Keeping warm and keeping cool
Biology · Early Years · The School
Staying warm in the cold
A polar bear has thick fur. It also has fat under its skin. This fat is called BLUBBER. It traps warmth in. Penguins huddle together in a big group. They take turns. The ones on the cold outside edge move to the warm middle. Then someone else takes a turn outside. This is not an accident. It is how they stay warm.
Staying cool in the heat
An elephant has huge ears. Blood flows through them. Flapping the ears loses heat into the air. It works like a fan. A dog pants. It breathes fast, with its tongue out. This cools it down. Many desert animals hide in the shade. They come out later, when it is cooler.
Humans do this too
You put on a warm coat when it is cold. Your body needs help staying warm too. You sweat when you are hot. The sweat cools on your skin. This brings your body back down. Humans are animals too. We use some of the same tricks.
A POLAR BEAR lives somewhere freezing cold. It has thick fur. It has blubber underneath. Its skin is dark. Dark skin soaks up warmth from the sun. A FENNEC FOX lives somewhere hot and dry. It has huge ears. Big ears lose heat fast. Its fur is pale. Pale fur reflects sunlight away. Two animals. Two very different bodies. One keeps warmth in. The other lets heat out.