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Short Summary of the Chapter: Desert Animals
The chapter Desert Animals explains how animals survive in deserts. Deserts are the driest places on Earth. Sometimes, it does not rain for months or even years. But animals still cannot live without water, so they find smart ways to survive. For example, gerbils stay in cool underground burrows. Darkling beetles catch drops of moisture on their legs and drink it.
There are more than 2300 kinds of snakes in the world. Most snakes are harmless, but some are poisonous. In the dry deserts of America, there lives a snake called the rattlesnake or rattler. It makes a rattling sound when disturbed. It cannot hear sounds but can feel ground vibrations. Rattlesnakes eat small animals like mice, voles, and chipmunks. They kill their prey with venom.
Mongooses are found in Africa. They live in groups of about twenty. They hunt together and stay alert to avoid danger from hawks, eagles, and snakes. Mongooses are very fast and can kill snakes without getting hurt. All the female mongooses have their babies at the same time. The group looks after the babies together.
Another desert animal is the camel. Camels were first tamed by humans many thousands of years ago. Wild camels live in small groups of up to thirty. Camels have thick coats in winter and thin coats in summer. A thirsty camel can drink thirty gallons of water in just ten minutes. Normally, they get moisture from plants and can live for ten months without drinking water.
There are two kinds of camels: the Dromedary with one hump and the Bactrian with two humps. Their humps store fat, not water, which gives them energy when food is not available. Their mouths are very tough and can eat even thorny plants.
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Detailed Summary of the Chapter : Desert Animals
Life in the Desert : Deserts are the driest places on Earth. Sometimes, they do not get rain for months or even years. But still, desert animals cannot survive without water for too long. They have found different ways to live in harsh conditions.
For example, gerbils stay in cool underground burrows during the hottest part of the day. Darkling beetles catch drops of moisture on their legs and lift them into their mouths. Not all deserts are full of only sand dunes. Some have rocks, pebbles, bushes, and even colourful flowers during spring.
Different Types of Snakes: There are more than 2300 types of snakes around the world. Their size ranges from fifteen centimetres to more than eleven metres long. Most snakes are harmless, but a few are very poisonous and can kill humans with just one bite. Many snakes lay eggs, while some give birth to babies.
The Rattlesnake: In the dry deserts of America, there lives a snake called the rattlesnake or rattler. It looks scary and has a bad reputation. Its rattle sound can be heard up to thirty metres away. It uses this sound to warn intruders. The rattlesnake cannot hear the sound itself because it hears through vibrations in the ground, not through ears.
If a person walks nearby, the snake can feel the movement but cannot hear if the person shouts. Rattlesnakes are found all across America, from Canada to Argentina. They feed on mice, voles, rats, chipmunks, and other small animals. They kill prey with venom and swallow it whole. Most snakes eat only once a week, and some like pythons can live for a year without food.
The Brave Mongooses: Mongooses are very active animals. They hunt together in groups of about twenty. They poke their noses into holes, scratch the ground with their sharp claws, and overturn rocks to find insects like beetles and millipedes.
They stay in touch by twittering and calling, especially when hidden behind rocks or bushes. They stay alert for predators like hawks, eagles, and snakes and warn each other with alarm calls.
Mongooses and Snakes: Mongooses are famous for killing snakes. They have quick movements and can dodge every time the snake strikes.
They keep troubling the snake until it gets tired. Then they quickly kill it. All the female mongooses give birth at the same time. Their babies, called kittens, are raised together by the group. One or two male mongooses stay behind to guard the young ones when the others go to find food.
Camels: The Ship of the Desert: Another important desert animal is the camel. People tamed camels thousands of years ago. Wild camels live in groups of up to thirty animals. Camels have long, shaggy coats in winter to stay warm and shorter coats in summer to stay cool.
A thirsty camel can drink up to thirty gallons of water (about five hundred glasses) in just ten minutes! But usually, they get water from desert plants and can survive for ten months without drinking water.
Types of Camels and Their Humps: There are two types of camels. The Dromedary camel has one hump, and the Bactrian camel has two humps. Many people think that humps store water, but that is wrong.
The humps actually store fat, which gives camels energy when there is no food. When a camel does not eat for days, its humps get smaller as the fat is used. Also, camels have very tough mouths, so they can eat even sharp thorny plants without getting hurt.
Pointwise Summary of the Chapter : Desert Animals
1. Deserts are the driest places on Earth and can go months or years without rain.
2. Desert animals like gerbils and darkling beetles have special ways to survive without much water.
3. There are over 2300 types of snakes, and most of them are harmless.
4. The rattlesnake from America uses its rattle to scare away intruders but cannot hear its own sound.
5. Rattlesnakes feel vibrations through the ground and eat small animals like mice and rats.
6. Mongooses live in groups of about twenty and hunt together while staying alert for predators.
7. Mongooses are quick and brave enough to kill snakes without getting hurt.
8. All female mongooses have babies at the same time, and the whole group helps raise them.
9. Camels can drink thirty gallons of water in ten minutes and live for ten months without drinking.
10. Dromedary camels have one hump, and Bactrian camels have two humps, which store fat for energy.