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Vampire Bats, Giant Insects, and Other Mysterious Animals of the Darkest Caves
How does a blind fish find food? Can a giant centipede eat a bat for dinner? Caves are home to unique and bizarre creatures. Cave dwelling animals have found amazing ways to survive in complete darkness. Although the food supply is low and the environment can be toxic, many species thrive in the darkest caves. Author Ana Maria Rodríguez explores these remarkable creatures and how they survive in one of the most extreme environments on Earth.
* Reviews *
An intriguing opening about a blind fish discovered in an underground river by Stephen Bishop in the 1800s immediately hooks the readers on the Extreme Animals in Extreme Environments series. The first chapter sets a good pace as it covers how caves are formed, the various kinds of caves, the formations they hold, and many cave facts. One fact states that 94 percent of all fresh unfrozen water on earth is found in underground caves. Chapter two offers excellent information about what it would be like to live in a cave and chapter three discusses trogloxene animals who live at a caves entrance and troglophile animals who live or sleep in caves but travel outside caves. Readers will be familiar with bat troglophiles and this book will add to their knowledge of how bats hear, what size they can be, how and when they travel, and how they look. All of the fantastic photos enhance the text and allow readers to feel as if they are right inside the caves. One super close-up photo shows two dog-faced bats roosting beside each other. In addition to the dog-faced bats, vampire bats, flying-fox bats, and the bumblebee bat are covered. An explanation about how bats receive echoing signals is given. A hands-on science activity at the back of the book allows readers to understand how caves are formed. Directions for the activity are clear and concise. Add this book to the science shelf in classrooms and libraries., Children's Literature
RL
Grades
5-7 IL
Grades
5-9 GRL
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