What Animals Eat
FoundationAnimals get energy by eating — for growing, moving and reproducing; when weather changes or danger comes, they react to protect themselves.
- Animals get energy by eating.
- Energy is used for growing and repairing, moving and reproducing.
- Animals are herbivores, carnivores or omnivores.
文體小知識：說明文把知識講得清清楚楚。這一篇看看動物吃什麼、為什麼要吃，以及牠們怎樣應對危險和天氣變化。
§Text Passage
1Early in the morning the park is busy: sparrows peck at breadcrumbs, butterflies sip nectar by the flowers, and after morning exercise with its owner, a puppy goes home and gulps down its dog food. Like us, animals must eat every day. Food is their source of energy; without it they can do nothing at all.
2Why eat? Because food gives animals energy. They use energy to grow and develop, raising their small bodies day by day; to run, jump, swim and fly; to repair the body when hurt; and later to reproduce the next generation. Eating is how animals refuel — just like a car that needs petrol before it can go.
3Different animals eat different things: cattle and sheep lower their heads to graze — they are herbivores; lions and eagles hunt other animals — they are carnivores; sparrows eat grains and seeds as well as little insects, and we humans eat rice, meat and vegetables too — such animals are omnivores. Different foods carry different nutrients.
4Animals are also very sensitive to changes around them. When the weather is too hot, cattle rest in the shade and dogs stick out their tongues and pant to cool down; when danger comes, such as an enemy drawing near, sparrows flap away at once and turtles pull their heads and legs inside their shells. These reactions help animals avoid danger and survive.
5Next time in the park or the countryside, quietly watch how animals find food and cope with change, and you will see how clever they are. Remember: watch from a distance, never feed, disturb or touch wild animals, be a polite little observer, and write down the interesting behaviours you see.
1Summary 重點摘要
Animals get energy by eating — for growing, moving and reproducing; when weather changes or danger comes, they react to protect themselves.
2Vocabulary cards Vocabulary
The power to do things; animals get it from food.
To eat food for energy and nutrients.
An animal that eats plants, such as cattle and sheep.
An animal that hunts other animals, such as lions and eagles.
An animal that eats both plants and animals, such as sparrows and people.
To heal the body after injury; it needs energy and nutrients.
Something that may hurt an animal, such as an enemy coming near.
An action taken when temperature changes or danger appears, such as flying away or hiding.
The cool spot under a tree where animals rest when hot.
To stay alive by avoiding danger and finding food.
3Step by step Steps
- Step 1: Know why animals eatRunning, jumping, growing — animals use up energy all day, and energy comes from food. Eating is like refuelling the body: food is digested into nutrients and sent all around the body. With energy, animals can grow, move and keep warm; when hurt, the body needs energy and nutrients for repair; when grown up, they need energy to reproduce the next generation. So feeding is the top business of survival — after days without food the body grows weaker and weaker.
- Step 2: Meet the herbivoresHerbivores eat plants as their main food: cattle and sheep graze with heads down on the grassland, rabbits nibble carrots and leafy greens, and giraffes stretch their long necks for tender leaves. Their teeth are mostly flat and broad, good for grinding grass and leaves, and their stomachs are especially long to digest rough plant fibre. On Hong Kong farms you can watch cattle and goats chewing non-stop as they eat — that is them grinding the grass again and again to draw out the nutrients.
- Step 3: Meet the carnivores and omnivoresCarnivores hunt other animals: lions chase antelopes, eagles swoop from the sky to catch small animals, and frogs flick out long tongues to grab insects. Most have sharp teeth and sharp eyes for hunting. Omnivores eat both plants and animals: sparrows peck grains and seeds as well as catching little insects, and people eat rice, meat and vegetables. These different diets come from long adaptation, letting each kind of animal find its own suitable source of food.
- Step 4: Watch how animals find foodAnimals stay busy over food all day: squirrels climb trees for fruit and hide the extra in tree holes; bees dart among flowers gathering nectar; a cat waits silently at the edge of the bushes, then pounces the moment a mouse appears. Watch quietly and from a distance, using your eyes and your notebook: What does it eat? How does it get the food? How long does it take? You will find every animal has its own way of finding food — the secret of surviving in nature.
- Step 5: How animals react to temperature changesWhen weather changes, animals react to adjust themselves. In hot weather dogs stick out their tongues and breathe fast, because unlike people they cannot sweat all over and must cool down through the tongue; cattle and deer move into the shade or rest by water; birds hide among dense leaves away from the fierce sun. In cold weather cats curl up to keep the heat in, and rabbits press their ears against their bodies. Watch the pets and birds around you: when weather shifts, behaviour shifts too.
- Step 6: How animals react to dangerFacing danger, animals react quickly and cleverly: a sparrow pecking on the ground flies up to a branch the moment it hears footsteps or a clap; a turtle pulls head and legs inside its hard shell; a gecko drops its tail to distract the enemy and grows a new one later; a chameleon even changes its body colour to blend into the background. These skills are life-saving tricks won through long ages of evolution. When observing, never frighten them, and never harm them.
5Worked example Example
Example: a cat, a cow and a sparrow are each finding food in the estate park. What do they eat? Suddenly someone claps loudly — how do they react?
- The cow lowers its head to graze: as a herbivore it eats grass, which gives energy for moving, growing and repairing its body.
- The cat pounces quietly on insects and small birds in the bushes: as a carnivore it gets energy from other small animals.
- The sparrow hops about pecking seeds and breadcrumbs: it eats both grains and little insects, so it is an omnivore.
- The loud clap: the sparrow whisks up to a tree, the cat arches its back and leaps away, and the cow strolls into the shade — these are responses to stimuli that help them avoid danger.
- Answer: The cat eats small animals, the cow eats grass and the sparrow eats seeds and insects; animals eat to gain energy for growing, moving, repairing and reproducing. When danger or a sudden stimulus comes, they fly away, leap off or move into the shade — reacting to protect themselves.
6Common mistakes Mistakes
7Quick check Quick check
Q1How do animals get energy?
Q2What do we call animals that eat grass?
Q3Name three things animals use energy for.
Q4How does a dog cool down in hot weather?
Q5What does a sparrow do when an enemy comes near?
8Recap Recap
- Animals get energy by eating.
- Energy is used for growing and repairing, moving and reproducing.
- Animals are herbivores, carnivores or omnivores.
- Animals react to temperature changes and danger.
- Watch animals quietly from a distance; never feed or disturb.