Summary
Ants are tough and taste bad, so lots of harmless bugs disguise themselves as ants to stay safe. Deep Look shows spiders and other imposters that copy an ant's look and even its walk to fool predators.
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All ages
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Teaching resources
Discussion questions
Talk about it
Predators avoid ants, so mimics that look like ants get left alone too. Copying a dangerous or bad-tasting animal is a survival trait called mimicry.
- Why would a spider want to look like an ant?
- How does copying an ant's look and movement help an imposter survive?
- What does this tell you about which traits get passed on in a habitat?
Quick work-a-long
Vocabulary: mimicry, imposter, trait, survive.
Try it: Draw a real ant and a bug pretending to be one. Write why looking dangerous can keep an animal safe.