Where animals live, what they eat and how they move
Animals live in many different homes, called habitats. Fish live in water, camels live in hot deserts, polar bears live in icy lands, and monkeys live in forests. Animals are grouped in many ways. Mammals, like cows and dogs, have hair and feed milk to their young. Birds have feathers and lay eggs. Reptiles, like snakes and lizards, have dry scaly skin, and insects have six legs.
Animals eat different kinds of food. Herbivores, like cows and rabbits, eat plants. Carnivores, like lions and eagles, eat other animals. Omnivores, like bears and crows, eat both. Animals move in different ways too: birds fly, fish swim, snakes crawl and frogs hop. Each animal has special features, called adaptations, that help it survive. A duck has webbed feet for swimming, and a camel stores fat in its hump. Many animals grow through life stages, like a frog that starts as an egg, becomes a tadpole and then grows legs.
Why it matters
Knowing about animals helps us care for pets and farm animals and protect wild animals and their homes. Bees help plants make fruits, earthworms make soil rich, and cows give us milk. When forests are cut down, animals lose their homes, so learning about habitats helps us see why saving nature matters.
Key terms
- Habitat
- The natural home where an animal or plant lives.
- Herbivore
- An animal that eats only plants.
- Carnivore
- An animal that eats other animals.
- Adaptation
- A special body feature or behaviour that helps a living thing survive in its habitat.