Nocturnal Animals
Know that nocturnal animals are active mostly at night and often rest by day. Examples include barn owls, bats, hedgehogs and fennec foxes. Large eyes, sensitive hearing or whiskers can help animals find food and move around at night.
What a learner can do afterwards
- Explains that nocturnal means active mostly at night
- Names at least 3 nocturnal examples, such as a barn owl, a bat and a hedgehog
- Describes one feature that helps a nocturnal animal (e.g., big eyes, echolocation, whiskers)
1 · Read
Nocturnal means active mostly at night. Nocturnal animals often rest by day. This is their usual pattern, not what they must do at every moment. To learn an animal's pattern, check when it is active over several days and nights. Seeing it awake once is not enough.
Barn owls, many bats, hedgehogs and fennec foxes are nocturnal. They usually look for food at night and often rest by day. A barn owl may hunt mice. Robins and roosters are usually active by day. Some owl kinds have a different usual pattern: they are active mostly by day. To count examples in a group, name each one once.
Large eyes help owls and tarsiers take in light and see in dim light. Eyes need some light to see. Fennec foxes are nocturnal: active mostly at night. Their large outer ears help them hear quiet sounds from animals they may eat. A rat's whiskers help it feel nearby objects. Eyes see, ears hear and whiskers help with touch.
Many bats find insects using echoes. A bat makes a sound. The sound bounces off an insect or another object. The bat hears the returning echo. This helps it find objects in the dark. Using echoes this way is called echolocation. Bats also have eyes. Using echoes does not mean they are blind.
Owls call to communicate with other owls. A hoot tells you the owl is awake and calling. The sound alone does not tell you when it woke up or whether it is hunting.
Activity notes record when an animal was seen and what it was doing. Feeding or moving shows activity. Resting does not show activity. To count notes showing night activity, check both parts of each note. Count it only if it says night and describes activity.
Nocturnal animals are active mostly at night. Eyes, ears, whiskers and, for many bats, echoes help them find food or move around.
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More to read
What an owl's call tells you
An owl's hoot is a call to other owls. Hearing it tells you the owl is awake and calling. It does not tell you when the owl woke up or whether it has caught food. Barn owls usually hunt at night, but other kinds of owls may be active by day. Knowing the kind of owl helps you learn about its pattern.
A sound that comes back
Many bats use echoes to find insects at night. A bat makes a sound. When the sound meets an insect, some of it bounces back. The bat hears the echo and uses it to help locate the insect. This is called echolocation. Eyes use light, while echolocation uses sound. Bats also have eyes.
Look for a usual pattern
A hedgehog may look for food while people sleep. A nocturnal animal can also be awake at other times. One daytime sighting does not tell us its whole pattern. To learn more, check when the animal is active across several days and nights. An animal book can help. Ask an adult to read with you rather than going outside alone at night.
2 · Watch
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