KnowledgeMadeFun, home

Lesson · Grade 1 · Science

Hiding and Copying: How Insects Stay Safe

  • Grade 1
  • Science
  • 56 s
  • British Columbia
  • BC1-SC-06

A hungry bird searches a branch full of twigs and flies right past a stick insect, which looks like a twig and keeps very still, so hiding like this is called camouflage. Then a fly with the same yellow and black stripes as a stinging bee makes the bird stay away, which shows that copying another animal is called mimicry.

Concept: Hiding and copying: camouflage and mimicry

Anyone can watch two lessons on the website without an account. Signing in is free, no payment and no card, and opens three a day; Plus has no limit.

Loading

Share to Google Classroom

In one sentence

The question this lesson answers

How do insects stay safe from hungry birds?

Can you spot the insect on these twigs?

Transcript

What the lesson says

How do insects stay safe from hungry birds?

Can you spot the insect on these twigs?

Here it is! It is a stick insect.

It looks like a twig and keeps very still.

The bird does not see it. It is hiding!

Hiding like this is called camouflage.

This bee can sting, so birds often stay away.

This fly cannot sting, but it looks like a bee!

It has yellow and black stripes, just like the bee.

The fly is copying the bee. The bird stays away.

Copying like this is called mimicry.

Some insects stay safe by hiding or copying.

Curriculum

Where this fits

British Columbia, Grade 1

Science, Biology: behavioural adaptations of animals in the local environmentBC1-SC-06

Previous: Getting Through Winter: Hibernate, Rest or MigrateNext: Plants Grow Toward the Light

The outcomes and strands follow the British Columbia curriculum.

Keep going

More on this topic