Night Hike II: Sounds

At Nuhop, we embrace nature in all its splendor. When the sun goes down, we listen for the glory of science under the [other] stars! Join us for a self-guided tour.

Sounds in the Night!

Welcome to Nuhop's second night hike! Your instructors tonight will be Bumble Bee, Dingo, and Geode. As we set out on another close-range adventure to have some fun exploring nature's nightlife, we'll keep in mind a few questions:

Why do some animals hear better than others? What can people and animals do that improves their hearing and their overall perception of their surroundings?
How do our senses automatically adjust? What are adaptations?
What sorts of behaviors and physical adaptations help with hearing and quiet movement?
Why do some animals live in a perpetual state of stealth-mode—and how do they do it?!
Which animals will be part of our night hike? We'll focus on five animals that are nocturnal (active at night) or crepuscular (active at dusk and dawn) and which you might see in your neighborhood from time to time—owls, foxes, deer, bats, and moths!

Owl Adaptation

This is the activity where you'll need one shoelace or rope in good condition, along with one that has seen better days. It's important to have both. If you don't have a tattered, frayed, or frazzled one, don't worry. If you have a new one that you can spare, distressing it will be a quick and easy process. Once you have both pieces, scroll down to "Adaptation and Survival," "How Does an Owl Fly So Silently?," and "Replicate the Sounds of Flight at Home!"

Step 1: Snip the edges.

Nobody had used this jump rope in a long time. It was cut in half for this activity.

On one half, small pieces of the thin strands casing the main body of the rope were snipped along the sides. Cuts were made about an inch apart in an alternating pattern (left, right, left, etc.) To prevent excess unraveling, each half had a knot tied at the end.

Step 2: Ruffle the loose ends.

Along the half that had been snipped, each loose end was pinched and ruffled between the instructor's fingers. This resulted in the loose pieces extending farther off of the body of the jump rope and taking on a fluffier, more frayed texture.

The instructor found that after a certain amount of ruffling, pieces of the thin strands began to fall out of the weave. It may be important to determine how much ruffling is enough and how much is too much.

Adaptation and Survival

Read this short National Geographic article about adaptations and how different species use them to survive and thrive. As you read, get ready to answer these questions...

What are adaptations?
What is the difference between a structural adaptation and a behavioral adaptation?
What allowed cream-colored peppered moths to make a comeback in England?

How Does An Owl Fly So Silently?

Watch this video to see scientists at BBC Earth demonstrate that owls are able to fly at a volume comparable to a whisper. Make some observations and look out for these topics...

What is the name of the barn owl in this video?
How many types of bird did the BBC Earth team test in this video?
What causes the spikes in the decibel wave forms?

Replicate the Sounds of Flight at Home!

Now it's your turn!

Make sure you have plenty of open space around you.
Start with your rope or shoelace that's in good condition. Hold one end and whirl it in a circle above your head. Pick up speed until you hear it clearly. What type of sound does it make? How loud is it?
Do the same thing with your frayed lace or rope. What do you hear?
Compare the two sound effects you made. What are the similarities and differences?

The Fox Walk

Think about how animals behave. Do you ever see foxes in your area? How about squirrels? Raccoons? What actions do animals take that show you they’re aware of their surroundings? When you get outside, spend a moment making yourself aware of all of the sounds around you. Take in the sights. Stay as quiet as a fox on the hunt.

When in the Forest, Do as the Foxes Do...

Take advantage of what foxes know about stealth mode. Practice the fox walk alongside Bumble Bee!

What traits of animals' feet help them get around quietly?
What can a fox do if they realize they're stepping into something that could make loud sounds?
What games do you play in which this walk might be helpful?

Pro Tip: Is the weather rough? You can move this activity indoors if you get creative! Examine the sounds of your usual walk and of stepping like a fox over different surfaces. Try carpets or rugs, wood floors or linoleum, crumpled paper, bubble wrap, or even an old shower curtain. (You have good judgment and you'll know when you should ask your Resident Adults whether you can borrow supplies.) Scatter noisy materials on the floor and challenge yourself to walk through the room quietly!

When you are finished with the fox walk, remember your new skills. They could come in handy for our next activity!

Deer's Ears

Have you ever noticed a dog pick up their ears when they hear something that makes them happy or curious? What does it look like when they hear their human’s voice? How about when they hear food pouring into a bowl?

Have you ever seen another mammal, such as a rabbit or deer, tilt or rotate their ears while listening? Many animals have a greater range of motion in their ears than humans have. Animals' ears tend to be better-suited to pick up sound due to their shape, as well. Do you see a pattern in these pictures?

Use your hands to mimic this ear shape.

We'll use our hands to take advantage of this same shape. Cup your hands and position them with your thumb and index finger behind your ears. Listen for the difference... and let's play a round of deer's ears! You can play solo or with a partner or group. Check out the instructions below.

Solo Deer's Ears

Test the ability of the bowl-shaped ear to boost your hearing!

Go outside, take a good look around you, and then close your eyes and listen. What do you hear?
Put up one finger for the first sound you hear. Every time you hear something new, hold up one more. This is called making a sound map.
Play for about a minute. How many sounds did you hear?
NOW, try cupping your hand behind your ear to hear in front of you. Close your eyes and count sounds for one more minute. … Did you hear more this time?

Nice work! To test your super-hearing, we have Sound Map BINGO! You might choose to play this version of BINGO by printing out one or more of the cards (to the right), or by using an app that lets you draw on your device. You can mark the sounds from your sound maps on a bingo card.

Partner or Group Deer's Ears

This version can be played with two or three players, or a larger family—the more, the merrier!

You’ll need a quiet outdoor area, somewhere around fifteen to twenty-five feet long. You'll need one prop. It can be anything you can pick up with one hand: a water bottle, a jar of beads, a tennis ball, etc. Using a blindfold is optional.

One person will be the “deer.” They’ll stand fifteen to twenty-five feet away from the rest of the group, who are all “coyotes.” The deer places a “fawn” at their feet—it can be any football, teddy bear, book, or other prop you’d like to compete over. The deer closes their eyes, cups their ears, and calls, “Ready.”
A coyote tries to sneak up on the deer to pick up the fawn. Any coyotes who are waiting for their turn should watch as quietly as possible.
The deer, listening for predators, points when they hear something. They'll point straight at the sound without moving. Any time the deer points, coyotes freeze and take a good look at where the deer is pointing. Coyotes need to be honest! Say, “You caught me—you win!” ...or say, “It wasn’t me!” If the deer pointed at a sound other than the coyote, they will loudly count to three while the coyote moves sideways (or backward...or stays still.) After the count of three, keep playing!
If the coyote is caught by the deer, then the deer wins this round! They get to choose who plays the deer next!
If a coyote successfully sneaks up on the deer and steals the fawn, then this coyote gets to be the next deer!

Want to make it more challenging?

Coyotes, if the deer can hear you too well, do the fox walk!
Playing in a gravel lot or where there are a lot of twigs on the ground will make it harder to move quietly.
If you have several people who can play, send two or more coyotes after the fawn at once! All coyotes freeze whenever the deer points. If one coyote gets caught, they can say something like, “You caught me—there are three coyotes left!” and the deer will count to three to restart the game for the rest of the coyotes.

Bat and Moth

Bats' Vision, Hearing, and Echolocation

You know the expression “blind as a bat?” It's bogus! Most bats have sensitive eyesight. Their eyes tend to be small, and as nocturnal and crepuscular species—creatures active at night or twilight, respectively—the brightness of daylight can overwhelm them. When we encounter them during the day, we may observe them squinting against the sun. Many species have adapted to living the night life with something even cooler than night vision... Have you ever heard of echolocation?

Why echolocation? How does it work?

This Khan Academy video explains how bats use echolocation. Please watch until 2:54. Bonus: watch the whole video if you’d like to learn how dolphins and whales use echolocation, and how people use SONAR and math to figure out where we are when we’re on a ship or in a submarine!

Moths use ultrasound to avoid bats.

Bat and moth interaction is an arms race, a coevolutionary battle, that's been going on for more than sixty million years. ... Having long been on the bat menu, moths have evolved strategies to avoid being eaten.

—Dr. Jesse Barber

Assistant Professor of Biology, Boise State University

What are two ways moths use sound to gain advantage against their predators?
Dr. Barber is seen feeding a bat during a taste test. What species is it?

Spend a moment living as a bat...on the hunt for a moth!

In this game, team up with a partner to play a predator-prey-themed version of Marco Polo. Dingo and Bumble Bee will show you how to play! Please be safe—before you play, make accommodations for any obstacles that may be in your playing space, such as open stairways, gardening tools, exposed roots and other trips hazards, holes, quicksand, and cars. Driveways are not recommended, but backyards are. (Was Geode kidding about the quicksand...?)

Reflection

We've covered a variety of activities and a lot of information tonight. Let's take a moment to reflect. If you want to scroll up and review any of the content, please feel welcome to do so!

Think back to the National Geographic article you read, Adaptations and Survival. If you could spend a day with a team of biologists to study any one of the plants or animals mentioned in the article, then which species would you choose? What would you seek to learn about this species? What experiences would you want to have?
When you practiced the fox walk and when you used cords to replicate the sounds of birds' flight, did this change your understanding of how people and animals move quietly? During your games of deer's ears and bat and moth, did you observe anything new about listening carefully and hearing clearly? What did you notice? Can you connect your ideas to either the structural adaptations or the behavioral adaptations discussed in Adaptations and Survival?
Consider the video you watched of BBC Earth's experiment, How Do Owls Fly So Silently? How would you describe the size ratio of the barn owl's body to her wingspan? What did the BBC Earth scientists say about the way her proportions affect her ability to fly? Suppose you wanted to learn more about the physics of flight. Name a knowledgeable person or organization, a reliable Web site, and a credible book or magazine to help you start your research.
Below, we have a short quiz for you to take so you can show off what you learned! It can be satisfying to put your knowledge to the test, and you'll do a great job!

Quick Quiz

Thank you for joining us for our second night hike, Sounds in the Night! We are so glad you spent part of your evening learning with us. We look forward to learning with you again soon. If you had fun with this session, you might enjoy Light and Sound, Nature's Symphony, Features of the Feathered, Caught in the Food Web, Predator-Prey Relationships, Symbiotic Relationships, Micro Hike, or Night Hike I: Vision Quest! Or return to the homepage to choose your own adventure!