Ranger Rick articles from February 1995

Ranger Rick archives from February 1995

About the bobcat. (why the teeth of bobcats are healthy and long)
February 1, 1995... Of course, a bobcat doesn't really brush its teeth--no animal does. But its teeth are pretty healthy anyway, since it eats meats instead of sweets. (A bobcat's idea of a snack would be a mouse instead of a Milky Way!) Bobcats nab their meals by...

Wow! More bluebirds. (building nests to increase bluebird populations)
February 1, 1995... All across America, kids like me are helping bluebirds -- and you can too. My mom, dad, sister, and I got started one day when we went to hear a talk about bluebirds at a nearby park. The naturalist at the park explained that when he was a kid,...

Caiman.(poem)
February 1, 1995... The caiman is crocodile Related to the gator. With such a family tree as that I would not irritate her. She lives beside the water, She's scaly underneath. And no one dares to scold her When she doesn't brush her teeth.

Numbat.(poem)
February 1, 1995... With more teeth than any mammal Living on the ground, The numbat laps up termites With a slurping, hissing sound. Despite the many teeth it has, Its dining style is crude. For when the number sits to eat, It seldom chews its food. Poems...

What's happening? (how conservation efforts are saving the bald eagle)
February 1, 1995... SOARING EAGLES About 200 years ago, hundreds of thousands of bald eagles filled the skies of North America. They were such a beautiful sight that in 1782 the species was chosen to be the national symbol for the United States. (You can see bald...

Peanuts: you'll go nuts over these smooth and crunchy tidbits. (facts, stories, and trivia about peanuts)
February 1, 1995... NOT A NUT, BUT A PEA The next time you're taking a big lick of peanut butter, you can say that you're eating your vegetables. Peanuts are not really nuts, but are close cousins of peas. DOWN-UNDER WONDER Peanuts grow down, not up! First,...

Nutty birds. (how to make birds out of peanut shells)
February 1, 1995... NUTTY BIRDS Look at the nutty birds you can make from the leftovers of your next bag of peanuts! Here's how: 1. Choose a whole peanut to make a bird's body. 2. For wings and for a big head and beak, glue split shells to the body. 3. For legs...

Coral: part two. (a look at the life of some of the creatures that live in a coral reef)
February 1, 1995... It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood. The coral reef neighborhood, that is. Thousands of kinds of animals, from this reef shark to these butterflyfish, call the coral reef home. They depend on it for hiding, hunting, breeding, and eating....

Adventures of Ranger Rick: the gang discovers trouble on coral reefs. (short story)
February 1, 1995... Boomer Badger peered through a diving mask, watching a rainbow of fish flutter past his face. Wow, the excited badger thought, snorkeling on a coral reef is just like being in a giant aquarium! Just below him on the coral, a tiny...

More facts. (how to help protect coral reefs by not buying coral or saltwater animals)
February 1, 1995... MORE FACTS: Many countries have laws against taking coral, certain coral reef animals, or both, But these laws are not always obeyed. And other countries still allow coral or coral reef creatures to be collected. What can you do to help? Never...

Cool owls. (great horned owls lay their eggs during winter)
February 1, 1995... Brrrr! Winter seems like a crazy time to lay eggs. Imagine having to keep them warn in a snowstorm! But that's what great horned owls do. They lay their eggs as early as January, sometimes in the worst weather you can imagine. They often use...

My little dino. (a girl and her paleontologist parents dig for dinosaur bones in Dinosaur Cove, Australia)
February 1, 1995... When I was three, I had a book called My Little Dinosaur It was about a boy who found a live dinosaur in a cave near his house. I started wanting a dinosaur too. My dad worked with dinosaurs at a museum--so I asked him to get me one....

She's a winner. (author Rhonda Lucas Donald wins the 1995 Ranger Rick writing award)
February 1, 1995... Rhonda Lucas Donald has won this year's Ranger Rick writing award--and a check for $1000. The award is for two "Adventures of Ranger Rick" stories she wrote last year. One adventure was about a pollution nightmare (see drawing below and the...

Crack a crab, slam a clam. (how sea otters eat crabs, clams and other animals with hard shells)
February 1, 1995... Hi! Stevie Sea Otter here. You caught me with my paws around some food. We sea otters use so much energy that we need to eat a lot--as much as one-third of our weight each day! See, I'm giving this crab's shell a big ol' crack. Now I can get at...