Camouflage
Camouflage is a method animals, plants, or even humans use to blend in with their surroundings to avoid being seen. It is mainly used for protection from predators or for hunting prey without being noticed. Being well camouflaged helps survival by making the animal less visible.
It involves animals having colours, patterns, or shapes that match the environment. In the image to the right, is that a leaf on half of an orange ... or is it something else ?
Most animals use camouflage to some extent. Rabbits in the UK are coloured to fit in with the kind of environment they live in. Mountain Hares are white in winter to make them less visible in the snow high up in the mountains, but, in the summer months, their fur turns brown or grey to match the heather and rocks.
In most animal species the females tend to have more muted colours than the males. This is to make them less visible as, when they are looking after young, they are more vulnerable to predation because it is usually the female who rears the young.
Observation Stations
Spot the odd one out !
This is a fun activity for testing your powers of observation.
In advance of the children arriving at the forest, arrange 20 objects all within sight of a chosen viewpoint. The items should not be hidden, but shouldn't be too obvious. They should be spread around a chosen area, some close to the viewpoint and some further away. A good maximum distance would be around 20 paces. Examples of the kinds of items that could be hidden could be a bunch of keys, a flint and steel, an apple, a small book or diary.
The aim of the task is for the children to spot all of the items. Some may be effectively camouflaged because of their colour and shape, but some may be more obvious because they may not blend in so well.
This could be one of a number of activities carried out in one session in the forest.
Developing the Activity
This activity could also be done as walk through the woods. The items could be placed on either side of a path through the forest, and the task is to try to spot the items as they walk along the path. If doing this, try to avoid placing the items more than about 5 paces from the track ... any further could make it too difficult.
Points to ponder ...
When wandering about in the woods, there are always hazards to consider ... slips, trips and falls are likely, and it is possible that there may be the odd twisted ankle or bump to the head.
Always advise children to walk carefully around the woods. We don't want to frighten them into thinking that the woods are a dangerous place, but we do want to remind that that the ground is uneven and they need to take care.
Always take a first aid kit when doing sessions in the woods. The first aid kit should contain the resources required for cuts, sprains and strains and, if the activity involves lighting a fire, some cooling packs to be applied in the event of a burn.
Photo by Kindel Media: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-person-hold-his-leg-7298687/