Summary
Farmers release good mites to hunt the bad mites that ruin strawberry plants. Deep Look zooms in on this tiny predator-versus-pest battle happening right on the leaves of a strawberry field.
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All ages
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Teaching resources
Discussion questions
Talk about it
Helpful predator mites eat the pest mites that harm strawberry plants. Using one animal to control another is a natural balance farmers put to work instead of chemicals.
- How do the 'good' mites help strawberry plants?
- What is the relationship between the two kinds of mites?
- Why might farmers prefer helpful mites over sprays?
Quick work-a-long
Vocabulary: predator, prey, pest, control.
Try it: Compare a 'helper' mite and a 'pest' mite in two boxes. Write what each one does to the strawberry plant.