Unit: Endangered Species
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Worksheet 1 - Ants and their Tracks |
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| Ants are amazing
creatures and can be found all over the world in their millions. They live in communities,
each having their own part to play. Some Queen ants lay eggs constantly. These hatch into
helpless babies called larvae. Sometimes, you will find the larvae being carried in ant
trails along with food. Now, with some friends, imagine you are part of an ant trail. Copy the actions of the ants as they wander backwards and forwards from their nest. Show your teacher your "Ant-Antics". |
 Look for ants and
their tracks. Watch closely for as long as you can. Some interesting things will be going
on.
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 Believe it or not! Ants can carry up to 40 times their own weight! Imagine an ant the size of a person. What do you think it could carry? |
Ant heat Did you know that ants need to warm the eggs and larvae in their underground nests? Why do you think carrying pebbles in and out of their nest can help this? |
So many different kinds Some ants are so tiny they can fit on the head of a pin. Other ants are as large as a big toe! Some desert ants feed enormous amounts of nectar to other members of the colony whose abdomens swell and turn into living storage pots! How many different types of ants can you find? Draw a picture of each one you see or describe them. |
Ants, the busy cleaners All day, millions of ants clean up the bush, removing dead animals and plants and take them back to their burrows where they eat them and help return the natural substances back to earth. Draw a picture of what life would be like in the bush without ants.
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Watching and waiting Many ants rely on the smell of other ants to help guide them. Try putting a piece of bark gently across an ant trail. Stand back and watch. Draw a picture of what the ants do now. Don't forget to remove the bark later. |
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