Amazing facts about INSECTS

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Amazing facts about INSECTS

• Miss. Stones 3rd Grade Class

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I didnt know that

• Insects have six legs. Beetles , ants and all
  other insects have three pairs of legs, Counting
  the legs is a sure way of identifying an insect.
  Wood lice, spiders, mites, and centipedes arent
  insects they have far too many legs.
• An insect has three different parts the head,
  the thorax, and the abdomen. A hard outer
  skeleton makes the insect waterproof and protects
  its soft insides.

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I didnt know that

• Beetles can fly. Ladybugs and many other beetles
  can fly when they need to. They open up the wing
  cases on their back, unfold their soft wings, and
  take off!
• Flying insects survive tropical storms because
  the raindrops make a breeze as they fall, which
  blows tiny insects aside. They end up flying in
  between the drops.

4
I didnt know that

• Caterpillars are baby butterflies. Like many
  insects, butterflies change completely as they
  grow from an egg, to a caterpillar, to a pupa,
  to a butterfly. This way of growing is called
  metamorphosis.
• Mayflies spend most of their lives as wingless
  larvae. Once they change into adult mayflies,
  they live for only a day.
  
• Not all insects change as they grow. Baby shield
  bugs look like their parents when they hatch.
  They just get bigger and bigger, and eventually
  grow their wings.

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I didnt know that

• Some bugs can walk on water. Pond skaters are so
  light that they can skim across ponds without
  falling into the water. Hairy tufts on their
  tiny feet help them to stay afloat.
• Dragonflies begin life in the water as creatures
  called nymphs, They will attack small fish and
  tadpoles that are bigger than themselves.

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I didnt know that

• Termite mounds have air conditioning . Termites
  build themselves tall mud towers, where millions
  of insects live. Every tower has a chimney that
  draws up warm air and keeps nest cool.
• Tropical weaver ants build their homes out of
  leaves. Some of the ants hold the leaves
  together. While others stick them with sticky
  glue. The glue comes from larvae the ants carry
  in their jaws.
• Insects that live together are called social
  insects. Ants, termites, bees and wasps are all
  social insects and live in large groups called
  colonies. This is the best way for them to
  survive.

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I didnt know that

• Ants are great farmers. Just as farmers keep
  cows, so some kinds of ants keep aphids. They
  protect them from their enemies, and in return
  the ants milk the aphids for the honeydew they
  suck up.
• Butterflies suck up nectar from flowers through
  a long tongue called proboscis. When they re not
  feeding, they keep it curled up out of the way.

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I didnt know that

• Some insects eat lizards. When a praying mantis
  snaps its spiny legs, its helpless prey is
  trapped inside. Mantises are fierce hunters. Most
  of them eat other insects, but some catch lizards
  and frogs.
• Some tropical moths feed on the salty tears of
  horses and deer. The moths flutter around the
  animals eyes to make them cry!
  
• When the assassin bug catches a tasty meal, it
  injects it with poison. This turns the preys
  body to soup. Then the bug sucks it all up.
  
• Not all mosquitoes suck blood only the females
  do. They need blood to make their eggs. Male
  mosquitoes feed on nectar.

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I didnt know that

• Some leaves are insects. Leaf insects look just
  like the leaves they feed on. They blend in so
  well against the background that their enemies
  often dont see them. This is called camouflage.
• Many animals eat caterpillars, but the hawkmoth
  caterpillar has a clever disguise to frighten its
  enemies away. It looks like a hungry snake!
  
• Camouflage isnt only for defense. The pink
  flower mantis is cleverly hidden inside an orchid
  the better to ambush pray.

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I didnt know that

• Some insects stink. Stinkbugs are the skunks of
  the insect world. When theyre frightened, they
  let out a dreadful smell from tiny holes between
  their legs. This gets rid of enemies fast!
• Gypsy moth caterpillars escape danger by
  dropping down on a line of silk and wafting away
  on the wind.
  
• The weta is a huge insect, with long legs
  covered in spikes. When its caught by a bird,
  the weta kicks all its might, and is usually
  dropped in surprise!
• A bombardier beetle fires at its enemies with a
  boiling hot stream of chemicals. It really stings!

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I didnt know that

• Some bugs glow in the dark. To find a mate,
  female fireflies make a light in their abdomen
  and flash signals to males. They are called
  glowworms.
• An insects feelers arent just for feeling.
  They help it to pick up smells in the air and
  tastes and sounds, too.
  
• When an ant finds some food, it marks the path
  to it with a strong-smelling scent. Other ants
  soon follow the scent and turn up to share a
  feast.

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I didnt know that

• A stick insect is the biggest insect in the
  world. The Indonesian giant stick insect measures
  more than 12 inches from head to toe. Its so
  big that it moves very slowly.
• When Queen Alexandra birdwing butterfly spreads
  its wings, it measures 11 inches from wingtip to
  wingtip. No wonder it is mistaken for a bird.
  
• Its difficult to see real fairy flies they
  are the size of a pin.
  
• Male cicadas are the loudest insects in the
  world. Their clicking noise can be heard by
  females half a mile away.

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TEKS

• Introduction.
• (1) In Grade 3, the study of science includes
  planning and implementing simple classroom and
  field investigations to develop the skills of
  collecting information using tools such as a
  microscope, making inferences, communicating
  conclusions, and making informed decisions.
  Students also use computers and information
  technology tools to support scientific
  investigations.
• (2) As students learn science skills, they
  identify the importance of components of the
  natural world including rocks, soils, water, and
  atmospheric gases. They observe the direction and
  position of objects as they are pushed and
  pulled, and movement of the Earth's surface as
  examples of change caused by a force. Students
  investigate magnetism and gravity. In addition,
  students explore organisms' needs, habitats, and
  competition with other organisms within their
  ecosystem.
• (3) Science is a way of learning about the
  natural world. Students should know how science
  has built a vast body of changing and increasing
  knowledge described by physical, mathematical,
  and conceptual models, and also should know that
  science may not answer all questions.
• (4) A system is a collection of cycles,
  structures, and processes that interact. Students
  should understand a whole in terms of its
  components and how these components relate to
  each other and to the whole. All systems have
  basic properties that can be described in terms
  of space, time, energy, and matter. Change and
  constancy occur in systems and can be observed
  and measured as patterns. These patterns help to
  predict what will happen next and can change over
  time.
• (5) Investigations are used to learn about the
  natural world. Students should understand that
  certain types of questions can be answered by
  investigations, and that methods, models, and
  conclusions built from these investigations
  change as new observations are made. Models of
  objects and events are tools for understanding
  the natural world and can show how systems work.
  They have limitations and based on new
  discoveries are constantly being modified to more
  closely reflect the natural world.
• (3.8) Science concepts. The student knows that
  living organisms need food, water, light, air, a
  way to dispose of waste, and an environment in
  which to live. The student is expected to
• (A) observe and describe the habitats of
  organisms within an ecosystem
  
• (B) observe and identify organisms with similar
  needs that compete with one another for resources
  such as oxygen, water, food, or space
  
• (C) describe environmental changes in which some
  organisms would thrive, become ill, or perish
  and
  
• (D) describe how living organisms modify their
  physical environment to meet their needs such as
  beavers building a dam or humans building a
  home.
• (3.9) Science concepts. The student knows that
  species have different adaptations that help them
  survive and reproduce in their environment. The
  student is expected to
• (A) observe and identify characteristics among
  species that allow each to survive and reproduce
  and
  
• (B) analyze how adaptive characteristics help
  individuals within a species to survive and
  reproduce.

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References

• http//www.insects.org/entophiles.html
• http//www.securitypest.com/images/TWS.jpg
• http//www.terraristik.org/advice/animals/phyllium
  /celebicum.htm
  
• http//www.mooseyscountrygarden.com/gallery/roses.
  html
  
• http//math.uc.edu/chalklr/My20Photos/Wild20Flo
  wers20and20their20Associates/01620stinkbug.jpg
  
  
• http//www.uknature.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/glowworm.
  html