Summary
A kissing bug creeps up at night, pierces the skin, and drinks so much blood its body swells like a balloon. Deep Look zooms in on the needle-like mouthparts that let it feed unnoticed.
Viewer safety
This one shows a tiny animal feeding on blood, including human blood (a normal part of how these creatures live) -- preview if that might unsettle your class.
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Teaching resources
Discussion questions
Talk about it
A kissing bug has thin, needle-like mouthparts folded under its head. It slips them into skin so gently the sleeper doesn't wake, then pumps in and out to drink blood until its stretchy belly is full -- a body built entirely around one way of feeding.
- What tool does the kissing bug use to reach blood?
- How does its stretchy body let it drink so much at once?
- Why does feeding quietly at night help the bug survive?
Quick work-a-long
Vocabulary: mouthparts, pierce, blood, specialized.
Try it: Draw the kissing bug's folded mouthparts, then draw it after a meal. Write how its body is built for drinking blood.