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Exploring how animals stay warm and find food in the coldest places on Earth.
Imagine standing inside a giant freezer with no coat on! How do animals like polar bears stay warm and find snacks when the temperature is often below ?
The Arctic is one of the coldest places on Earth. In the winter, the temperature can drop to , which is much colder than your freezer at home! To survive here, animals need special features called adaptations. An adaptation is a 'body tool' or a behavior that helps a living thing stay alive in its home. For Arctic animals, the most important goal is staying warm. They do this using insulation, which is like a thick blanket that traps heat inside their bodies. Without these tools, they would lose their body heat too fast to the freezing air and water.
Let's look at how a polar bear stays warm in three steps: 1. First, they have a thick layer of fur that traps air. 2. Second, their skin underneath the fur is actually black to soak up the sun's heat. 3. Third, they have a layer of fat called blubber that can be up to inches thick!
Quick Check
What are the two main things Arctic animals use to trap heat inside their bodies?
Answer
Thick fur and a layer of fat called blubber.
Staying warm isn't the only challenge. Animals also need to eat! This is where camouflage comes in. Camouflage is a color or pattern that helps an animal blend into its surroundings. In the Arctic, many animals like the Arctic Fox and the Snowy Owl have white fur or feathers. This makes them nearly invisible against the white snow. For a hunter like the polar bear, white fur helps it sneak up on seals. For a smaller animal like the Arctic Hare, white fur helps it hide from hungry predators. It is the ultimate game of hide-and-seek!
Quick Check
How does white fur help a hunter like the polar bear?
Answer
It helps the bear sneak up on its prey without being seen against the snow.
Animals in the Arctic have the opposite problems of animals in the desert. In the desert, it is very hot and dry. Desert animals have adaptations to get rid of heat. For example, a Fennec Fox has giant ears to let heat escape its body. In contrast, an Arctic Fox has tiny, furry ears to keep heat inside. While Arctic animals have thick blubber to stay warm, desert animals often have thin fur and very little fat so they don't overheat. Both types of animals are perfectly designed for the place they live!
Compare these two foxes to see how they fit their homes: 1. Arctic Fox: Small ears, thick white fur, short legs (keeps heat in). 2. Fennec Fox (Desert): Huge ears, thin tan fur, long legs (lets heat out). 3. Both use their fur color to match their ground: white for snow, tan for sand!
Imagine you are designing a new animal for the Arctic. To make it survive, you must combine three features: 1. Insulation: Give it a layer of blubber for the water. 2. Camouflage: Give it white fur so it can hide on the ice. 3. Shape: Give it small ears and a round body to keep its heat from escaping into the wind.
What is the thick layer of fat under an Arctic animal's skin called?
Why do Arctic foxes have smaller ears than desert foxes?
Camouflage only helps animals that are trying to hide from hunters.
Review Tomorrow
Tomorrow, try to remember the three ways a polar bear stays warm and why its skin is black.
Practice Activity
Draw a picture of a 'Desert Polar Bear.' What would you change about its fur, ears, and fat to help it survive in the hot sand?