Writing on the Bean - Morenci student writings
The giant Eastern stonefly mentioned in some student writings.
Found at Bean Creek, Wakefield Park, April 30, 2004.
Acroneuria arenosa (Order Plecoptera, Family Perlidae)
Bean Creek!
There were a lot of extremely cool bugs. There was a water boatman that looked
like it had oars on it, and it squirmed and scurried really, really fast. I
can’t believe how awesome the crane fly larva was, it was transparent,
and looked like some other bug was crawling inside of it. I didn’t know
bugs could be so interesting!
--Adrianna Smith
Stonefly Larva
When we looked under a slimy rock, there was a tan bug that had black-looking
markings all over its back. The stonefly looked like it was from Egypt. It was
about the size of your pinkie. It had two tail-like things on his rear end.
It moved very swiftly through the water.
--Selena Martinez
Bean Creek Day
I had never thought of touching a bug in my life. I always thought they were
just really gross. But once I got there I found that they weren’t so bad
after all. One of the groups found a crayfish and I actually got the nerve to
pick it up. There were these little red squiggly worms. They would squirm and
move all over like they had no bones. The tweezers weren’t helping catch
them so I had to use my hands. Be proud of me, I actually touched a bug!
-- Keri Frost
At Bean Creek
At Bean Creek, I saw an array of strange creatures. Most used jerky movements
for transportation. But there was an aquatic worm-like thing that almost glided
across the water. It was bright neon green with tiny wrinkles and feet. It often
writhed, as if in pain. Only a centimeter long, it didn’t do much. There
seemed to be no eyes on it, which may be why it never seemed to have a destination.
It just squirmed.
-- Josiah Fallot
Riffle Beetle
small, quick
crawling, creeping,
slowly crawling across the river bed
--Andrew Mason
Caddisfly Larvae
When we looked in Bean Creek, I saw many caddisflies. They were about half an
inch long. The head was blackish brown while the body was green or yellow. It
wasn’t too fast. It didn’t move from one place to another, but it
did wiggle a lot. The caddisfly makes a cocoon-like structure around itself
with leaves, dirt, or pebbles to hide itself from predators.
--Kelby Allen
The Dragonfly Larva
I thought the dragonfly larva was really cool. Even though it kind of freaked
me out. It was huge, probably an inch and a half long. It had six long legs.
I don’t remember what color it was, but I remember that it moved by crawling
kind of sluggishly. That’s what I remember about the dragonfly larva.
--Christina Lambes
The Day at Bean Creek!
The day at Bean Creek, this is what I saw,
large sycamore trees standing tall.
Stonefly larva with two tails,
mayflies and beetles swimming like sails.
Worms and caddisflies wiggling fast,
craneflies covered in what looked like a cast.
Hackberry trees with unusual bark,
this is what I saw at Wakefield Park!!
--Jennica Parrill
Stonefly Larva
The stonefly larva’s large and thin.
This wonderful bug is black and a deep yellow within.
Even though it moves like jell-o,
The stonefly larva could be a nice fellow.
--Timothy Apger
Bean Creek Amazement
When I was at the Bean, we saw many different things. But one thing really caught
my eye. It was a crayfish. Not just any crayfish, it was dead. I was amazed
at the size of it. It looked to be about 6 inches and the color was a very pale
brownish color. Of course I couldn not see how it moved, because it was ...
DEAD.
--Larissa Allen
When we went to Bean Creek, I saw many cool things, from little bugs that were
barely visible, to crayfish who attempted to pinch each others’ heads
off. There was a huge stonefly, and a wriggly crane fly larva. I learned a lot
and am looking forward to going back.
--Zach Schaffner
A blood-curdling shriek and a chorus of laughs erupted from my left. With a
resounding splash, a crayfish landed back in the little tub, falling from my
frightened cousin’s hands. Scooting backwards for all it was worth and
flailing its lobster-like claws, warning us all to stay away, it tucked itself
into the corner, its hind end folded under. Afraid to capture it once more,
we observed the tiny water droplets rolling off its slimy shell as it finally
relaxed and lowered its claws. Feeling brave, we carefully slipped two fingers
behind its pinchers, its eight legs flying out, and slipped the creature back
into its quiet sanctuary.
--JoLynn Hendershot
While we were at Bean Creek we found many little bugs. My favorite was a huge
stonefly. Its markings were so precise, like someone had hand-painted it. It
scampered around and tried crawling under rocks and leaves. It looked very creepy
when it was still, like if you went to Egypt you would find tons of them in
tombs of ancient Pharaohs. I thought it was very cool to see a bug like that
because it was an extremely new experience for me.
--Rachael Rutkowski
There was a huge bug about 1 to 2 inches long. It was creepy and big. If I
was swimming, I would have been scared to death. Then Prof. Kauffman brought
around a crayfish that was huge. I had no idea that that kind of life was in
the water.
--Andrew Roddy
Oh I wish,
I hadn’t gotten pinched by that crayfish.
It swam in reverse,
Like it had an old curse.
Crayfish don’t bite,
They use their claws to fight.
They don’t taste very good fried,
Under a rock is where they hide.
Oh I wish,
I hadn’t gotten pinched by that crayfish.
--Dillon Kunkle
When we went to Bean Creek, we found lots of creepy and crawly things. Some
of the bugs we found I didn’t even know existed. All different colors
and shapes. Big and small, with lots of legs and feelers.
--Dalton Townsend
A Fun Day at Bean Creek
One day our career class went to Bean Creek, and we looked at really neat things.
We looked at bugs from little to big ones. Everything was cool, but we found
something even cooler. My partner and I found a rock with eggs on it. The eggs
were really neat, goldish-looking. That was the coolest thing I thought we found
in Bean Creek.
--Kyle McClain
I never really noticed how clean our water is. The water was loaded with all
kinds of bugs, crayfish and mayflies. I always thought that Bean Creek was polluted
and infested with the wrong kind of bugs. I guess I was wrong.
--Nate Rutkowski
Crane Fly
Milky green
plump caterpillar
was crawling away
as fast as he
could crawl.
--Kyle Booher
Dragonfly Larva
When I went to Bean Creek with my class, my group found a dragonfly larva. Its
body was a little bit bigger than a quarter. It had three legs on each side
of it. It moved at medium speed. It blended in with the mud. It tired to scurry
as fast as it could under the rocks before we caught it, but it wasn’t
fast enough. That is the bug that I thought was most interesting that I found.
--Amanda Hartman
Black Bug
There was a black bug
He was a thug
His name was Dug
He was not cool
Because he did drugs.
--Hal Hutchinson
Bean Creek
When I went to Bean Creek, I saw a caddisfly that was very small, like a piece
of glitter. They swam really fast. You can barely see them.
Then I saw a dragonfly larva that will soon turn into a dragonfly. It was very
big, like the size of your thumb.
Then I saw a long thing that looked like a worm. It was moving fast, wiggling
fast. It’s called a crane fly.
I saw a small water boatman that was shaped like a boat. And that’s what
I saw.
--Virgena Gore
I think the stonefly was the coolest thing in Bean Creek because it would swim
around the bowl trying to find a place to hide. I thought the stonefly was about
1 inch. The color of the stonefly was pretty cool – it was kinds goldish
with little black spots.
--Kalsey Swinehart
Dragonfly Larva
When we went down to Bean Creek, there was a lot of different kinds of bugs
and insects. But the most interesting bug to me was the dragonfly larva. The
dragonfly larva looked almost like a spider except its body was round. It was
a light brown color and it looked like it should be a part of the sand. It moved
like a spider in the water.
--Devin Martinez
Bean Creek
I saw many kinds of creatures. I saw a giant rare stonefly. It had lots of cool
designs. And I also saw a crayfish and it pinched me. I also saw a baby fish.
I loved it.
--Matt McClain
The Crayfish of Bean Creek
With eight legs and two small pinchers, the crayfish crawls around on the floor
of Bean Creek.
Resembling a lobster, the crayfish snaps at enemies he runs into on the floor
of Bean Creek.
Six inches long with a large tail, the brownish crayfish scurries around on
the floor of Bean Creek.
--Brandi Mills
Bean Creek
The stonefly that we saw was huge. I didn’t think that we would ever find
anything that big in the creek. This was very amazing and great.
--Anthony Barron
An Egyptian Bug in Bean Creek
Amber colored, transparent legs
Scurry, hurry to escape.
Black etching clean and crisp,
Mark its back from head to tail.
Could be an Egyptian scarab,
In an oasis beside the pyramid.
--Sally Kruger, teacher
At Bean Creek I liked the stonefly. The fly was clear and had black markings.
That is what I liked.
--Derek Perryman
Personally I hate insects, I hate anything slimy or that can be found in water.
I don’t want anything to do with them. They’re slimy.
When we went to Bean Creek I thought it was going to be boring and when Prof.
Kauffman said what we were going to look for, I wanted to leave.
But after we got started, it was fun looking for the “bugs”/other/whatever
they were. I liked the stonefly. It was so big and ugly but it was awesome.
All of the black markings were cool, it made it look sweet.
--Katy Carpenter
Black Bug
I saw a bug, it was black, black as flint. It was so cool because it did a back
flip on a rock.
--Erik Hilton
My favorite bug was the stonefly. It was really interesting the way it was shaped,
and there were really cool designs on its back, that’s why it’s
unique. I bet that’s the biggest one they ever saw, too. Plus they probably
aren’t that easy to find, and that is why Morenci is da bomb!
--James Stevens
Crayfish
Quick, powerful, large
Crablike shape, colorful, serious
Scary, quiet, calm
Loose, speedy, amazing
--Jennifer Nofziger
Bean Creek Writing
At Bean Creek I saw a crayfish. It was about 4 inches long. When I picked it
up it squirmed. It had a lobster-like tail with two pinching claws. It was a
dark reddish orange. It was ugly.
--Katie Hollstein
I was amazed when I saw the dragonfly larva. It scurried around the bowl so
fast that you could only see the larva when it stopped. The dragonfly larva
was about 1-1 ½ inches long and a pretty dark amber. Every time you took
the bug out of the water it squirted a little bit of water at you.
--Jacob Bovee
Bean Creek
My trip to Bean Creek was a real cool time. We found a stonefly that was ½
to an inch long. Also we found fish and two crayfish. They like to move frantically
around and you can only find them under rocks.
--Matt Barnhart
I went to Bean Creek. We looked through the water and found extraordinary
bugs. One bug I remember was the stonefly. It was huge and was amber color.
--Bobby Foster
The crayfish was quick and afraid. We saw little bugs and big bugs. We found
a rock with eggs on it. I’m surprised by what we found because the water
looks too dirty for anything to live in.
--Cory Sallows
One day my class and I went to Bean Creek for a field trip, and my partner David
Foster, Matt Bender, and I found a dragonfly larva. It was light black, and
it was like really small. It looked about maybe 1 inch and it was really cool
looking.
--Lance Bischoff
Bean Creek
When we were at Bean Creek I saw a little tiny bug about the size of a grain
of sand. I saw a little bug that was swimming around like it was on fire. I
saw another bug that I didn’t know the name of. I had a lot of fun.
--Kimberly Bentley
I learned a lot about Bean Creek. I didn’t know the bugs we found there.
I think it’s amazing that all the stuff we found was actually in Bean
Creek. We found crayfish, water pennies, caddisflies, stonefly, and many more.
We found a huge stonefly. It was about 2 inches. It was orangish color with
black.
--David Foster
Bean Creek
When we were examining the contents of the Bean Creek waters, we discovered
a large bug about an inch long and a half inch wide. It was a dark amber and
had 6 long legs. It scuttled around in the shallow water and dove into the deeper
waters. It was a dragonfly larva, soon to be a beautiful dragonfly.
--Justin Swett
Bean Creek
When we were at Bean Creek we saw many varieties of bugs ranging from caddisfly
larvae to crayfish. The caddisfly larvae looked like a transparent green. We
saw a dragonfly larva that was a vivid black. All the crayfish we saw were small.
There was a stonefly there that was a transparent yellow with black stripes.
Our class had a good time looking for insects that many people have never seen.
--Jon Roberts
At Bean Creek I saw a lot of cool things like the aquatic worm that was real
tiny and thin. Another group found a real cool bug called the stonefly that
had cool things on its back.
--Becky Correa
I am going to tell you about my experience at Bean Creek. One of the things
that I liked and was also amazed by was the huge stonefly. It was measured;
it was about 2 inches long. It was a yellowish color and it had black markings
– it looked kind of like Egyptian.
--Amber Baker
I thought the Bean Creek expedition was awesome! It was a great day for all
the findings in Bean Creek.
What I was really afraid of was the crayfish. It was the scariest looking thing
ever. It had 8 legs, it resembled a very small lobster. It also had 2 huge claws
that snapped at you if you put a pencil in its snappers. Once my classmates
found out I was afraid of it, Kyle McClain picked it up and stuffed it in my
face and I screamed.
--Amber Thomas
Creekin’
“That’s an ugly little bugger!” Nate cried. “looks like
some horror movie monster or something.”
“Yeah, man, I think it likes you,” Justin said.
“Ha ha ha...” Nate started coughing and choking as water squirted
on his face and in his mouth.
Adam and Justin started cracking up laughing, and Nate even laughed a lot, too.
Justin and Adam had picked up a dragonfly larva and it squirted water out its
back end. Everyone was having fun down at Bean Creek.
--Adam Ries
My favorite thing we saw in Bean Creek was the crayfish. It kind of looks
like a crab but it’s not red. It’s kind of a dirty brown color with
pinchers like a crab. The crayfish has a weird-looking tail. It’s like
flat and long. The crayfish we saw were like two inches long, they were actually
pretty big. They can sort of run but swim at the same time. They move pretty
fast. I think they are the ugliest bug I have ever seen.
--Jenny Evers
The bug I liked the most was the crayfish. Its claws were like crabs’
claws. It was black and when I tried to pick it up, its legs squirmed on my
fingers. When it was in the water it sayed still most of the time. I had a lot
of fun.
--Monica Schmucker
I saw it in the dish swimming around back and forth. It didn’t swim like
something normal. It swam with its tail and legs. The thing I am describing
is a crawfish. It darts in the water when something scares it. It is a grayish
black color with big rugged-looking claws. It has beady eyes with little legs
tucked under its body to help itself crawl on the bottom of the crick. Its tail
was curved so it could paddle its way through the currents in Bean Creek.
--Ryan Robinson
The day we went to Bean Creek we found many unique types of critters. The one
I thought was most outrageously different from the rest was the stonefly larva.
It had bold Egyptian-looking designs all over his back. It wasn’t the
fastest moving thing. The only movement he attempted to make was to slowly crawl
away to a nearby rock to hide.
--Chelsea Arquette
Bean Creek
Stonefly larva: The day we went to Bean Creek we found a giant stonefly larva.
It was a vivid dark yellow and black. It had long transparent legs.
Caddisfly larvae: When we found the big rocks there were little transparent
green-tinted worms. They would simply inch along any surface. They were roughly
an inch long with tiny sucker cups.
Aquatic worms: One of the more fascinating creatures I saw were the aquatic
worms. They were long and skinny. Its eyes were very big compared to the body.
It would use its tail to propel itself through the water.
Crayfish: One of the fastest animals I discovered was the crayfish. They could
walk and crawl slowly or they could propel themselves down the river at amazingly
high speeds.
--David Gautz
I saw a sluggishly moving crane fly larva. He wriggled around anxiously while
he was in the bowl. His brownish-green color reminded me of a piece of something
that would come from the end of an animal. He was a creepy slow bug that would
probably be found in the ground it seems like.
--Tricia Black
Our trip to Ban Creek was really fun. I never thought anything of Bean Creek,
but now I think it’s really fun and interesting. The crayfish was really
cool. It looked like a lobster, only it was brown and a lot smaller.
--Jessica Lietzke
Bean Creek
When I was little I was a huge bug, toad, whatever fan. So, this wasn’t
a huge gross deal for me. Most people are writing about how they thought bugs
were gross, and when they got down there it wasn’t so bad. I was the other
way around.
Brandi and I only found 2 different things. A little bug that looked like a
little paddle boat, and a long 4-legged stick bug. We didn’t find anything
interesting.
When somebody found something, they would put it into a white bowl in the middle.
Things were squirming and rolling, and flopping around with their long jelly
bodies. All I could do was picture it falling and spilling all over me.
I kept away from the bowl.
--Courtney Kruger
Bean Creek
In Bean Creek there were a lot of cool-looking bugs. But my favorite bug was
the stonefly. It was a light clear yellow. It had different, interesting black
markings all over his back. The stonefly looks almost like an ant only with
4 legs and 2 inches long. It had four antennas, 2 off its head and 2 off the
other end. Stoneflies crawl under rocks upside down to hide from enemies. The
stonefly crawls just like a land bug. It was so beautiful.
--Renee Evers
Stonefly Swam Away
I went to a creek and what did I see???
I saw a stonefly swimming towards me.
He had two tails and a pair of wings.
He looked as happy as if could possibly be
He looked black but what do I know???
He swam away before I could see.
He swam so fast he was gone in a blink of my eye.
--Amanda Reed
At Bean Creek I saw a huge stonefly larva with peculiar markings, like Egyptian
writing. It swam around frantically trying to get out of the bowl. It was translucent
and looked like a large cricket.
--Rhysh Coker
Bean Creek
When we went to Bean Creek we saw all kinds of weird bugs. We saw a lot of mayflies.
They were brown and moved really fast. We could hardly catch them. Then we saw
a stonefly. It was bigger than normal. It had weird foreign designs on its back
and usually was under rocks. The stonefly was really unique and like nothing
I’ve ever seen.
--Darcy Love
At Bean Creek Friday I liked everything that we did, but what I most liked was
the stonefly. I liked the colors that appeared on that insect.
--Anonymous