RPSEC Student Programs
Pre & Post Visit Activities

 

Animals with Backbones

Vocabulary
Vertebrates- animals with backbones
Invertebrates- animals without backbones
Herbivore- plant eater
Carnivore- meat eater
Omnivore- eats both meat and plant material
Predator- hunter
Prey- hunted
Camouflage- blends in with the environment
Ectotherm- Cold blooded; cannot generate own body heat
Endotherm- Warm blooded; body temperature is internally regulated
Tympanum- A sense organ (eardrum) that aids in hearing
Prehensile- Adapted for grasping or holding, such as an opossum tail
Plastron- Lower part of turtle shell including bones and horny scutes
Scutes- A tough covering over bony plates to form the outer layer of the turtle shell
Ectotherm- Cold blooded; body changes temperature with the environment
Endotherm- Warm blooded; produce own body heat

Language Arts Connections
Use a Tree Map graphic organizer to compare and contrast the five groups of Vertebrates:

FISH
• Gills
• Fins and scales
• Cold blooded
• Soft shell eggs
• Examples: Bass, catfish

AMPHIBIANS
• Hatch under water and breathe using gills
• Metamorphosis
• Moist, slimy skin
• Breathe through skin
• Cold blooded
• Soft shell eggs
• Examples: Salamander, frog, toad

REPTILES
• Dry, scaly skin
• Cold blooded
• Hard shell eggs
• Examples: Snake, turtle, lizard, alligator

BIRDS
• Feathers
• Hollow bones
• Warm blooded
• Hard shell eggs
• Feed their young (regurgitate)
• Examples: Owl, hawk, pigeon, robin

MAMMALS
• Hair or fur
• Warm blooded
• Have live young
• Produce milk to feed their young
• Examples: Squirrel, possom, coyote

Please direct inquiries to:
Ruth Patrick Science Education Center
c/o Student Programs
USC Aiken, Box 3, 471 University Parkway, Aiken, SC 29801
(803) 641-3313 from Augusta 278-1967 Ext. 3313

RPSEC@usca.edu

Copyright © 2008 by the Board of Trustees of the University of South Carolina.

Ruth Patrick Science Education Center
Center of Excellence in Educational Technology
University of South Carolina Aiken
471 University Parkway
Aiken, SC 29801
803-641-3313

URL: http://rpsec.usca.edu/student/Programs/AnimalBackbone/AnimalsPost.html (May 2008)