Every living thing needs a home
A habitat is the place where a plant or animal lives. It gives the living thing everything it needs: food, water, air, shelter and space. Different animals and plants live in different habitats because they need different things.
Forests
A forest is full of trees. Forests can be cool or warm.
- Animals: deer, squirrels, owls, bears, woodpeckers
- Plants: maple, oak and pine trees, ferns, moss
- Trees give animals food (nuts, leaves) and shelter (holes in trunks, branches for nests).
Deserts
A desert is very dry. It may be very hot in the day and cold at night.
- Animals: camels, lizards, snakes, scorpions, roadrunners
- Plants: cactuses, small shrubs
- Desert animals often hide underground during the hot day and come out at night. Cactuses store water in their thick stems.
Oceans
The ocean is a giant body of salty water. It covers most of Earth!
- Animals: whales, dolphins, fish, sharks, octopuses, sea turtles, crabs
- Plants and plant-like living things: seaweed, kelp
- Fish breathe with gills. Whales and dolphins come up to the surface to breathe air.
Ponds, lakes and rivers
A pond is a small body of still fresh water. Fresh water isn’t salty.
- Animals: frogs, ducks, turtles, dragonflies, fish, beavers
- Plants: water lilies, cattails, duckweed
- Frogs lay eggs in ponds. Ducks have webbed feet for paddling.
The Arctic
The Arctic is the very cold land and ocean near the North Pole. It is covered in snow and ice for much of the year.
- Animals: polar bears, Arctic foxes, seals, walruses, snowy owls
- Plants: low mosses and small flowers that grow in the short summer
- Arctic animals have thick fur or fat to stay warm. Many are white to blend in with the snow.
Grasslands
Grasslands are wide, open spaces covered with grass and few trees. On the prairies, you can find bison, prairie dogs, hawks and many kinds of grasses and wildflowers.
Comparing habitats
| Habitat | Weather | Animal | Plant |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forest | Cool to warm, rainy | Deer | Oak tree |
| Desert | Dry, often hot | Camel | Cactus |
| Ocean | Salty water | Whale | Kelp |
| Pond | Fresh water | Frog | Water lily |
| Arctic | Very cold, icy | Polar bear | Moss |
| Grassland | Sunny, windy | Bison | Grass |
Animals fit their habitats
Animals have body parts that help them live where they do. A polar bear wouldn’t do well in a desert, and a camel wouldn’t do well in the ocean! When a habitat is damaged, by pollution or by cutting down trees, the animals that live there can lose their homes.
Helping habitats
You can help:
- Pick up litter.
- Plant native flowers for bees and butterflies.
- Put up a bird feeder or birdhouse.
- Stay on trails so you don’t trample plants.
Common mistakes
- Thinking all deserts are hot and sandy. Some deserts are cold and rocky. Antarctica is the largest desert in the world.
- Thinking whales are fish. Whales live in the ocean but breathe air.
Try it yourself
- Pick a habitat. Draw it and add three animals and two plants that live there.
- Go outside and find a tiny habitat, like under a log or in a patch of grass. What lives there?
Quick recap
- A habitat is where a living thing lives and gets what it needs.
- Forests, deserts, oceans, ponds, the Arctic and grasslands are all habitats.
- Plants and animals have body parts that help them live in their habitats.
- Damaging a habitat hurts the living things in it.
- We can help protect habitats.