"Natural Science 4" is an interactive encyclopedia that includes scientific information in the understanding of fourth grade students, wonderfully illustrated and animated.
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www.edituraedu.ro
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* Chapter 1 Lesson 4 *
* Animals with a short life cycle *
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The animal world is characterized by diversity. This not only refers to differences in species, color, size, way of feeding or reproduction, but also in life span.
Do you know which animal lives the shortest? Let's meet some animal species that live their lives to the fullest!
The first place in the list of living things with the shortest life is occupied by ephemeris. They are known to us as "Pentecost", because they appear in flight during these holidays. In fact, the adult only lives for a few hours, during which time its only concern is reproduction. It is important to know that this primitive midge lives in the larva and nymph stage for 2-3 years. In these stages it lives exclusively in the aquatic environment, on the bottom of rivers, among stones and plant debris. It undergoes several transformations by changing its protective shell. With the passage of time, gases gather between the nymph's shell and the new shell that will help it rise to the surface of the water, a sign that the insect is almost mature. The most spectacular transformation and the last is the removal of the outer shell and the appearance of the beautiful insect. From this moment on, the ephemerides stop feeding, their only concern being the laying of eggs from which the offspring will emerge.
Gastrotrichels occupy the second place of the top. They are small, worm-like marine creatures with a transparent body. In their short life of only three days they swim in search of another sea life on whose body they can lay their eggs.
Surely , in your nature walks you have come across anthills. Did you know that their lives are also very short? Specifically, the male lives only three weeks, time dedicated to mating with the queen to ensure the continuity of the colony.
Industrious bees have a short but intense life. During their approximately 30 days of life, they work themselves to exhaustion performing all their tasks seriously. They can be nurses, architects, guards or nectar and pollen gatherers. The longest living thing in the hive is the queen, their queen, who can reach the age of 4 years. The queen lays the eggs.
We have to include the beautiful dragonfly in this top. We can admire it near lakes, ponds and rivers. Like mayflies, dragonflies live longer in the nymph stage than in the adult stage. Nymphs will emerge from eggs laid in the mud or on the stems of aquatic plants. They live for several years in the aquatic environment. After numerous molting processes, the nymph emerges from the water in the spring, especially at night just before the last molt, and becomes a beautiful winged creature. As an adult it lives very little, about 6 months.
But how long does a fly live? Search the Internet for interesting information about its life cycle.