The most important thing about the fox’swinter coat is that it keeps the animal warm. With its extra thick fur coat -- and bushy tail to wrap around its body -- the arctic fox is better at holding onto its body heat than nearly any other aquatic animal. But their fur does more than just give them warmth. Their white coat also camouflages them, or helps them blend in with their surroundings. Blending in with the snow lets the foxes sneak up on their prey, like arctic hares and small birds. And it also helps them hide from bigger animals that might want to sneak up on /them/. But when the seasons change, so do their coats!
In the summer, arctic foxes shed their white coats and grow new ones that are brown or gray, to blend in with their surroundings/after/ the snow is gone. Now, things can get tricky for the arctic fox, because one of the animals that it likes to eat -- the arctic hare -- uses some of the same tricks to survive the winter! Arctic hares also live—you guessed it! —in the arctic, mostly in forests. And like the foxes, they have thick white coats of fur to keep them warm, plus pads of thick hair on the bottoms of their feet. Now, some arctic hares live further south, where there’s less snow. So they actually grow darker coats that help them blend in in /those/ environments, where there are more
Rocks and plants than there is snow. No matter where they live, though, arctic hares like to keep their fur clean. So they groom themselves like cats do, by licking their fur. The cleaner their fur is, the warmer it keeps them! Our last animal with a winter coat doesn’thave fur at all. it’s a bird! Called a ptarmigan. The ptarmigan lives in the arctic, too, and it can often be found hiding in bushes or behind rocks to avoid predators. They have feathers that change from brown in the summer to white in the winter to help camouflage them from bigger animals.
Their soft, fluffy feathers are pressed close to their skin, trapping in their body heat, and keeping the birds toasty warm in the snow. They also have extra feathers on their legs and feet to help keep them warm. And ptarmigans have other ways of staying warm in the winter, too. Sometimes, they’ll fly straight into a pocket of the powdery snow -- this makes a little burrow, or tunnel, in the snow that they can snuggle up in. Kind of like … the fort! Whether it’s extra-thick fur to help keep them warm, or white hair and feathers keep them out of sight, when it comes to living in winter, these arctic animals have it covered!
Thanks for learning about them with us! And remember, if you have a question about anything you’d like to learn more about, just let us know by getting help from a parent, and leaving a comment below or emailing us atkids@thescishow.com. we’ll see you next time!
In the summer, arctic foxes shed their white coats and grow new ones that are brown or gray, to blend in with their surroundings/after/ the snow is gone. Now, things can get tricky for the arctic fox, because one of the animals that it likes to eat -- the arctic hare -- uses some of the same tricks to survive the winter! Arctic hares also live—you guessed it! —in the arctic, mostly in forests. And like the foxes, they have thick white coats of fur to keep them warm, plus pads of thick hair on the bottoms of their feet. Now, some arctic hares live further south, where there’s less snow. So they actually grow darker coats that help them blend in in /those/ environments, where there are more
Rocks and plants than there is snow. No matter where they live, though, arctic hares like to keep their fur clean. So they groom themselves like cats do, by licking their fur. The cleaner their fur is, the warmer it keeps them! Our last animal with a winter coat doesn’thave fur at all. it’s a bird! Called a ptarmigan. The ptarmigan lives in the arctic, too, and it can often be found hiding in bushes or behind rocks to avoid predators. They have feathers that change from brown in the summer to white in the winter to help camouflage them from bigger animals.
Their soft, fluffy feathers are pressed close to their skin, trapping in their body heat, and keeping the birds toasty warm in the snow. They also have extra feathers on their legs and feet to help keep them warm. And ptarmigans have other ways of staying warm in the winter, too. Sometimes, they’ll fly straight into a pocket of the powdery snow -- this makes a little burrow, or tunnel, in the snow that they can snuggle up in. Kind of like … the fort! Whether it’s extra-thick fur to help keep them warm, or white hair and feathers keep them out of sight, when it comes to living in winter, these arctic animals have it covered!
Thanks for learning about them with us! And remember, if you have a question about anything you’d like to learn more about, just let us know by getting help from a parent, and leaving a comment below or emailing us atkids@thescishow.com. we’ll see you next time!
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