Joseph Hall has experience throwing an atlatl. Until yesterday, the 14-year-old may have been the only student at Poplar Bluff Junior High School who could make such a statement.
Earth Day events were held Wednesday at Wappapello Lake and students from PBJHS were invited to explore the environment with outdoor professionals.
A session called, "What is an Atlatl?" taught by Park Ranger Erin Snuggs introduced students to the ancient hunting device. After the lecture, they were allowed to try their hands using an atlatl to launch arrows at straw bails.
"I used to do it for the Chaonia Volunteer Fire Department," Hall said. "My grandpa's the chief there and one May Fest we had a guy come out and he showed everyone how to do atlatls."
Though Hall said he had not used the device in a long time, his arrow landed within a few feet of the straw bail, which Snuggs told the students to envision as a buffalo. Hall said he enjoyed spending the day outside and learning about the Earth.
"This is very fun," he said. "It's interesting how they taught us about the spillway and the trees. But the atlatl has definitely been my favorite part."
Dave Knuth, Fisheries Management Biologist with the Missouri Dept. of Conservation, pulled various types of fish found in Wappapello Lake from a childs wading pool. While he spoke, a slimy creature resembling an eel repeatedly popped its head out of the water. When Knuth grabbed the fish, a lamprey, students watched in awe.
"The chestnut lamprey is a parasitic fish," Knuth said. "It's jawless... It uses that sucker like disc to attach itself to other fish, a host fish, and then it feeds on it just like any other parasite."
Knuth said parasitic lampreys are common in many of the river systems. He said the students' reactions to the snake-like creature are always enjoyable.
"Normally they've never even seen a fish like that," Knuth said. "Most of them think it's a snake or a salamander, so it's a lot of fun to show them something different."
John Case, Environmental Specialist with the Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources Environmental Emergency Response, performed an oil spill demonstration to highlight the materials and processes used to help mitigate an oil spill.
"We're hoping they learn a couple scientific principals when it comes to hydrophobic and hydrophilic activity and why we need to keep these materials out of our water," Case said.
Student Brandon Kelley volunteered to use Case's materials and remove oil from water inside an aquarium.
"You take a pad and walk it around the water and it sucks up all the oil," Kelley said. "The pad doesn't absorb the water, it just pulls the chemicals from it."
Kelley said it was an interesting experience and he had never done anything like that before.
Stephanie Milner, Youth Development Specialist from the University of Missouri Butler County Extension Office, said the purpose of Earth Day is to educate eighth grade students about the study of the Earth and how to take care of it. Milner worked with the Corps of Engineers and Peoples Bank in Wappapello to organize the event.
"We hope they learn more about how to take care of their environment and what resources are out there for them to access as they are growing up," she said.
Other topics included Wappapello Dam Gatehouse tours, geocaching, forestry, primitive bow making, feral hogs, and Monarch butterflies.