Stewardship
Stewardship
The care and protection of organisms and habitats is based in part on science knowledge.
Learning Objective: Define stewardship and explain how it relates to responsible animal care and handling.
Stewardship is defined as taking care of something or someone. It implies responsibility for others.
In the context of this course, we ask that you follow the following stewardship principles:
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Minimize impacts on animals, including observing instead of collecting whenever possible.
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Minimize impact on habitats by keeping to trails if available, and removing any garbage.
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Minimize impact on other people by including their safety and well-being in your procedures.
Safety is related to stewardship. During this video, think about how safely handling dog scat (fecal material) is a form of stewardship for other dogs and possibly people.
Watch this video; you can select the closed captioning \”cc\” option if you would like to see the text.
Let\’s take a closer look at stewardship in action with the care of crickets. There are many cricket species, if you find them is the pet store they are most often being sold as food for reptile pets. An adult bearded dragon can eat 30 large crickets a day. However, there is a long history of crickets themselves being kept as pets.
Deciding to keep crickets as pets, or to breed as animal food, requires providing adequate heat, a clean enclosure, cover or hiding places, reduced noise/vibration, air ventilation, moisture, and food.
Crickets can be purchased cheaply from pet stores or online pet shops. Wear gloves or gently pour into their habitat. Crickets have the potential to transmit a small group of pathogens to humans and they can cause dermatitis (skin inflammation). Pets are typically to handle or just to observe; these are animals to observe.
Since crickets can jump a foot or more into the air, move them between habitats in a tub or deep sink, if possible.
These crickets were just released into their new habitat. Watch their reaction to the moisture (oranges) and food (oatmeal bedding).
Crickets are an excellent model for animal biology: they have interesting observable structures, and distinct observable behaviors, including elaborate social behaviors. We will use them repeatedly in this course.
Do you have any idea of the type of behavior occurring between the two crickets approximately 10 seconds into the video?
One of the challenges in studying animals, is that it can can be easy to anthropomorphize, assume that animal behaviors and motivations are similar to humans.
We interact with animals based on many ways of understanding, not just science, so it is perfectly fine to say \”those crickets are mad at each other,\” or \”what a sweet puppy.\” In science exploration, we try to step outside of our assumptions and collect data to either back up or refute what we think could be happening. That is easier said than done.
In the next section we\’ll look at the close, and often complicated relationship between humans and other animal species.
Check your knowledge – Stewardship
Review your notes. Can you define stewardship and provide at least three example of stewardship? If so, move forward to the next page.
Learning Objective:
Define stewardship and explain how it relates to responsible animal care and handling.
Go back to the Safety Page
Go forward to the Animals & Humans Page
Laboratory Contents
Complete all five of these sections before taking the quiz and submitting your safety checklist.
This Module
1: Where do I go?
This Guide
1B: Laboratory
Products Information
1B: Quiz & Media
