WORLD HABITATS

 "THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF THE KNOWLEDGE"

                             Proverbs 1:7

WORLD HABITATS:

                               Animals and plants survive in an immense variety of habits, from the frozen Arctic to tropical rainforest near the equator.

                    

POLAR REGIONS:

                             The areas are immediately around the north and South Poles are frozen deserts, but move a little further out and plenty of animals live with the ice. 

                          

COOL FORESTS:

                             Parts of the world have seasons: spring,  autumn, summer, and winter. It is an environment in which broadleaved, or deciduous, trees flourish.

                     

RAIN FOREST:

                         In the areas of land near the equator, it is hot and humid. This is where you will find the tropical rain forest, full of colourfull plants and animals. 

               

GRASS LANDS:

                          There are about 10,800 species of grass. Huge areas of grasslands attract grass-eating animals, which attract predators such as lions and cheetahs.

                 

DESERTS:

                  One- seventh of all land is desert. At first sight a desert may seem barren, but desert plants and animals have some surprising ways of surviving.

                 

MOUNTAINS AND CAVES:

                           Mountains cover five per cent of all land. Plants and animals living on a mountain have to cope with less oxygen, severe cold, and strong winds. 

               

FRESH WATER:

                     The world is full of fresh water lakes, rivers, and streams, all fed by rainwater. These habitats attract all sorts of insects, animals, and plants. 

               

OCEANS:

               Earth is largely made up of oceans. Animals and some plants flourish in this salty world. Most sea life is found in shallow water and around coral reefs. 

               

TOWNS AND CITIES:

                        From mosses growing in brick walls to rats rooting through our rubbish, many plants and animals have settled in our towns and cities.

                 

What is a habitat?

             A habitat is the place or environment where particular organisms live. 

Towns and Cities

' THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF THE KNOWLEDGE '

                             Proverbs 1:7

TOWNS AND CITIES:

                                Nature always manages to find its way into our towns and cities. In fact, left alone it can quickly take over. Night time satellite images show many of the world cities - but only those where electricity is widely used. 

                    

ANIMALS:

                   Wild animals such as the red fox have quickly learnt to live along side human beings. They know we throw away tasty things. 

                        

BIRDS:

             Many people leave food out for birds. Some like seagulls have become pests brave enough to snatch food from a hand and leaving droppings in return. Gulls are commonly seen in both on coasts and inland. 

                         

CITY LIFE:

                  If you live in a city,  it may look barren of wildlife, but birds, insects, and larger animals will be all around.

                  

PLANTS:

                Concrete and heavy paving slabs are no barrier to plants however tiny. A small plant does no damage, but as it gets larger, it's roots will push up paved areas. 

                          

THE MIGHTY HIMALAYAS

               "THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF THE KNOWLEDGE"

                                                                                 Proverbs 1:7

THE HIMALAYAS:

                                The Himalayas are the world’s highest range of mountains. They stretch 2,500 km (1,550 miles) across Asia. The world’s tallest mountain, mount Everest, stands in the midst of the Himalayas.

                                      

 

 SNOW LEOPARD:

                                         The snow leopard is probably the world’s most rare and elusive cat. It lives high on mountains, including those of the Himalayas, far from human habitation.

                                          

 

MOON WALK:

                            Another Himalayan inhabitant is the black bear. This bear has a crescent-shaped white mark on its chest, resulting in its other name: moon bear.

                                         

RED PANDA:

                       The lesser panda is more closely related to the raccoon than it is to the giant panda. It lives in high bamboo forests, eating leaves, roots, fruits, and shoots.

                                      

 

POISON FLOWERS:

                                   Rhododendrons from eerie thickets in the Himalayas. Their gigantic flowers are beautiful, but toxic. Local bees collect the nectar to make a kind of honey that is poisonous to humans.

                                             

 

TALONS READY!

                            The mighty golden eagle has a wingspan of more than 2.3 m (7 ft). A tasty pika would make a nice snack.

                                           

 

ROCK BUNNY:

                            Pikas are small furry animals related to rabbits, though it’s hard to spot a pikas tail! This one lives in mountain meadows and is well-adapted to cold weather.

                                           

 

                                               How high is mount Everest?

                                                   It is 8,850 m (29,035 ft).

MARINE MAMMALS

                 " THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF THE KNOWLEDGE"

                                                                   Proverbs 1:7

 MARINE MAMMALS:

                                     Mammals are warm blooded, have lungs not gills, breathe air, and suckle their young. Human beings are mammals. So are whales, dolphins, and porpoises. As a group, these are the cetaceans.

SPERM WHALE:

Some whales have teeth, and the largest toothed whale of all is the sperm whale. They spend their days diving deep in search of giant squid. A sperm whale’s teeth can grow up to 20 cm (8 inch) in length.      

                                           

                           

BALEEN WHALES:

                               

Baleen whales like the humpback have fringed brushes called baleen plates that grow in rows from their top jaw. They filter food with these baleen plates. Baleen plates are used to filter tiny shrimp like creatures from water

                                                       

DOLPHINS:

                                          

Dolphins live in groups called schools. A school can contain 1,000 dolphins. Dolphins need to eat at least 10 kg (22 lbs) of fish each day, swallowing them whole. When hungry, they will “herd” a shoal of fish together at the sea’s surface before picking the fish off. Like all cetaceans a dolphin’s blowhole is on top of its head.

 

ECHOLOCATION:

                                

The thick pad, or melon, on the top of a dolphin’s head helps to produce clicks.Dolphins talk to each other with clicks. The clicks also help a dolphin to find its prey. How? Because the noise bounces off objects in the water. It’s called echolocation.

 

PORPOISES:

                       Porpoises are smaller than dolphins. Ther are six species.

     

Spectacled porpoises:

                                 

                      Spectacled porpoises look as though they are wearing white spectacles.

 

Dall’s porpoise:

                             

                  Dall’s porpoise is the largest porpoise, growing up to 2.4 m (7 ft 9 in)

 

Finless porpoises:

                                 

        Finless porpoises are the only ones that lack a dorsal (top) fin.

 

Harbour porpoises:

                                   

                         Harbour porpoises can often be spotted in shallow water, near harbours.

 

Vaquitas:

                             

            Vaquitas are the smallest of the porpoises, at just 1.5 m (4 ft) in length.

 

Burmeister’s porpoises:

                                        
                     Burmeister’s porpoise has a dark colouring, and a low dorsal fin.

 

 

 Can cetaceans breathe under water in the same way as fish?

                                    No. Cetaceans have lungs, not gills, and must come to the surface to breathe.    

      

Coniferous Forests

    "THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF THE KNOWLEDGE" 

                                                                  Proverbs 1:7

CONIFEROUS FORESTS:

                                          Coniferous forests cover about a tenth of the of the world’s land. In the far north, they form a vast ring around the Tundra and North Pole. Conifer trees are often cone-shaped. This let’s snow slide easily off the branches.

 

FOREST GIANTS: 

                             Giant redwoods can live for thousands of years and their cones can take 20 years or more to mature.

 

CROSSBILL:

                     Most birds wait for pine cones to fall before eating the seeds, but the crossbill can prise open a conifer’s cones with its cross-tipped beak. It is also known as cone specialist.

 

PORCUPINE:

                       The North American porcupine is one of the few animals that can eat pine needles. It is also good at climbing the trees.

 

MOOSE:

               One of the largest coniferous forests residents is the moose. All moose have a flap of skin, a bell, hanging from the throat. Only the males have antlers.

 

PINS AND NEEDLES:

                                    Conifers have needle -shaped leaves that stay on all year. Instead of growing flowers and fruits, they produce cones. A cone’s scales close in wet weather but open when it’s dry, releasing the seeds.

 

WOLVES AND WOLVERINES:

                                                  Larger predators such as wolves and wolverines are not often spotted in the wild. Thick fur allows them to survive the chilly winters of a coniferous forests. Wolverines are also known as gluttons because of large appetites.

 

 

WATER BABIES:

                           In summer-time, moose love to wade into lakes and ponds to feed on aquatic plants and to escape the clouds of biting flies that suck their blood.

 

 

What is the world’s biggest deer?

                                                   The moose (called the elk in Europe)

THE SONORAN DESERT

"THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF KNOWLEDGE "

                                           Proverbs 1:7

THE SONORAN DESERT 

                                   North America's Sonoran Desert is enormous. It also receives enough rainfall to support a huge variety of life.

 

The Velvet Ants:

                             Velvet ants are actually wasps. Only the males have wings. Females lack wings, but they have a nasty sting.

 

Cactus Homes:   

                          There are few trees in Sonoran Desert, so the Gila Woodpecker makes its nest in a Cactus stem. It will use the nest for just one year, before moving on.

 

Roadrunner:

                         The most famous bird in the Sonoran Desert is Roadrunner, which scampers along at speeds of up to 30 kph (18 mph), hunting small mammals, reptiles, and birds.    

 

Saguaro Cactus:

                            The Saguaro Cactus, widely found in the Sonoran Desert, grows incredibly slowly just 2.5 cm in a year, but it can reach heights of 15 cm (50 ft). This Cactus stem swells as a plant takes in water. It can absorb the weight in water of a small car.

 

Ringtail Cat:

                    The Ringtail Cat isn’t a cat, it’s related to the Racoon. But it will clean itself very much like a cat. These cats are nocturnal, emerging to hunt rats, mice, squirrels, frogs, and insects.

 Collared Peccary:

                               A Peccary may look like a Pig, but it is only distantly related. Peccaries have poor eyesight, but a good sense of smell. They also produce a strong smell.

 Reptiles:

               From Lizards to snakes to tortoises, many reptiles have successfully adapted to living in the Sonoran Desert.

                          Gila monster:

                                This is one of the World’s two venomous lizards.

                         Desert tortoises:

                                This tortoise spend 95 per cent of their time underground.

                       Rattlesnakes:

                               These snakes warn off predators by shaking a rattle on their tail.

                     King Snakes:

                               These snakes take their name from their ability to eat other snakes.

 

Are there any forests in the Sonoran Desert…?  

   There are no trees, but there are forests of Saguaro Cacti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is Space...?

 "THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF KNOWLEDGE"  

                                                                                                Proverbs 1:7

What is Space...?

                          Space holds many secrets. It contains places where human beings can be stretched into spaghetti shapes, or boiled, or frozen solid: that's why astronauts wear protective clothing in space. 

Why is space so dark...? 

                         Space is black because there is nothing there to reflect light. From space, Earth looks lit up because light from our Sun reflects off sea, and land, and the particles in our atmosphere.

                                  How old is the Universe ?                                                Experts believe it's just under 14 BILLION years old

Where does Space begin ?

                           Earth is cloaked in a thin layer of gases i.e., Atmosphere. Outside this atmosphere is space, where there is no air to breathe or to allow wings to fly and where nobody can hear even the scream. 

                    What do we call the mixture of gases that makes up our atmosphere?

                                    We call it AIR

 

DID YOU KNOW ? 😉

If you drive a car straight up, it would take only about an hour to reach space.