Animal Locomotion

Whether they crawl, fly, run, or hitch a ride, animals move around. Animals move to get food, to escape from being another animal’s food, to find mates, to find a home, and to just plain survive. Animals have developed all sorts of different ways to get their rears in gear.

Some animals have wings that let them fly and hover. Other animals have legs, from two to more than 200, to get them walking, galloping, or running. Some animals’ legs are really pumped-up for powerful jumps. Animals also strut, stroll, slither, swim, slime, sprint and squeeze their way around.

So get moving to your TV to watch the “Animal Locomotion” episode. It will get your mind racing… with science.

The Big Ideas

• Animals need to move around to survive.
• Animals get around in different ways.

Did You Know That?

• Three-toed sloths move around at 2 kilometers (1 mile) per hour, making them the slowest mammals on Earth?
• Cheetahs are the fastest runners? They’ve been clocked at 101 kilometers (63 miles) per hour.
• Snakes don’t have arms or legs, but they can still climb trees? They muscle themselves up by using their tough scales to get a grip on the tree’s bark.

Books of Science!

• “Fins to Wings” by William Hemsley. Published by Gloucester Press, 1991.
• “Paws and Claws” by Theresa Greenaway. Published by Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1995.