Modeling Animal Survey Methods

This hands-on activity accompanies the video The Great Elephant Census. Students use beans or lentils to model sample and total count methods for studying wildlife population sizes.

The Great Elephant Census was a large-scale aerial survey that counted elephants across the continent of Africa. Students watch a video that describes how scientists conducted that work.

After watching the video, students model two types of counting methods, sample counts and total counts, using a printout of the landscape and beans to represent the elephants. Students collect data by measuring the area, counting “elephants,” and calculating population density.