edHelper.com Animal Themes Animal and Biomes Basics Theme Unit

Camouflage

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Camouflage
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 4 to 8
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	8.66

Vocabulary

challenging words:

ambush, assault, creativity, dorsal, successful, combat, sediment, mission, easily, predator, spine, attack, flick, launch, superior, terrain

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Camouflage

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¹     Have you ever seen marines on a combat mission? They often wear camouflage clothing so they can stay out of their enemy's sight and launch a successful attack! In the world of nature, many animals have perfected their disguise skills, and their creativity - as far as camouflage is concerned - is far superior to a marine's uniform. Are you curious to know how innovative animals can be? Here are some examples:

• Leaf butterflies have a pair of brown wings with markings mimicking leaf stalks and veins. When they rest on a tree branch, they fold their wings upright over their backs. To the eyes of a potential predator, such as a bird, leaf butterflies look just like real leaves on a tree!
  
  
• Anglers like to rest their broad, flat bodies on the seabed because their dark skin color is the same shade as that of the sediment. Anglers wiggle their first dorsal spine to look like a worm. When an unsuspicious fish swims near to eat the "worm", anglers swallow it so quickly that the poor fish doesn't even have time to recount what has just happened!
  
  
• Chameleons can change their colors to match their surroundings or to reflect their mood in under five minutes! With a flick of their long, sticky-tipped tongues, chameleons strike before their victim sees where the assault came from!
  
  
• Up in the north, Arctic foxes manage to change their fur coats twice a year. They put on their white outfits during the winter months, so their prey cannot easily spot them in a terrain covered with snow and ice. When spring arrives and snow melts to give way to thriving plants, Arctic foxes change to their brownish gray fur coats to camouflage them against the summer landscape.

²     It's always amazing to learn how animals have grown to adapt to their natural environments. Ultimately, animals put on disguises for one of two reasons - either to avoid being seen by their enemies or to launch a successful ambush!

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