Menace to the West

How big can a nutria population get? In this activity, students calculate and graph the growth rate of a population of nutria based on a set of realistic assumptions.

Myocaster Multiplyer: Teacher Lesson Plan

 

Myocaster Multiplier: Student Activity (elementary)

 

Myocaster Multipler: Student Vocabulary

Please let us know if you have used this lesson by clicking here.

Related videos and resources:

• Nutria
  Oregon Sea Grant
  Species guides and activities on nutria.
• Worldwide Distribution, Spread of, and Efforts to Eradicate the Nutria (Myocastor coypus).
  USGS National Wetlands Research Center
  An interactive map that allows you to learn more about the details of the global spread of nutria by clicking around the map.
• Louisiana Nutria
  Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
  Visit this site and get ideas for creative nutria recipes such as chili, sausage, and gumbo!
• Nutria traps: Salem resident Bob Miller works to keep the lakes around Cinnamon Lakes Condominiums free of nutria
  Statesman Journal Video #2
  Efforts of a Salem resident to remove nutria from urban wetlands near a condominium complex.
• Nutria
  Oregon Field Guide segment on the introduction of nutria in the Pacific Northwest.
• Hi! I’m a nutria!
  Drew Christie, March 19, 2012 New York Times Opinion Editorial Video
  Support for the viewpoint that nutria are a naturalized species and should be left alone.
• "Evaluating simplistic methods to understand current distributions and forecast distribution changes under climate change scenarios: an example with coypu (Myocastor coypus)"
  NeoBiota, doi: 10.3897/neobiota.32.8884. Mark.