What's INSight Kids Winter 2013

Š Paul Souders (USA) The water bear

E E R T Y L I M A F O T O H P Using the tree below, complete your family tree. Include a photo of each family member and some information on them; it could be their name or birthdate, their nickname, their favourite food, whatever you like!

Name Birthdate

Nam

e

Birt

hda

te

Na

Name ate Birthd

me

Bir

thd

ate

e Nam te hda Birt me ate thd Bir

Name

Na

Birthd

ate

Na

me

Bir

thd

ate

Name Birthdate

Include special things about your fam ily and ask questions, you never know what you will learn.

Winter 2013

What’s INSight

WORD SEARCH

F L A H R E H T O E H T W DRA

FUN ANIMAL FACTS Some frogs have shoulders that can absorb the shock of landing after a long jump. Remember this warning: When threatened, the Spotted Skunk does a handstand before it sprays.

A strand of spider silk is five times stronger than steel wire of the same thickness. Biologists have recorded 13 species of sharks in BC waters and most live here all year round.

A hummingbird heart can beat more than 1000 times a minute when the bird is active. Lab tests show that Little Brown Bats can eat up to 600 flying mosquitoes per hour. Invertebrates, including insects, make up over 95% of all animal species in the world.

LANDSCAPE

LIGHTING PHOTO

PLANT SCENERY WILDLIFE

EXPLORE

GRAND TITLE WINNER YOUNG WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR Udayan Rao Pawar (India) Mother’s little headful One night, Udayan camped near a nesting colony of gharials on the banks of the Chambal River – two groups of them, each with more than 100 hatchlings. Before daybreak, he crept down and hid behind rocks beside the babies. “I could hear them making little grunting sounds,” says Udayan. “Very soon a large female surfaced near the shore, checking on her charges. Some of the hatchlings swam to her and climbed onto her head. Perhaps it made them feel safe.” It turned out that she was the chief female of the group, looking after all the hatchlings. Though he saw a few more females and a male, they never came close.

Greater Victoria Public Library Picks Check out these BC-themed books at your local library. www.gvpl.ca

CAMERA CAPTURE

EXPOSURE

The Kids’ Guide to Digital Photography:

Uncaged Costa Rica, Galapagos and More

How to Shoot, Save, Play with & Print your Digital Photos

(DVD - 2012)

Extraordinary Endangered Animals

By Jenni Bidner

Wolves

By Sandrine Silhol

(Book - 2004)

By Emily K. Green

(Book - 2011)

(Book – 2011)

Animal Atlas Family Time (DVD - 2011)

Gharials were once found in rivers all over the Indian subcontinent. Today, just 200 or so breeding adults remain in just 2 per cent of the former range.

“The Chambal River is the gharial’s last stronghold,” says Udayan, “but is threatened by illegal sand-mining and fishing.”