1. Arrange students into groups. Each group needs at least ONE person who has a mobile device.
2. If their phone camera doesn't automatically detect and decode QR codes, ask students to
4. Cut them out and place them around your class / school.
1. Give each group a clipboard and a piece of paper so they can write down the decoded questions and their answers to them.
2. Explain to the students that the codes are hidden around the school. Each team will get ONE point for each question they correctly decode and copy down onto their sheet, and a further TWO points if they can then provide the correct answer and write this down underneath the question.
3. Away they go! The winner is the first team to return with the most correct answers in the time available. This could be within a lesson, or during a lunchbreak, or even over several days!
4. A detailed case study in how to set up a successful QR Scavenger Hunt using this tool can be found here.
Question | Answer |
| 1. 1. An environmental indicator species is best described as? (a)A species that changes colour depending on the pH of the water. (b) An organism that can be used to assess the health of an ecosystem. (c) An organism that is abundant, tolerant of environmental extremes and is easy to catch. (d) None of the above. | (b) An organism that can be used to assess the health of an ecosystem. | 2. 2. The 3 letter acronym, BOD stands for (a) Biochemical Oxygen Distribution (b) Beetle Offset Damage. (c) Biological Oscillation Dampening. (d) Biological Oxygen Demand | (d) Biological Oxygen Demand | 3. 3. Conductivity of a water sample is measured to determine: (a) The likelihood of swimmers being electrocuted during a lightning storm (b) The amount of salts dissolved in the water (c) The amount of organic pollution present in the water | (b) The amount of salts dissolved in the water | 4. 4. Decaying organic matter (DOM) accumulates at every trophic level and this DOM becomes an important source of food for a group of organisms. Detritivores are: (a) organisms that produce their own food from an inorganic carbon source. (b) organisms that rely on other organisms for food. (c) organisms that decompose detritus and recycle nutrients. (d) organisms that produce their own food from an organic carbon source. | (c) organisms that decompose detritus and recycle nutrients. | 5. 5. True or False. The BOD increases in polluted water? (a) True. (b) False | (b) False | 6. 6. Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness of water. Use your knowledge of turbidity and species diversity to select the correct answer: (a) Turbidity varies between water bodies and cannot be used to predict diversity (b) The turbidity of Australian rivers is generally low (except for flooding) and native fish are poorly adapted to high turbidity levels (c) Suspended solids in water do not affect the following: photosynthesis, oxygen levels or species diversity. (d) Australian water bodies are naturally turbid, and this reduces light penetration (and photosynthesis) and this reduces species diversity. | (b) The turbidity of Australian rivers is generally low (except for flooding) and native fish are poorly adapted to high turbidity levels | 7. 7. A low pH reading in a water sample may indicate that drainage from industry may be located nearby. pH is measured on a logarithmic scale and a change from pH = 6.5 (normal) to pH = 8.5 would indicate: (a) A 10 fold increase in acidity (b) A 100 fold increase in acidity (c) A 10 fold increase in alkalinity (d) A 100 fold increase in alkalinity | (d) A 100 fold increase in alkalinity | 8. 8. Eutrophication can be defined as: (a) An aquatic ecosystem changes to one rich in nutrients causing a rapid boom/bust cycle in plant production leading to decomposition by bacteria. (b) A terrestrial ecosystem changes to one impoverished in nutrients causing an eventual decline in species diversity. (c) An aquatic ecosystem changes to one impoverished in nutrients causing a decrease in plant production. (d) Photosynthesis out of control | (a) An aquatic ecosystem changes to one rich in nutrients causing a rapid boom/bust cycle in plant production leading to decomposition by bacteria. | 9. 9. Blooms of blue green algae causes freshwater to become unfit for human consumption however blue green algae are not algae. To be technically correct, the organism responsible for this bloom is a: (a) eubacteria (b) protobacteria (c) cyanobacteria (d) common bacteria | (c) cyanobacteria | 10. 10. Sewage can overflow into stormwater during heavy rain events. Organisations such as the Environmental Protection Agency release health advisory warnings for beaches in Port Phillip Bay after heavy rainfall events. The organisms that may be present in stormwater contaminated by sewage and can cause sickness to humans are: (a) Enterococci and syringes (b) Ecoli and Staphylococci (c) Ecoli and cyanobacteria (d) Enterococci and Ecoli | (b) Ecoli and Staphylococci | 11. 11. The most descriptive and accurate definition for pollution is: (a) Any chemical that messes up the natural environment (b) Any chemical that added to the air, water, soil or food that threatens the survival, and health of other living organisms (c) Any chemical that has been manufactured by humans for use in agriculture, mining or another industry. (d) A problem that is caused by industrialisation and trashes the environment | (b) Any chemical that added to the air, water, soil or food that threatens the survival, and health of other living organisms | 12. 12. Water quality is linked to land use: (a) True (b) False | (a) True | 13. 13. Pesticides can accumulate in the food chain and affect the reproductive success of species of birds such as the peregrine falcon. It was also reported that pesticides were affecting the reproductive success of polar bird species far from where these chemicals were first applied. We now know that certain chemicals have the ability to bio-accumulate and bio-magnify in food chains. From the options below, select the answer that correctly identifies the properties of the chemical that make the most likely candidates: (a) Pesticides are water soluble and degrade quickly (b) Pesticides that are lipid soluble and degrade quickly (c) Pesticides that are water soluble and persistent in the environment (d) Pesticides that are lipid soluble and persistent in the environment | (d) Pesticides that are lipid soluble and persistent in the environment | 14. 14. Use a bell shaped curve to explain how a population of the same species can occupy a range of tolerances to a physical factor. Identify the optimum zone, the zones of stress and the lethal zones on your diagram. | Check diagrams | 15. 15. ECOLINC APP: What is the scientific name of the Growling Grass Frog? | Litoria raniformis | 16. 16. ECOLINC APP: According to the EPBC Act what is the conservation status of the Striped Legless Lizard and the Corangamite Water Skink? | Vunerable and Endangered | 17. 17. ECOLINC APP: Why might the Brolga be used as an indicator species? | Because the Brolga is an omnivore that mostly inhabits areas of swamps, flooded grasslands, mangroves etc that are sensitive to anthropological processes. | 18. 18. ECOLINC APP: How do foxes and foxes facilitate the introduction of the invasive plant rubus anglocandicans? | Foxes spread the blackberry seed and rabbits supress competing native plants. | 19. 19. CLIMATEWATCH APP: Why is the Willie Wagtail monitored via the Climatewatch App? | Warmer weather due to climate change may extend the breeding season of the Willie Wagtail. | 20. 20. CLIMATEWATCH APP: What can be recorded on the Climatewatch app about the Cabbage White Butterfly? | Presence (first/last sighting), Courting/mating, Egg laying, emergence from shell (chrysalis). | 21. 21. CLIMATEWATCH APP: Why is the London Plane Tree a useful species in monitoring climate change internationally? | Because the plant grows in many countries in both hemispheres, by comparing international data more accurate results can be obtained. |
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