How to Earn Your 

Junior Ranger Badge

Complete at least 4 activity pages to earn your 

Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Junior 

Ranger Badge. When you are finished, bring your 

activity booklet to the Visitor Center Information 

Desk. We will review it with you and award you 

with your official Junior Ranger Badge!

Junior Ranger Program

Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge

6550 Gateway Road - HQ

Commerce City, CO 80022-1748

303.289.0930

303.289.0579 fax

rockymountainarsenal@fws.gov

http://www.fws.gov/refuge/rocky_mountain_arsenal

I promise to help protect 

national wildlife refuges. I will 

practice the “pack it in, pack it 

out” and “leave no trace” motto 

by not leaving any trash behind.

I will not feed or disturb wildlife, 

pick plants, or disturb any living 

or non-living thing on Refuge 

lands. I will always show 

respect to wildlife, property, 

others, and historical places. 

I will continue to learn about 

the National Wildlife Refuge 

System and nature.

Refuge Staff/Volunteer Signature

Junior Ranger Signature
1

Visitor Center Exhibit Hall 

Scavenger Hunt

Find the Underground Cities display. Locate the 

black-footed ferret living underground. Above 

ground, how many prairie dogs do you see? 

___________

Find the coyote and deer jaw bone. Notice the 

differences in teeth. What do mule deer eat? 

_____________________________

Find the old telephone

Find the bald eagle and red-tailed hawk (look up!)

Take your picture standing in front of the bison

Challenge Questions:

Pure Prairie exhibit: Find the food web. What are 

primary consumers? 

________________________________________

________________________________________

Staking Claims exhibit: How did kids get to school?

___________________________________

Recipe for a Prairie exhibit: Name one grasses 

bison like to eat. 

___________________________________

10

Visitor Center Back Patio

Find the animal “measure up” black silhouettes 

located on the back patio attached to the Visitor 

Center wall. 

Measure up and write what animal is your size. 

____________________________________

How many of you would it take to be a bison? 

___________

Using your hands, count how many it would take 

to make a bald eagle wingspan. _______________

Try to jump the length of the mallard duck wingspan. 

If you could be one of these animals, which one 

would it be?__________________________
Ferret It Out

Visit the black-footed ferret exhibit just beyond the 

Visitor Center back patio. Signs will guide you. Be 

sure to walk up the sidewalk to 

the rooftop of the building 

where the telescope is located. 

Use the signs on the railing to 

answer these questions.

1. Black-footed ferrets live in the (circle one) 

short grass prairie trees by water

2. Black-footed ferrets were thought to be 

extinct. True False

3. Write down 2 animals that are predators of the 

black-footed ferret. 

1. ________________ 2. ________________

4. Young ferrets are called kits: True False 

5. Ferrets are active at night (nocturnal). Think about 

what it would be like to hunt for food at night. Which 

senses are the most important? (circle answers)

Sight Hearing Touch Smell Taste

9 2

Wildland Firefighter Physical Fitness

Wildland firefighters help prevent and put out wild 

fires. They must carry a lot of tools and heavy gear. 

They have to take a physical fitness test each year 

to make sure they are in shape to safely fight 

wildland fires.

Test your physical fitness by doing....

5 push ups

10 jumping jacks

5 sit ups

Run in place for 10 seconds

Check the box after you’ve completed these 

activities.

Fun fact: 

Did you know that many wildland fire fighters carry up to 

150 pound backpacks when going into the wilderness to fight 

fires? It’s like carrying 10 bowling balls! 
Bison Hike

Hike the Discovery Trail located on the Visitor Center back 

patio. Ahead, on the other side of the fence is one of the 

Refuge’s bison pastures. Along the trail, near the bison 

watering spot, is a sign about the bison. Locate the sign 

and answer the following questions. 

Male bison (bulls) weigh ___________ pounds 

Female bison (cows) weigh ___________pounds

Bison can run up to ______ miles per hour

Bison can walk up to _______ miles per day

Bison can live up to ________ years old

Bison have (circle one): Horns Antlers 

One way you can judge a bison’s mood is by watching 

____________________________

Bison have excellent hearing and sense of smell?

True or False (circle one)

3 8

Animal Adaptations Drawing
Bison Observation

Take the wildlife drive or hike the Discovery Trail to 

view bison. When you find the herd complete these 

field notes.

Date: __________________

Time: __________________

Location: _____________________

Weather: _________________________

Count the number of bison you see: _____________

Male bison (bulls) are very large and weigh up to 

2,000 pounds. Females (cows) are smaller and 

weigh up to 1,200 pounds. See if you can spot the 

difference and count the number of:

Bulls ________Cows _________Calves ________

Are the bison resting, eating, drinking, or walking 

(circle one)?

If the herd is moving, what direction are they going? 

_________________

Write down the name of other animals you see in the 

bison pasture. Make tally marks next to each animal 

to record how many you see. 

____________________ ____________________

____________________ ____________________

4

7

Animal Adaptations

Adaptations are any behavioral or physical characteristic 

of an animal that helps it survive in its environment. 

Here are some examples:

Webbed feet help animals move through the w ater

Whiskers help an animal feel its w ay through tight 

spots

Sharp teeth help an animal eat meat

Wings help an animal fly and travel from place to 

place

Camouflage help animals blend into their habitat to 

avoid predators or sneak up on prey

Fins help animals move through w ater

Now that you know more about adaptations make your 

own imaginary refuge animal: 

Animal Name: 

__________________________________________

Where does it live: _________________________

What does it eat:___________________________

How does it move: _________________________

Draw your imaginary animal on the next page.
Animal Tracks 

Draw a line matching the animal to its tracks. 

5 6

I Spy Hike

Hike a Refuge trail. 

Find something that is .......

Made by an animal

Flying

Made by humans

Eating grass

As tall as you

As long as your shadow

Small

Soft

Round

Smooth

Food for an animal

Shade/shelter for an animal