Grade 2 Lesson: Interpreting and Graphing a Lynx Diet
Discover how to visually and symbolically represent data through tallying and graphing. Make connections between mathematical concepts, Syilx perspectives, and the environment and develop a better understanding of comparative language in the context of predator and prey relationships.
Please review full curriculum in the PDF at the bottom of the page to gain full understanding of the lesson and activity.
Grades: 2
Subjects: Mathematics
Like other species, wápupxn (lynx) play an important role in maintaining balance within our biodiverse environment. Although they are rarely sighted, there are an estimated 454 lynxes in the Okanagan. About 80% of the Okanagan region is classified as high-quality lynx habitat.
However, this is highly dependent on the food resources available. From the Syilx perspective, the well-being and existence of lynx are deeply connected to the well-being of the land and all living things. Snowshoe hares make up more than 80% of a lynx’s diet; consequently, when hare populations decline, lynx populations quickly follow. When hare densities are low, lynx will prey on other species such as red squirrels, grouse, voles, ungulates (sheep/caribou), and other carnivores (red fox, marten, mink, and even other lynx). Our responsibility is to protect the tmxʷulaxʷ (land), so that all tmixʷ (all living things) may prosper.
Part One: Providing Background Information About Lynx Diets
- Introduce your students to the predator prey relationship between lynx and snowshoe hare. Remember to emphasize the significant influence snowshoe hare populations have on lynx populations.
- Explain to your students that lynxes are an extremely adaptable species, and will move to other regions where snowshoe hare populations are stable, or will accommodate by eating other species (such as voles, red squirrels, and grouse).
Part Two: Count, Represent, and Compare
- Have students fill out the chart and bar graph (see attached) by counting and tallying the number of prey animals in the box.
- While filling out the bar graph, students will create a pictorial representation of a lynx’s predator/prey relationships.
- Students will estimate the reasonably and likelihood of a lynx’s diet, while developing a better understanding of comparative language (the least/the most).