creepy critters - cdn.environment.sa.gov.au
TRANSCRIPT
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spiritual connection and the relationship
that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people have to Country.
The Department works in partnership
with the First Peoples of South Australia
and supports their Nations to take a
leading role in caring for their Country.
January/February 2021 | Volume 1 – Issue 6
Creepy Critters
Minibeasts are scientifically known
as invertebrates. Invertebrates are
animals without a backbone or an
internal skeleton.
There are many different kinds of
invertebrates. They live all around
us in many different habitats,
many would live in your own
backyard.
There are more invertebrates on
earth than any other type of animal.
Let’s find out more about the
invertebrate group of arthropods.
What are Minibeasts?
Inside this issue
What are minibeasts? ............ 1
Amazing Arthropods.............. 2
Cross Word ................................ 3
How many legs does an
insect have? ............................... 4
Scorpions don't have bones!
........................................................ 5
Is it a leaf? Is it an Insect? ..... 5
Colour in page .......................... 6
Threatened Invertebrates ..... 7
FUN FACT
Insects are the only
invertebrates with
wings!
Acknowledgement to country
The Department for Environment and
Water acknowledges Aboriginal people
as the First Peoples and Nations of the
lands and waters we live and work upon
and we pay our respects to their Elders
past, present and emerging. We
acknowledge and respect the deep
Above Photo credits: Monarch butterfly, Caterpillar, Flinders Rangers scorpion, Debbie the
Orb spider, European honey bee, Earthworm and Orchard Swallowtail butterfly taken by
Cleland Wildlife Park - Snail photo credit Alex Raths ( Gettyimages/istockphoto).
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Amazing Arthropods
Arthropods make up the largest phylum (group) in the animal kingdom.
Arthropods are divided into four main groups:
1. Insects 2. Arachnids
Such as- Such as-
Ants Scorpions
Aphids Ticks and mites
Beetles Spiders
Butterflies
Cicadas
Cockroaches 3. Crustaceans
Dragonflies such as -
Termites Barnacles
Grasshoppers Crayfish
Flies Crabs
Praying mantis Horseshoe crab
Krill
Shrimp
Lobsters
4. Myriapoda Such as -
Millipedes
Centipedes
They have three main characteristics:
1. They have a hard outside covering, like armour to protect itself called ‘an
exoskeleton.’
2. They have a segmented body, which means they have a body made up of
more than one part.
3. Arthropods also have many jointed legs.
All invertebrate photo credit to: Ken Sanderson
Blue Crab photo credit to RGBStock https://www.rgbstock.com/photo/2dQMjxG/Bl
ue+Crab
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S N M K S J Q I D N A Y S J F D G S M G
G P O F L R M D W V D I K W Y R N S W X
P U I I O M R O W H T R A E I A D N D S
W W L D P Z A N H N R D U V I G C A B O
W H X S E R P G A S B C R L B O J V L O
A U X N E R O M I M L U T Z Z N B A F T
E Y W H R P G C W Q L B T O Q F S Q Y I
M G D F K N P B S Y E T Z T T L E W M U
H R A C I C O C K R O A C H E Y I C M Q
P D U Y J P Q L L L B K V S R R N Z M S
T K A C Z P F U W J Z J O Q D J F I P O
D R X B S F R X B B V N B U P S L L W M
M Z M W H Q H D N D N M M D I R H G A D
A I J L G K C W J Y X H Q P E W K B U F
X F M Z Q H A M A W I Q E T L W L X D W
R Y E N T B B M K O E D S N G K V V M I
J P M W L S E V V C E B T C D V U P D U
L I Z L B Y Z A U M O K U S H Q P C C P
S W R K Y L K E Y L Q H G V C D N W P Z
BUTTERFLY
COCKROACH
CRAB
DRAGONFLY
EARTHWORM
INSECT
LOBSTER
MILLIPEDE
MOSQUITO
PRAYING MANTIS
SCORPION
SLUG
SNAIL
SPIDER
SQUID
Invertebrates Can you find them all?
What am I?
I can fly.
I’m can be an
annoying insect which
bites.
I’m not a vampire but I
do suck your blood.
You often hear me
buzzing about at
night.
What am I?
________________________
__
True or False
Insects have 6 legs?
T/F
JUMBLE WORD
UTTBREFYL
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
MEDLLIIPE
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PISDER
_ _ _ _ _ _
Did you know?
Some caterpillars can
have up to 12 eyes!
4
Photo credit: Amber Everett-
A female red- winged stick insect. Can you count her legs?
Photo Credit of insect body parts: JMG Junior
Master Gardener.
Did you know? Grasshoppers can jump
around 1 meter in length.
That’s like us jumping
about the length of a
football field, in one
bound!
How many legs does an
insect have? Insects are arthropods.
Insects have:
3 body segments- head thorax and abdomen.
6 (jointed) legs and a pair of antennae.
Animals such as flies, butterflies, termites, ants,
crickets, stick insects moths and many more are
all insects.
Did you know?
The female red-winged
stick insect can have
eggs without a male!
Did you know?
Entomology is the
study of insects.
Photo Credit: Taken by Ken
Sanderson
Can you see the stick insect?
Stick Insects
There are many species of stick insects.
Some species of stick insects sway from side to side
when they are walking, so that they look like a twig
or a leaf blowing in the breeze. This can protect
them from predators like birds.
If you're lucky enough to spot a stick insect, don't
try to pull it from its branch or it might drop one of
its legs. But certainly look with your eyes.
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Scorpions don’t have bones!
Scorpions are Arachnids.
They don’t have bones like you and me.
Instead, they have a tough exoskeleton made
of chitin (like armor).
Scorpions have eight legs like spiders, mites
and ticks.
Scorpions don’t only use their stings to kill
their prey – they use it to defend themselves
against predators, such as snakes, lizards and
birds.
When there isn’t much food around, scorpions can slow down their metabolism (the process animals use to get energy from food) so much so that they are able to live off just
one insect per year!
Photo credit to Cleland Wildlife Park
Is it a leaf? Is it an insect?
I can’t tell!
A Spiny leaf insect is indeed an insect, they have 3 body
parts and 6 legs. Did you know these cool insects only eat
eucalyptus leaves and they look like one too. Camouflage
is their best trick to survival.
Fun Fact: Spiny leaf insect eggs look like a pepper corn. They have
a small knob called the ‘capitulum,’ which redheaded
ants eat.
The ants will carry the leaf insects eggs back to their
burrow, eat the capitulum and leave the egg protected in
the burrow.
After the egg hatches, the young spiny leaf insect looks
like an ant, which allows them to leave the ant burrow
safely. Until it finds a nice tree to climb and live its life.
Photo credit to Cleland Wildlife Park
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Did you know?
Arthropods shed their skin, as they
grow bigger.
COLOUR ME IN: Make a pattern with colours if you dare!
Sourced from and page credit: https://www.justcolor.net/kids/coloring-pages-of-animals/insects/
Do you know?
xxxxxx
Did you know?
Butterflies
taste with
their feet.
7
Invertebrates are very
important because they
help to pollinate plants, recycle
waste material, and provide
food for other creatures such
as birds and reptiles and much, much
more.
Be kind and appreciate them!
Cleland News
Bush Buddies: For 2-4 year olds
Term 1 1st Feb –
March 30th 2021.
Mon/Tues/Fri
$8 per session
Mini beast of
Cleland:
Want to find out
more and interact
with the wonderful
world of
invertebrates.
Available Tuesday to
Saturday 1:30pm.
$20
For all ages
Glenelg Crayfish
(Euastacus
bispinosus)
Diet: Both plant and meat, such as
insects, decaying matter, fungi and
bacteria.
Habitat: Southern flowing freshwater
streams and rivers
This species is at threat due to:
Invasive species (cane toads and
other crayfish)
Loss of vegetation (river banks)
Climate change
SA status: Critically endangered
ICUN (Global) status: Vulnerable
Do you know? One dung beetle can
drag 1,141 times its
weight – that’s like a
human pulling six
double-decker buses!
Photo credit: David Haintz (iNaturalist Australia website)
Did you know? Some Scorpions can
glow under ultraviolet
lighting.