Posts Tagged With: mammals

WORLD GIRAFFE DAY!!

What has four knobby knees, a super long neck and two ossicones on top of their head?  A GIRAFFE!! Today is World Giraffe Day and we’re celebrating the tallest animal on the planet! These spotty funny looking animals are one of favorites! We’re going to share some fun facts and a great coloring sheet for you!

Any guess on why June 21st is World Giraffe Day? It’s because it’s the longest day of the year and they have the longest necks!!

• All giraffes live in Africa, in desert or savannas.
• Giraffes can grow up to 19ft tall.
• Their tongues are 21″ long.

• Giraffes are herbivores and eat all throughout the day.
• A giraffe’s heart is the size of a basketball.
• Giraffes can run up to 35 miles per hour.
•  A giraffe’s foot is the size of a dinner plate.

Answer:  7

CAT HABITATS!

As we said before we have a little game today! We’re going to put up some pictures of wild cats and you have guess the habitat they live in! Are you ready? (answers are waaaaay below)

Where does the cheetah live?

Where does the cougar live?

Where does the jaguar live?

Where does the Canadian lynx live?

Where does the ocelot live?

Where does the sand cat live?

Where does the Amur tiger live?

Amur Tiger: tundra/forest

Canadian Lynx: tundra/forest

Cheetah: savannah

Sand Cat: desert

Ocelot: rainforest/mangroves

Jaguar: rainforest/swamps/grasslands

Cougar: canyons/mountains/ brush areas

Marsupials in Our Backyard!

Do you ever just go out in your own backyard or to a local park and notice that there is actually quite a bit of wildlife? Professor Tamanadua’s science word of the week was marsupial and the only marsupial in North America lives right in our backyard! Are you ready to meet them?

MEET THE VIRGINIA OPOSSUM!

   Range/Habitat: North America-Central America/ woodlands, urban,

grasslands

   Diet: Omnivore: grub, eggs, fruit, carrion

   Length/Weight: 13-20”/ 4 ½-12 lbs

   Conservation Status: common

Fun Facts:

• Virginia Opossums are the only marsupial in North America. (Marsupials are mammals that give birth to very small young. The young then develop and grow in their mother’s pouch.)
• They are nocturnal (active at night).
• Virginia Opossums have hairless, prehensile tails. They can hang from their tails, but for only short periods of time.
• Virginia Opossums have opposable thumbs on their back paws.
• They have 50 teeth, the most of any North American mammal!
• Virginia Opossums can carry up to 13 babies in their pouches. They young leave the pouch after 70 days.
• Their most famous trait is their ability to “play dead” when they are threatened. They lay in a coma like state and can stay that way for up to 6 hours.

Opossums get a bad rap and we admit they aren’t the cutest thing in our back yards, but they are an essential part of the urban ecosystem! Plus, they are our only marsupial and we think that’s pretty cool!

WE SPY!!

Today we spy with our four little eyes a marsupial who lives in Australia. Known for their feisty dispositions these carnivores are the opposite of an angel! Guess who we spy!