Life on Land Science Projects (Page 9)

Worm Hunt: Isolating Soil Nematodes from Your Backyard

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Do you know what is living in your backyard? How about at the playground, or in your compost pile? Nematodes, also called roundworms, are the most abundant animal on Earth and they might be living in any of these places. In this science project you'll isolate nematodes from several soil samples to discover the best nematode habitats. Read more

Where Do Lizards Go for Lunch?

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You've probably heard about differences between the left brain and the right brain in people. Did you ever wonder where that came from? Do other animals have specialized brain hemispheres too? One hypothesis has it that brain lateralization evolved as a survival mechanism in animals with eyes on the sides of their heads. One eye could focus on finding food, while the other watched out for predators. This project tests that hypothesis by looking for left-right bias in feeding behavior in lizards. Read more

Attractants and Repellants

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Animals respond to chemical cues in different ways. If an animal turns away from a chemical cue, then that chemical is a repellent. If an animal turns toward a chemical cue, then that chemical is an attractant. Attractants and repellents can be airborne chemicals, chemicals found in food, or chemicals that diffuse through water. One example of an airborne chemical is a pheromone, a chemical signal that is released by one individual to attract another. Moths release pheromones to attract… Read more

When the Sun Rises: The Effect of Light on the Movement of Daphnia

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Changes in the environment, or stimuli, affect your behavior and movement over the course of a day: When you get cold, for instance, you might get up and put on a sweater. Or if it is sunny and warm, you might go outside to play sports or go for a walk. Different stimuli, including light, affect the movement of other organisms as well. But how does the type of light influence their movement? Do they respond differently to different kinds of light, depending on other factors in their… Read more

Native Landscapes

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Do your parents like to garden? Then you might have a beautiful lawn surrounded by flowers, or a vegetable garden. Humans have been introducing plants to our landscapes for centuries, which has dramatically altered the natural habitat of many environments. Chances are, the landscape you live in is not a natural landscape. One movement is to restore these habitats by re-introducing native plants. Conduct a survey in your area looking for native and non-native plant species. You can take… Read more

How Does the Stem Grow?

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Plant stems grow through a process of elongation due to cell divisions within the stem. Does the entire length of the stem elongate evenly? Or do certain regions along the plant stem grow more or less than others? Regions that are involved in active growth are called vegetative. You can conduct an experiment to show which regions of a bean seedling are involved in vegetative growth. Use a marker to mark one inch sections along the main stem of a young bean seedling. Number the regions 1-6… Read more

Skeleton Building

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Do you like skeletons? One of the more interesting jobs at a natural history museum is the creation and care of the skeletons and bones. How do the curators clean and put together the skeletons? Many curators use the carrion beetle, Dermestes vulpinus, to quickly clean off the dead animal tissue from a corpse to reveal the skeleton. These insects do such a good job that sometimes the skeleton remains intact! Another method is to slow cook the carcass until the meat falls off. You can use… Read more

Does Body Size Matter?

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Animals come in all shapes and sizes, even humans. You can look up different statistics about different kinds of animals using the Internet: average body size, brain size, life expectancy and generation time are some examples. Is there a correlation between body size and life span? Is there a correlation between body size and brain size? Is there a correlation between body size and generation time? Is there a correlation between body size and the size of your footprint? (Comparative Mammalian… Read more

Biodiversity Survey

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Survey your area to find out which species of plants and animals live there. You might be surprised to find out that something you grew up thinking was very common, is actually quite unique! For example, if you live in the great plains, then you may think that prairie dogs are a nuisance or a pest. Actually, some species of prairie dogs are only found here, and have a very important role for short and tall grass prairie ecosystems. The prairie dogs are an important part of the food-chain, and… Read more

Fungi Spores

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Mushrooms are not plants, but are fungi. Fungi include mushrooms, molds, and lichen. They do not produce seeds to reproduce like some plants. Fungi produce spores, like more primitive plants do. The spores of a mushroom are contained in the tiny folds around the stem underneath the mushroom cap. Different species of mushrooms have different types of spores, with different colors and different patterns of folds. You can make mushroom prints by removing the stem from a mushroom and placing the… Read more

Life on Land Science Projects (95 results)

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