Animals and Insects

Why are honey bees important?

Do you run away when you hear a bee buzzing? Many people do.
A bee sting hurts and some people are allergic to bee venom. But
did you know that bees are very important to humans? Honeybees
do more than just make honey. They fly around
and pollinate flowers, plants, and trees. Our fruits, nuts, and
vegetables rely on these pollinators. One third of the United
States of America's food supply is pollinated by the honeybee.
Have you seen or heard a honeybee lately? Bees are
mysteriously disappearing in many parts of the world. Most
people don't know about this problem. It is called
"colony collapse disorder" (CCD). Some North American
beekeepers lost 80% of their hives from 2006-2008. Bees in Italy
and Australia are disappearing too.
The disappearance of the honeybee is a serious problem. Can you
imagine never eating another strawberry? What about Nutella?
Donating money to research is the most important thing humans
can do to save the honeybee. Scientists need money
to investigate the causes of Colony Collapse Disorder. Some
scientists blame CCD on climate change. Others think pesticides
are killing the bees. Commercial bee migration may also cause
CCD. Beekeepers transport their hives from place to place in
order to pollinate plants year round.
Not everyone has money to donate regularly. There are other
ways to help the honeybee. Spread the word by telling your
friends and family about the problem. 
 The life cycle of a butterfly.
Butterflies are some of the most interesting insects on the planet Earth. There
are more than seventeen thousand different kinds of butterflies! Butterflies
come in all shapes and sizes.
Butterflies go through four main stages of life. The first stage is the egg stage
followed by the larva stage. As a larva, or caterpillar, the future butterfly eats
as much as possible. As it grows, it sheds it outer skin, or exoskeleton. This
may happen four or five times. After a few weeks, the caterpillar enters the
next stage of its life, the chrysalis stage. In the chrysalis, the caterpillar will
liquefy into a soup of living cells. Then, it will reorganize into a butterfly and
the metamorphosis is complete.

When the butterfly emerges from the chrysalis, it pumps its wings to send
blood through them so that it can fly. Most butterflies only live a couple of
weeks, just enough time to drink flower nectar and to mate. Some, like the
Monarch Butterfly, however, may live many months.
 Gorillas

Gorillas are big and strong. Male gorillas are about as tall as a man is. They may weigh even more than a man
weighs. Their faces may look mean, but gorillas are very shy and gentle animals. They eat mostly plants. To scare
their enemies, they may pound on their chests. They may throw sticks at them. If that doesn't work, the gorilla runs
away.
Gorillas live in the forests of Africa. They are the largest of the great ape family. They have dark brown or black
hair covering most parts of their bodies. Their heads are very large. Males are often twice as big as females.
Gorillas' arms are longer than their legs. They walk on their feet, leaning forward on the knuckles of their hands.
Their hands carry most of their body weight.
Gorillas spend their days getting food. They eat leaves, fruits, and seeds. They eat tree bark and roots. Sometimes
gorillas eat ants and other insects, too. Each night, each gorilla uses leaves to build its own nest. The nest may be on
the ground or in a tree. That is where the gorilla sleeps.
 The two pandas
Panda is the name for two nocturnal Asian mammals: the red panda and the giant panda. The red panda, also known as
lesser panda and cat bear, is found at high elevations in the Himalayas. It resembles a raccoon but has a longer body and
tail and a more rounded head. Its thick fur is rust color to deep chestnut, with black on the under parts, limbs, and ears.
The red panda spends much of its time in trees but feeds on the ground, eating primarily bamboo leaves but also fruit and
roots. The giant panda superficially resembles a bear. The body is chiefly white, and the limbs are brownish black, with
the dark color extending up over the shoulder. The ears and eye patches are black. Giant pandas live in restricted areas of
the high mountain bamboo forests of central China; their diet consists entirely of bamboo shoots. Giant pandas are
protected by law in China.
 Hippopotamus
They are mostly found on the continent of Africa. Hippopotamus live to
between 40 and 50 years. It is a large semi-aquatic mammal that is
found wallowing in the rivers and lakes across sub-Saharan Africa.
There are two hippo species: The Common Hippopotamus and
the Pygmy Hippopotamus.
Hippos have huge grey barrel-shaped bodies that can measure more
than 16 feet in length and weigh more than or over 3628 kg. Their
bodies are held up by short and stocky legs.
Their eyes, ears, and nostrils are on top of their head, so when the
Hippo's body is immersed in the water, they are still able to see, hear
and breath while keeping cool in the hot sun.
They spend up to 18 hours a day in the water to keep cool, but at night,
they travel onto land and follow paths to their feeding grounds, and
later in the morning, return to the water. The hippo is one of the largest
and most feared animals in Africa as both the males and females are
known to be extremely aggressive at times. They usually live in small
herds containing between 10 and 20 individuals.
The hippopotamus is an herbivorous animal surviving on a vegetarian
diet despite their long and sharp teeth. Grasses are their main source of
food. Despite its large size, the Hippopotamus only eats around 40 kg of
food at night as it uses very little energy while floating in the water for
most of the day. The hippopotamus is a unique animal, and despite its
large size, the hippo is much faster than most people realize, and it can
run at speeds of up to 30 miles per hour.
 From today’s animals…

•The hippo is the largest

•The bee is the smallest
•The caterpillar sleeps the most
•The butterfly is the most beautiful
•Hippopotamus’ are the ugliest
•Pandas and gorillas are the friendliest
•Hippopotamus are the most aggressive.