小学英语阅读理解天天练(6年级)Animals in Winter 文章

小学英语阅读理解天天练(6年级)Animals in Winter 文章

animals in winter
Hi!I'm Snowshoe Rabbit.I'm looking for something to eat.But,it is not very easy because the forest is covered with snow and the trees are bare.
During the winter,people have nice,warm houses to live in,but animals have to stay outside.So,we have to do different things to survive the cold.
During the winter,you don't see many birds in the forest because most of them have migrated.In the fall,when the weather gets cool,the birds gather together and fly south to warmer places.
When people travel they use maps,but when birds travel they do not have any maps.It is amazing that they never get lost; they know exactly where to go.Some birds use the sun,the moon,and the stars to guide them.
Sometimes you can see some deer,foxes,and rabbits like me in the wintertime.We do not sleep or go away because we like the winter.In the winter,we eat whatever we can find such as moss,twigs,bark,and leaves.
However,there are many animals that sleep during winter unlike me,a rabbit.Many animals like bats,squirrels,skunks,chipmunks,and bears sleep during the winter.That is called hibernation.
By sleeping,they save energy and are able to live on very little food.Among them,chipmunks,squirrels,and some other animals are called true hibernators.
When true hibernators sleep,the temperature of their body decreases and their heart slows down.So,they need less food.In fact,when you see hibernating animals they look like they are dead.If you touch them they feel very cold.
Other animals,like bears,sleep most of the winter as well.However,they are not true hibernators because their body temperature cannot decrease.
Bears need to eat a huge amount of food in the fall to keep them warm before they go to sleep for the winter.By the time spring comes,the bears have lost most of their fat.
Actually,animals do not sleep all winter long.Some animals can sleep for one month,but many animals only sleep for a few days at a time.When they get hungry,they wake up for a little while and eat some of their food.
Many hibernating animals have a place in their little homes where they can go to the toilet.Also,if the animals get too cold,they can die.So,on very cold days many animals wake up and try to get warm by shivering.This makes their bodies warmer.
In the pond,many animals hibernate in the winter as well.Some turtles and frogs swim to the bottom of the pond before the water freezes.They dig a little hole in the mud at the bottom,and spend the winter sleeping beneath the frozen ice.
What about fish?Have you ever wondered what happens to fish when the water is frozen?Most fish stay awake for the winter,but they are very quiet and still.They go down to the bottom of the pond where the water is not frozen and wait for spring to come.