On Saturdays  July 4, 11, 18, 25

Animals are not easy to spot, but they often leave tracks and signs behind. Their identification is a good start to discover their biology and track what they have been doing. This is the perfect course for children who are curious about nature and animal behavior!

The course is conducted in Forstenrieder Park and it is structured into 4 sessions. At the end of the course children will be able to identify tracks and signs of the most charismatic animals (e.g. mammals, birds and invertebrates), to recognize differences and similarities, and to learn important facts of animal biology and behavior. The course will provide live samples, animal tracks and signs tool kits, and fun scientific activities!

Please book here and I will contact you with info on meeting point.

Age: 4-10 years old

Duration of a session: 2 hours

Parents/grandparents are welcome to join!

What to bring: closed shoes, long trousers, backpack, water bottle, change of clothes in case kids get wet or muddy, raincoat, sun hat.

NOTE: in case of really bad weather (i.e. heavy rain and thunderstones. strong winds) the session will be postponed on the same day at a different hour or another day.

Meeting point: The entrance to the park is approximately on Parkstrasse in Neuried. I will contact you for details on exactly where to meet ( it will be 15 mins before starting).

Sessions and Dates:

Session 1: Tracks and Trails – 4th July, 10-12pm

Whose animal tracks are those left in the mud? Was the animal resting, walking, running, jumping, rooting or crawling? How much do footprint features (shape, size) tell us about the animal’s behavior and biology? We will search in the forest for tracks and trails, and learn where to search, how recognize, and to identify them. We will use magnifying glasses and animal tracks tool kit for the investigations and you will be involved in fun scientific activities!

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Session 2: Eat & Chew marks - 11th of July – 10-12pm

Who has been eating that leaf? Which animal left its teeth marks on those nutshells? Who peeled off the bark from that old tree? Food rests tell us which animal was eating them, and how they were eaten. We will investigate and understand more about wildlife feeding signs, and eating habits. We will examine in detail live samples using scientific tool kits, learn the function of specific teeth (incisors, canines, and molars), learn about animal behavior and their activities by their eating marks patterns.

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Session 3: Animal Homes – 18th of July – 10-12pm

While walking in the forest we may encounter many different types of animal homes. These could be holes in a tree or on the ground, caves, nests, and shells. Why homes are different in shape and size? What is their function? How do different animals construct their homes? Why some materials are used instead of others? We will learn where to search and how to identify different animal homes, their shapes, materials and function (to sleep, hold eggs, capture insects, storage food, etc). We will examine in detail live samples of animal homes using scientific tool kits, and do exciting scientific activities!

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Session 4: Body Parts – 25th of July – 10-12pm

To which bird those feathers belong? Whose bones are those? We will search for animal body parts, learn how to identify them (covering parts such as fur, feathers, eggs, shells, bones and pellets), identify the animals by their plumage, skeleton, deduce animal behavior by their activities based on signs left in the wild. We will use tweezers, magnifiers, field guides and much more.