Unit 05 - A Pretty Little Leech

Investigating a mini beast

What is biodiversity?

Biodiversity is the term for the immense richness of life on earth. This includes variety among and within living things and ecological systems. Scientifically, biodiversity is recognised at four levels — landscape, ecosystem, species and genetic information.

Why protect biodiversity?

The interrelated nature of life on earth means that each life form depends on many others to function successfully. Healthy environments are diverse environments. We depend on many living forms for the air we breathe, the water we drink and other life-sustaining processes.

Why leeches?

The ‘yuck factor’ motivates the young students to engage in the inquiry and provides an interesting topic through which students can develop an understanding of the diverse types of animals that live in a rainforest.
Leeches are protected animals in Queensland, as they are an integral part of the Wet Tropics ecosystem.

A joint inquiry by teacher and students will generate questions and uncover fascinating facts on leech lives in the process of answering them.