National Geographic Kids

Meet two tiny penguins in a big city! A colony of some 1,500 little penguins—the world’s smallest penguin species—lives here in Melbourne, one of Australia’s largest cities. I thought I could surprise people by showing them penguins thriving so close to an urban area—especially since most people probably think of penguins as living only in Antarctica. So I grabbed my camera and took a seat on some rocks overlooking Melbourne’s skyline. I spent about a hundred hours waiting for the perfect shot. Eventually, these two birds, which are each about a foot tall, waddled their way up the rocks. They’d spent the day feeding on small fish and crustaceans in the bay and were returning to land to rest. As the birds took in the view of the city, I…

Koalas in southern Australia tend to have thicker fur than koalas in the north. The Frisbee was originally named the Pluto Platter. Some trees in Panama have square trunks. Lobsters can be bright blue. A small lump of gold can be flattened into a sheet as big as a tennis court. Mail is delivered by mule to a village in Arizona. Watermelons are 92 percent water. About as many people live in greater Tokyo, Japan, as in the entire country of Canada. Ask an adult to help you CHECK OUT THE BOOK!…

Ring-tailed lemur infants stay with their moms for about a year. SUNRISE YOGA Madagascar’s ring-tailed lemurs often warm up in the morning by turning their bellies, inner arms, and inner legs toward the sun in what scientists call a “yoga pose.” Wonder if they ever do downward-facing lemur? SUNNY SWIMMER The 10-foot-long ocean sunfish is named for its basking behavior. This animal can spend nearly half its life floating near the water’s surface, possibly to warm up. Other times, the ocean sunfish dives deep in search of tasty zooplankton. BIRD (SUN)BATH Birds like the Eurasian blue tit sometimes spread out their wings when they rest in the sun. Scientists think the sun’s ultraviolet light and heat kill parasites like lice that live in the birds’ feathers. (These fliers prevent themselves…

Cheetahs are the fastest animals on land. While hunting, they can go from zero to 45 miles an hour in just 2.5 seconds!…

Score—it’s a snow day! Maybe you’ll go sledding, have a snowball fight, or snuggle up with some hot chocolate. When Japanese macaques (mah-KAKS) get a snow day, these primates play too. Also known as snow monkeys, some of these animals live in the Japanese Alps in central Japan—that’s farther north than any other primate(except humans) is found. In these mountains and forests, winter temperatures can drop below freezing and fierce storms can last for days. Luckily, snow monkeys have picked up some fun behaviors to help them survive the cold. “These curious animals are good at using things in their environment to stay warm,” primate researcher Rafaela Takeshita says. Check out five ways you can get through a chilly Japanese winter, snow monkey style. In some Japanese parks, snow monkeys…

Snow monkeys aren’t the only animals that have adapted to living in cold environments. Match the animals below to the cool ways they survive in winter at the bottom. ANSWERS BELOW A Thick blubber to stay warm in freezing water B Waterproof feathers to keep dry, and huddling for warmth C Long, fluffy tail that wraps around body for warmth D Hooves that grip icy surfaces E Natural antifreeze*-like proteins in their blood F Glow-in-the-dark powers for communicating in water lacking sunlight *Antifreeze is a substance that lowers the freezing point of a liquid; it’s used in cars to keep engines running in cold weather. Answers: 1. D, 2. B, 3. F, 4. C, 5. A, 6. E.…