Vampire Bats, Giant Insects, and Other Mysterious Animals of the Darkest Caves

by Ana Maria Rodriguez

Overview

How does a blind fish find food? Can a giant centipede eat a bat for dinner? Caves are home to unique and bizarre creatures. Cave dwelling animals have found amazing ways to survive in complete darkness. Although the food supply is low and the environment can be toxic, many species thrive in the darkest caves. Author Ana Maria Rodríguez explores these remarkable creatures and how they survive in one of the most extreme environments on Earth.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780766036987
Publisher:	Enslow Publishing, LLC
Publication date:	01/16/2012
Series:	Extreme Animals in Extreme Environments Series
Pages:	48
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	1040L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

Editorial Reviews

An intriguing opening about a blind fish discovered in an underground river by Stephen Bishop in the 1800s immediately hooks the readers on the “Extreme Animals in Extreme Environments” series. The first chapter sets a good pace as it covers how caves are formed, the various kinds of caves, the formations they hold, and many cave facts. One fact states that 94 percent of all fresh unfrozen water on earth is found in underground caves. Chapter two offers excellent information about what it would be like to live in a cave and chapter three discusses “trogloxene” animals who live at a cave’s entrance and “troglophile” animals who live or sleep in caves but travel outside caves. Readers will be familiar with bat troglophiles and this book will add to their knowledge of how bats hear, what size they can be, how and when they travel, and how they look. All of the fantastic photos enhance the text and allow readers to feel as if they are right inside the caves. One super close-up photo shows two dog-faced bats roosting beside each other. In addition to the dog-faced bats, vampire bats, flying-fox bats, and the bumblebee bat are covered. An explanation about how bats receive echoing signals is given. A hands-on science activity at the back of the book allows readers to understand how caves are formed. Directions for the activity are clear and concise. Add this book to the science shelf in classrooms and libraries., Children's Literature

From the Publisher

Gr 2–4—These surveys of harsh climes and some of the animals that live in them feature plenty of crowd-pleasing examples, ranging from squids, both giant and colossal, found in the deep sea to vampire bats and giant bat-eating centipedes found in caves. However, readers will be misled or confused by the fact that many more creatures are mentioned than depicted in the color photos and by semi-truthful claims, such as the statement that dromedaries, one-humped camels, originated in North America (only their distant ancestors did) or that brown bears don't really hibernate.

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