WEBELOS

Naturalist
Viking Council

The naturalist's world is one to be discovered and investigated. It is as near as a boy's backyard, a nearby park or the woods and fields. It is inhabited by many kinds of insect, birds, plants, animals, trees and other form of life.
The naturalist activity badge may lead a Webelos into a hobby or a vocation through all the exciting, new adventures you plan for your den.

Careers/Speakers

Zoo keeper, conservationist, taxidermist, pet store worker, gardener, museum curator, landscape artist, nature photographer, publisher or writer of nature books.

Den Activities

Invite a Fish and Game Department employee to your meeting. Ask about major problems in the lakes in your area.
Tour the Botanical Garden or an Arboretum. Find out how many employees are needed to keep the grounds in good shape.
Visit a zoo with your den families. Arrange a private session with one of the zoo docents.
Contact your county park for bird banding information. Try to arrange to be present to watch the licensed banders. Find out about the Mississippi Flyway or other and what birds are common here.

Bird Brush

Use a clean scrub brush for this easy feeder. Melt some bacon grease or lard in a pan, then dip the brush into it. Sprinkle the birdseed mix onto the bristles. As the fat congeals, the seeds will stick. Tie the brush to a tree in a safe spot.

Phenology Calendar

I looked up phenology in Merriam Webster's Dictionary since I wasn't sure exactly what it is :)

Phenology: a branch of science dealing with the relations between climate and periodic biological phenomena (as bird migration or plant flowering)

Buy (or have the Webelos make) blank calendar pages and have the boys write in this month's dates. Have them post it in the kitchen, so it's handy to jot down "things of nature." List one or two things each day: cardinals at the bird feeder, grass turning green, saw the full moon, etc.
If the boys enjoy this activity, encourage them to keep a phenology calendar for a whole year. Then they can look back and compare nature's cycles.

The Coming of the Frogs
Tune: Battle Hymn of the Republic)

Mine eyes have seen the horror of the coming of the frogs,
They are sneaking thru the swamps and they are lurking in the logs.
You can hear their mournful croaking through the early morning fog
The frogs keep hopping on.

Chorus: repeat after each verse)
Ribet, ribet, ribet, croak, croak.
Ribet, ribet, ribet, croak, croak
Ribet, ribet, ribet, croak, croak
The frogs keep hopping on.

The frogs have grown in numbers and their croaking fills the air.
There's no place to escape because the frogs are everywhere.
They've eaten all the flies and now they're hungry as a bear.
The frogs keep hopping on. Chorus

They've hopped into the living room and headed down the hall,

They have trapped me in the corner and my back's against the wall.
And when I opened up my mouth to give the warning call,
This was all I heard! Chorus

Games
True or False

1. The world's largest bird, the ostrich, can weigh as much as 300 pounds. (True)
2. The hummingbird is the smallest bird in the world. (True)
3. Swifts can fly faster than Peregrine falcons. (True)
4. Aviators have seen ducks flying at 30,000 feet altitude. (False, about 8,000 feet.)
5. The number of species of bird is about 5,000. (False, about 800.)
6. All birds build nests. (False, cowbirds deposit their eggs in the nest of other birds.
7. Widgeons can lay as many as 18 eggs at one time. (True)
8. Robins lay blue eggs. (True.)
9. No bird can fly backwards. (False, the hummingbird can.)
10. The Trumpeter Swan is the heaviest of all flying folw. (True, at 38 pounds.)

Animal Tracks

Make up outlines of various animal footprints, which are common in your area. Number the tracks. Write the animal name on a separate card. Lay out the footprints and give each boy a chance to match the correct animal name to the footprint number.
Practice this game several times before going out on a hike to look for footprints in the mud or sand. Take along casting materials and bring back "real" footprints. Take this game to the pack meeting and let adults try it.

Pack Meeting

Scene: Boy 1 is standing on the street corner, and the other boys approach him one at a time.
Cub 1: Where did you go on vacation?
Cub 2: My family went fishing at the lake.
Cub 1: Can't catch nothin' there! Everybody knows that Minnesota lakes are very poor for fishing!
-(These lines are repeated by Cubs 2 through 5.)-
Cub 2: No sir, I caught this Sole. (hold up an old shoe on a line.)
Cub 3: No sir, I caught this Snapper. (Rubber band sling shot.)
Cub 4: No sir, I caught these Shellfish. (Shell Oil cans in a net.)
Cub 5: No sir, I caught this Skate. (Roller skate.)
Cub 6: (Enters running and hands a pole to Cub 1.)
Cub 1: Wait a minute, what did you catch?
Cub 6: An old crab. Gotto go…(And runs off quickly.)
Cubmaster enters with a large foil hook attached to the seat of the pants.

Jokes

What do you get if you cross an insect with a rabbit?
Bugs Bunny

What is black and white and red all over?

A sunburned zebra.
A skunk with diaper rash
A blushing penguin.

Materials found in Baloo's Bugle may be used by Scouters for Scouting activities provided that USSSP, Baloo's Bugle and the original contributors are cited as the source of the material.