Welcome to part of our Southern Hemisphere animal lesson. If you have not yet checked out the Northern Hemisphere animal vocabulary lessons click here to check out part 1 and part 2.
SNAKE – a long limbless reptile. The snake does not have legs or arm and moves using its whole scaled body. Snakes are known for their big jaws that can expend to consume larger prey. Some snakes are venomous.
TURTLE – a marine reptile with a large bony shell on the back. Turtles have flippers and live water coming ashore just to lay eggs. Fun fact! The shell of the turtle is not just attached to the top of the animal’s body and cannot be removed, it is in fact part of the turtle’s spine.
FROG – a small usually green or brown amphibian which has long strong back legs made for making big leaps. Frogs have long tongues used for hunting insects, they can be rolled out at great speed and then the prey sticks to it. Tropical frogs can come in a variety of colours and not necessarily be green or brown, these colours include yellow, blue and orange.
CHAMELEON – a slow-moving lizard, which has a long tongue for catching pray and highly rotatable eyes. Chameleon uses its advanced ability to change and adapt colours in order to survive and be unrecognizable by its prey.
CRAB – a small animal that has a strong shelf and five pairs of legs with the first being pincers. Crabs use their pincers to hunt food, fight with other crabs and protect themselves from predators. Usually found living on seashores.
OCTOPUS – a large mollusc which has eight limbs, all with suction features. Octopuses have jaws but no internal shell and can considered quite squishy.
STARFISH – a small invertebrate which usually has five protruding limbs considered its arms but can have more. The starfish uses tiny feet-like structures located under its arms to move and hunt prey. They can open shells of molluscs by using their arms.
SHARK – a large predatory fish. Sharks have grey skin and strong cartilaginous fins, their teeth are incredibly shark and helps them hunt. Sharks are often portrayed as swimming by the surface with their fin above the water, but they can often be found in deeper water. Fun fact! Larger types of sharks do not need to hunt fish or mammals to survive, they can feed on plankton.
MOUSE – a small rodent that has thick fur, big rounded ears and a log tail. Fun fact! The plural of mouse is mice.
MOLE – a tiny mammal that has black fur, long snout, small eyes and powerful claws to dig through the ground and make tunnels. Moles are considered predatory and feed on invertebrates such as worms. Fun fact! Although popularly considered blind moles actually have eyes and can see but poorly and would rather rely on hearing and smell.
CAPYBARA – a largest living rodent that resides in the continent of South America. Capybaras live in groups near water and are considered one of the friendliest species of animals as they do not pose threat to anyone and are generally not preyed upon by predators.
GUINEA PIG – a small rodent originated in South America. Although originally grown for food it now solely is raised for domestication or experimentation. Guinea pigs can no longer be found in the wild and have to be bred.
LADYBUG – a small insect with a rounded back. Ladybugs are recognized by their signature spotted look. Although usually found spotting the combination of black and red, ladybugs can also be black and yellow. Fun fact! Ladybugs are called that in America, but in the countries using the British English standard it is referred to as a ladybird. Want to learn more about differences between American English and British English? Subscribe to our weekly lessons!
BEE – a community insect which is recognized by it’s yellow and black stripes. Bees collect pollen and nectar from which they produce wax and honey, both widely used by humans. Bees are greatly responsible for plant pollination and nature preservation.
BUTTERFLY – a varying size insect which has large colourful wings. There are many different types of butterflies and they can be small, medium or large. Each breed has different patterns and colours by which their wings are marked. Butterflies are born from eggs, then they become caterpillar that make themselves into chrysalis that finally turns into a butterfly.
SPIDER – a predatory arachnid which makes webs for catching other insects. There are many types and breeds of spiders but they all have eight legs. Spiders have fangs which can squirt poison and are used to inject prey before consumption.
SNAIL – a small mollusc which lives in a shell. The shell is attached the back of the snail and can actually be removed as it is not part of the spine of the snail (which snail does not have). Snails have expendable eyes that can be retracted for protection, additionally the whole body can retract into the shell when in danger.
BAT – a nocturnal mouse-like mammal that can fly using its skin wings. Unlike birds, bats do not have feathers but they are able to fly. Also, bats rap themselves in their wings and hang upside down from branches or rocks when resting.
FLY – a fly is a tiny insect which can fly. There are many different types of flies but they all have hard-structured eyes that allow them to see a wide range of colours and a variety of angles at the same time.
DRAGONFLY – a large insect, which has wings, long body and colourful scales.
Feel ready to put your newly acquired knowledge to the test? Click here to take our Southern Hemisphere animal vocabulary test.
Want to practice a little longer? Check out our Southern Hemisphere Animals part 1 by clicking here.