The students of the 6th-grade class ΣΤ3 made a special visit to a lush green grove in our neighborhood, next to the stream of Agios Ioannis on Friday, January 17, 2025.
There we were welcomed by Ms. Despina Maragaki, head of the FRIENDS OF THE PARK group, who are working hard to beautify the grove, and a team of scientists from the Natural History Museum of Crete (NMHC) as the leaders of the exciting activity they had prepared for our students.
The team of scientists consisted of Michalis Dretakis (ornithologist), Manolis Avramakis (agronomist), Militsa Ivovic, Facundo Nunez and Lea Ventouri (biologists).
Upon arriving at the park, the students were initially informed about its rich flora, observed birds that have found refuge there, and listened to their chirping.
The scientists had set up their traps since the morning and had already caught two birds when we arrived, while more were seen during the visit.
Then, the children had the unique opportunity to observe bird ringing up close, a very important scientific method that offers unique data on their migratory journey, such as their physical condition after crossing the open sea. This data, as Ms. Ivovic told us, is recorded in a database to be used scientifically.
The students watched with great interest the ringing of the birds, while they then released them with great enthusiasm.
