http://www.panda.org/news_facts/education/middle_school/index.cfm

Middle school students will enjoy surfing the pages of this WWF website about animals, habitats, conservation, and more. One section of the site offers information about different types of carnivores, omnivores, and herbivores such as sharks, giraffes, bears, and zebras. There is also a Remarkable Animals subsection that features short descriptions of animals like the Sidewinder Rattlesnake, Mallee Fowl, Red Piranha, and Snapping Turtle. The Habitats section profiles Grasslands, Mountains, Oceanic Islands, and Tropical Forests, to name a few. Other site offerings include underwater photographs of coral reef dwellers; ideas for projects like making a compost heap or a solar oven; downloadable factsheets; and links to conservation-related websites organized by topic. [NL]

http://pathmicro.med.sc.edu/book/welcome.htm

This award-winning microbiology and immunology online textbook is based on a University of South Carolina School of Medicine course for second-year medical students. The hypertext contains five central parts under the following major themes: Immunology, Bacteriology, Virology, Parasitology, and Mycology. The separate parts are composed of numerous chapters addressing important aspects of the aforementioned themes. The site also offers several quizzes, a Virus Glossary, and many related links. In addition, many chapters are accompanied by auxiliary PowerPoint slide files and downloadable documents (some of which are password protected). It should be noted that for some users PowerPoint files may be difficult to download due to their considerable size. [NL]

http://faculty.clintoncc.suny.edu/faculty/Michael.Gregory/files/Bio%20102/Bio_2_menu.htm

Dr. Michael Gregory developed this Biology 102 website for a course at Clinton Community College in Plattsburgh, N.Y. The site features chapters from his Biology II Online Textbook which are enriched with helpful diagrams and images. Chapter topics include Prokaryotes, Sensory Systems, Animal Tissues, Seedless Plants, Respiratory System, Animal Reproduction, and more. The site also contains a Laboratory Manual, Review Questions, and a Glossary. The Laboratory Manual presents a number of interesting examinations such as Fetal Pig Dissection (complete with graphic images). Links are provided to Dr. Gregory's Biology 101 (reported on in the November 12, 2004 NSDL Scout Report for Life Sciences) and Human Biology courses as well. [NL]

http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioimages/index.htm

This extensive website of southeastern U.S. plant images was developed by Dr. Steve Baskauf of the Department of Biological Sciences at Vanderbilt University. The site is part of a larger Bioimages website designed to "provide educational information to the public on biologically related topics, as well as a source of biological images for personal and non-commercial use." Site visitors can browse for excellent images of many trees and woody plants by common name, scientific name, or family. Notably, these species pages include close-ups of different tree and plant parts (e.g. flower, bark, leaf, fruit). The site also offers helpful comparison sections for oaks, hickories, maples, and hickory nuts. Other site offerings include a list of Common and Endemic Herbaceous Plants of Cedar Glades by Family, a list of non-seed plants (hyperlinked to images), and a section on Identifying Invasive Plants. [NL]

http://www.rmdrc.com/science/science.htm

From the Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center (RMDRC), this website offers three downloadable lesson plans for grades K-12. The 90-minute plan for kindergarten through third grade utilizes interactive play to introduce basic concepts of extinction and evolution. The 60-minute plan for grades four to eight focuses on fossils. The 60-minute plan for grades nine to twelve addresses dinosaur footprints and speed. The site also contains several brief articles relating to paleontological discoveries and careers. The website also links to the RMDRC parent company site (Triebold Paleontology) which contains an interesting section about paleontological field work. [NL]

http://www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/waves/waves1.html

This Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds activity guide was developed by the California Coastal Commission (CCC) to introduce aspects of coastal ecology to students in grades three through eight. The large downloadable guide includes six main chapters designed for the different grade levels. The grade-specific chapters contain multiple activities addressing such subjects as endangered species, marine debris and pollution, wetlands, and more. There is also a chapter with Community Action Activities that can be adapted for students in grades one through twelve. The nicely organized activities are designed to be multi-disciplinary, and in order to be accessible to a wide population of students, expensive materials are not required. Although the guide is geared towards students in California, students in other areas will likely find it informative as well. Note: Some activities are omitted from the downloadable guide because of copyright agreements; however, a free copy of Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds may be ordered from the CCC. [NL]

http://www.denniskunkel.com/PublicHtml/Edu-Search1.asp

The Education Image Library is part of Dennis Kunkel Microscopy, Inc. (first reported on in the May 2, 1997 Scout Report), a rich image website that was developed by veteran photomicrographer Dr. Dennis Kunkel. The Image Library contains "over a thousand colorized and black & white electron microscope (SEM and TEM) images taken by Dennis Kunkel Ph. D." Simply click on the marvelous images to view a larger version accompanied by a caption. In addition to multiple keyword searches, the search engine offers a drop-down menu with a variety of category options such as Bacteria, Algae, Plants, Insects, Viruses, and more. Who would guess that cyanobacteria could be captured so beautifully? This illuminating site is definitely worth a visit from even the most casual Web surfer. [NL]

http://www.wildflowers-and-weeds.com/Plant_Families/Patterns_in_Plants.htm

This plant identification site is featured in naturalist Thomas J. Elpel's Wildflowers and Weeds website (first mentioned in the March 18, 2005 NSDL Scout Report for Life Sciences). The site introduces creative plant identification techniques covered in Elpel's publication, Botany in a Day. His system is based on learning to recognize characteristics common to different plant species in the same family. The website introduces "seven of the largest and easiest-to-recognize families of plants, which are found worldwide." The families include are: mustard, mint, parsley, pea, lily, mallow, and aster. Each family section contains diagrams, a concise overview, and a collection of clear, explanatory photographs. [NL]