes a swimmer more buoyant by trapping air, and compare with the way duck’s down feathers trap air (see above). If these feathers get wet, they will no longer help keep the duck afloat.
  2. Research how shags’ feathers are structured to ensure that they don’t get waterlogged. They could compare the types of food they eat, and make connections between their diets and how they swim in the water.
  • Researching how oil spills affect birds can be a useful extension activity to further develop understanding of how the feathers work to help survival. 
  • Ask students to hypothesise why it is more important for the female to have dull colours (they sit on the eggs, so are more vulnerable to predators).
  • Ask questions/lead discussions to help students realise that all the features of an animal work together to allow it to behave in a particular way. This is an example of systems thinking.

The following Level 3 ARB resources can be used to support and scaffold students in their understanding of structural features of ducks:

The following resources are in schools:

  • Ministry of Education (2000). Building Science Concepts Book 3, Birds. Wellington: Learning Media. (This book focuses on structure, function, and adaptation.)
  • Ministry of Education (2000). Building Science Concepts Book 5 Fur, Feathers and Bark. Wellington: Learning Media.
  • Ministry of Education (2001). Making better sense of the Living World.  (The chapter Structure and Function includes activities and investigations about birds.)
  • Ministry of Education (2001). Feathery Friends. Connected 1. Wellington: Learning Media. Rodney Rat laughs at a group of birds’ feet. Each bird explains why their feet are appropriate for where they live.

Useful websites: