Murder Hornets

Murder hornets are pests beyond imagination.

The American government of Washington state paid over $20,000,000 to the cause of killing Murder hornets! That’s probably more expensive than your house. You might ask why we need to spend so much, well one Murder hornet can kill an entire bee’s nest in a day. Since bees help pollinate plants that means by killing bees they will have a big impact on our food production if left unchecked.

What are they?

The Asian Giant hornet is dubbed the Murder hornet. It has a 2-3 inch body with a stinger strong enough to puncture a Beekeepers suit. They have a wingspan of about 3 inches long which means it’s as big as your hand. Murder hornet queens hibernate in the winter and nest in trees. Just one unlucky step could provoke a deadly massive assault by the hive.

Murder hornets are crazy big and can be as big as your hand!

Where did they come from?

On November 2nd, 2019 murder hornets appeared in North America. The Murder hornet is a native animal in Asia, specifically in Japan. They hitched a ride in a cargo ship to the leading state of agriculture in the country, Washington state. Farmers were shocked and devastated by the impact they are having on the bee population.

How are they a menace?

The Murder hornet species is a threat to wildlife and humans alike. They can demolish bee colonies and kill humans in a couple of strikes. They can also kill rodents and bugs. The people who have gotten stung by them say it’s the most painful thing that has ever happened to them. They can pierce through beekeeper suits, and bugs or rodents can’t scratch them because of the murder hornets’ impenetrable shell. Also, they can spread disease, damage plants, and pose a big threat to agriculture by decimating the bee population.

What’s the solution?

Honey bees in Japan have adapted to these pests and defended themselves. They form a ball around it and circulate its lungs with carbon dioxide and heat and eventually kill the Murder hornet. The Murder hornet must be stopped as it is threatening the populations of wildlife and humans alike. In Washington, there is a volunteer job to set up hornet traps. One beekeeper named Ted Mich fall says that humans have to start taking action and vanquishing these beasts and many other people agree.

Conclusion

Humans and wildlife alike are in trouble When it comes to Murder hornets. Murder hornets are terrorizing us. They can destroy bee nests in under 30 min. They can be defeated by Japanese honey bees we should start letting Western honey bees adapt and do the same thing so they can start defending themselves against the Murder hornets.

Attribution:

Ovpetryshyna.if19, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Yasunori Koide, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Category: Nature, Science & Tech, Student Posts | 1 Comment

January 14

Meet a Coywolf

The first-ever coywolf appeared in 1919 in Southern Ontario. The coywolf family is a mix of western coyotes and eastern wolves. They are all canid meaning that they are part of a dog family. An average coywolf can reach up to 5 feet in length and 35 to 45 pounds. Right now I will estimate that coywolves are about 10 to 20 pounds. What I will also say is that Coywolves have a thick coat that can be yellowish.

Coywolf pups

Coywolf pups Weight about 55pounds.Coywolves are up to times the size of regular coyotes, with bigger jaws and more muscle to match. Also, coywolves are a little bigger than coywolf pups. Coywolfs pups are born from mid-march to mid-may. Their eyes and ears close shut for ten days to two weeks. The pups can only drink their mom’s milk at that time. Before the pups are born the pack will make a den for the pups in large groups.

Video credit: YouTube

Category: Animals, Nature | 2 Comments

January 13

How maple syrup is made

Yodyodyo / Pixabay

You may like maple syrup on your waffles but do you know where it is from? Does it come from unicorns? Does it come from Atlantis? Does it come from trees? Well close enough. It comes from the Maple tree. Did you know that maple syrup was discovered by native people boiling sap thinking it was water. Syrup comes from trees but you can’t just stick a straw in a tree and start drinking.

A maple tree is what starts the magic. People collect a water with a little bit of sugar called sap. Sap is more water then sugar, sap has 1% to 4% sugar. I bet that sap will taste as plain as milk, which means it is NOT syrup. I am sure the last time you ate syrup it tasted sugary. People who make maple syrup drill a hole in the maple tree, then sap will start to pour out, then you boil it. You may ask why you boil the sap? It is because you are getting the water part out of the sap by making the water evaporate so mostly sugar is left. That’s how it’s made! You might ask why you don’t boil all the way. Here is the answer: if you boil it all the way, it turns into maple sugar to make maple candies and it tastes like (you guessed it!) maple syrup. Sounds good, right? Well this is the conclusion of this post. I hope you use this information wisely.

Category: Nature | 8 Comments

December 18

How Rubber Is Made And Its Uses?

Rubber has many uses, like floss, tires, balloons, and much more. But how is it made? It has to do with trees. Its called a rubber tree. When you get a tool and scratch it along it, a sap comes and drizzles down. When it dries…..TADA rubber! Then it can be made into things like floss, tires, and more.

Rubber comes from the sap of the rubber tree.

Rubber uses

Rubber has lots of uses.Here’s an example–floss. You floss your teeth with it. Let me explain other uses too. It is used for balloon coloring and balloon making! It is used for masks for Halloween! Rubber is used for lots of things, and it’s just from a tree! There’s lots of uses for this stuff than these ones, so just look around to see with you can find it!

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August 3

Wonderful Cockatiels

Are you looking for the perfect pet? I have one for you. It’s soft, it has a yellowish color and has bright orange cheeks. It’s not Pikachu, it’s a cockatiel! Cockatiels are the second most popular pet bird in the United States (after parrots). It’s not just because they are cute but because of the three C’s and those are easy to care for, cheap, and compatible for all ages.

It’s very easy to take care of cockatiels. Cockatiels can be left alone for a long time. This means if you are out of town for the weekend then you won’t have to get a pet sitter. They take care of themselves. They only need to get fed once every 2 to 3 days and their cage only needs to be cleaned once every 2 weeks. Another reason they are good pets is you won’t have to spend extra time walking them. They are happy exercising by themselves inside or out of their cage. Cockatiels like walking around inside the house, out of their cage while you pursue a quiet activity like studying or reading.

Another reason cockatiels are the perfect pet is because they are cheap. Of course buying one is about $100-$300 but after that, you will have nothing to worry about. The first reason is cockatiels get sick very rarely so you won’t have to pay for the vet often. Also, cockatiels don’t need check-ups or shots whin big bags last for a long time. Also, you won’t have to buy toys for them because they keep ich can be very expensive. Cockatiels do not eat much so the food which are cheap and come themselves entertained with anything around them. They don’t need toys to gnaw on to help their teeth (or beak) or climbing structures to be up high.

Whether you are 5 or 105, you will always love these nice animals called cockatiels. Cockatiels are smart so they are very easy to train. Kids will have fun teaching them do tricks. Kids would be amused seeing cockatiels learn simple tricks like stepping up and down and bow their head and some complicated tricks like somersaulting and saying their name. Also, cockatiels are quiet so if some families have babies who are afraid of loud noises then these birds are perfect for them. Cockatiels are also good for seniors especially if they live alone. They are good companions for them because they don’t need much attention but they can be there to keep them company. Seniors will also like the cockatiel’s quiet qualities.

Still not convinced that cockatiels are the perfect pet? Well just ask the millions of people who own them today and they will change your mind. They will tell you about the three Cs and other reasons that make cockatiels the perfect pet.

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May 21

Our National Parks

Image result for national parks

Have you ever wondered about National Parks? How many are there? What are they called? Where are they? Why do we have them? Why should we care about them? Why should we protect them? Well now I’ll tell you just read on and this article will answer those questions.

Did you know that since we are in the 4th grade we get to go to each National Park, with our family, for free? So why don’t you take a trip some time? A national park is scenic or historically important area of countryside protected by the federal government for the enjoyment of the general public or the preservation of wildlife. Commercial exploitation of natural resources in a national park is illegal.

There are 61 national parks in the United States. California has the most (nine), followed by Alaska (eight), Utah (five), and Colorado (four). Some popular national parks include Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Acadia National Park, Everglades National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Glacier National Park, Zion National Park, Denali National, and Mesa Verde National Park.

The largest national park is Wrangell–St. Elias in Alaska: at over 8 million acres (32,375 km2), it is larger than each of the nine smallest states. The next three largest parks are also in Alaska.

In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Antiquities Act, which gave presidents the authority to create national monuments to preserve areas of natural or historic interest on public lands. The purpose of the Act was largely to protect prehistoric Native American ruins and artifacts.

All of these parks are holding onto something special. For example, places in California like Joshua Tree and Red Wood National Park are home to trees that grow nowhere else on the planet we know as Earth. Joshua Trees can only be found in Joshua Tree National Park. Same with the Redwoods. You can only see them in Redwood National Park. Image result for national parks

We can help to preserve our national parks by purchasing a reusable water bottle or replacing our incandescent lights with CFLs or LEDs. These are some other rules you can follow to help and protect and preserve our national parks so our great great great great great great grandchildren can visit these amazing places:

Try To Put Fewer Greenhouse Gasses In The Air.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

Walk, Bike, Carpool, or use Public Transportation.

Eat Locally.

Shorten Your Shower.
Use Less Electricity.
Replace Your Incandescent.

I hope you enjoyed this article and I hope you decide to visit a National park. I personally suggest Joshua Tree National Park. It is my favorite one because of the cool animals such as the chuckwalla. Also, the bouldering opportunities are endless. So if you like bouldering and wildlife go visit Joshua Tree National Park.

Category: Environment, Nature, Student Posts | 1 Comment

June 14

Let’s end factory farms

Many chickens are stuffed together in each cage just to get their eggs.

Have you ever heard about those factory farms that adults are always talking about? Well, I’m gonna show you why we should ban them. First of all the factory farms produce more CO2 than volcanoes and that is causing global warming. Also, It is one of the worst forms of animal abuse right next to keeping exotic animals as pets and Bullfighting.

To start it off, factory farms make about %86 of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. That is like 8 times more carbon dioxide produced than volcanoes! Carbon dioxide traps heat inside the atmosphere and that is what has been causing global warming. The planet Venus’ surface is completely covered in carbon dioxide making it the hottest planet in the solar system! And it’s not even the closest to the sun! Would you like to boil alive like venus?

To make things worse it is a severe form of animal cruelty. Like in the picture above many animals are smushed together in order to get more eggs. This is very painful and uncomfortable to the animal. If you want this to stop you should say something.

Category: Animals, Current Events & News, Environment, Health, Nature, Student Posts | LEAVE A COMMENT

April 11

The Amazing Life of a Butterfly

Image result for butterflies

Have you ever wondered how a butterfly egg stays on the leaf without falling? Well did you know butterflies attach their eggs with a special glue? Birds and butterflies are the same because they both have eggs. The way they are different is that birds put their eggs in a nest and butterflies on a leaf. Another way they are different is that butterflies attach their eggs while birds place their eggs. Butterflies glue their eggs on the leaf so if there’s a storm, they will not fall off and break. The birds are different because their eggs are in a nest where it’s cozy and keeps the wind from blowing them off. Imagine you’re a butterfly attaching your eggs to a leaf.

Have you ever wondered what butterflies eat? Did you know butterflies don’t actually eat? Instead, they drink nectar out of flowers. Butterflies are like hummingbirds because they don’t eat but drink out of flowers. They’re different because hummingbirds fly fast and butterflies don’t. Imagine you’re a butterfly flying to a flower and drinking nectar.

Did you ever wonder if butterflies are cold blooded or warm blooded? Well did you know butterflies are cold blooded!!! Butterflies and lizards are the same because they are both cold-blooded. They are different because butterflies stand on a leaf and lizards lay on the ground/rock to warm themselves in the sun. Imagine your a butterfly, you are cold-blooded and stand on a leaf to warm yourself up in the sun. You warm yourself up so you can fly to a flower and drink nectar etc..

Butterflies are beautiful because of their color, shapes, and sizes. It’s important to learn about them because we share the same world and they help carry pollen and control bugs from hurting the plants. I think butterflies are important because it gives more beauty to the world.

Category: Nature, Student Posts | 3 Comments

Bloggin Frogs

Mrs. McKelvey's 3rd Grade