antlers and horns
Jason Cooper
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© 2007 Rourke Publishing LLC All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher. www.rourkepublishing.com PHOTO CREDITS: All photos © Lynn M. -except pg. 10 © Tom De Bruyne pg. 15 © Sarah Skiba pg. 14 © Philip Puleo Title page: Bighorn sheep wear thick horns that curl. Editor: Robert Stengard-Olliges Cover design by Nicola Stratford.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Cooper, Jason Antlers and horns / Jason Cooper. p. cm. -- (Let's look at animals) ISBN 1-60044-168-8 (Hardcover) ISBN 1-59515-533-3 (Softcover) 1. Antlers--Juvenile literature. 2. Horns--Juvenile literature. I. Title. II. Series: Cooper, Jason. Let's look at animals. QL942.S734 2007 591.47--dc22 2006012743 Printed in the USA CG/CG
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Table of Contents Animal Hats Two Branches Farm Animals, Wild Animals Antlers Grow Back Protection Glossary Index
4 6 10 12 20 23 24
Animal Hats Animals do not wear hats, but some wear horns or antlers on their heads.
4
You can lift a hat off a head. Horns and antlers are different from a hat. Horns and antlers grow from an animal’s head!
5
Two Branches
Antlers spread like the branches of a tree.
6
Horns do not have branches, except in the pronghorn. A pronghorn has spikes on each horn.
7
An animal with horns usually has two. Both males and females usually have horns. The two horns of an animal are much alike.
8
Animals have horns of different shapes and sizes. They may be straight. They may curl backward. They may have twists. They may grow sideways, like a cape buffalo’s horns. 9
Farm Animals, Wild Animals
Farm animals like cattle, goats, and sheep grow horns. Many wild animals have horns. Antelopes, bison, buffaloes, bighorn sheep, and mountain goats are some of the wild animals with horns.
10
Only deer and their cousins have antlers. Only male deer, moose, and elk normally have antlers. Both male and female caribou have antlers.
11
Antlers Grow Back
Horns stay with an animal for its lifetime. Antlers do not. Animals with antlers lose them each winter.
12
13
Each spring antlers begin to grow again.
14
New antlers are covered by skin and soft hair. New antlers look like they have velvet covers!
15
Under the skin, blood flows to the antlers. The antlers grow large. They grow harder, too. Horns are always hard.
16
17
By late summer, the velvet peels away. The hard new antlers shine.
18
19
Protection
Animals with horns or antlers use them to fight each other. The males fight to find out which is strongest.
20
The strongest males gather females. The strongest males keep other males away.
21
Animals with horns or antlers eat plants. They do not use horns or antlers to kill other animals for food. They will use their horns or antlers to protect themselves.
22
Glossary caribou (KA ri boo): a deer of the artic; the wild cousin of reindeer female (FEE male): girl or mother deer male (MALE): boy or father deer pronghorn (PRONG horn): a hoofed and horned animal of the American West spike (SPIKE): a type of long object with a sharp point velvet (VEL vit): a type of soft cloth; the covering on new antlers
23
Index grow 5, 14, 16 hard 16, 18 hat 4, 5 males 8, 11, 20, 21 skin 15, 16 FURTHER READING Townsend, Emil. Deer. Capstone Press, 2004. Wheeler, Lisa. Uncles and Antlers. Atheneum Books, 2004
WEBSITES TO VISIT http://www.scsc.k12.ar.us/2001Outwest/PacificEcology/Projects/RoarkJ/Default.htm http://www.nps.gov/yell/kidstuff/AHgame/ahdiffer.htm
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jason cooper has written many children’s books for Rourke Publishing about a variety of topics. Cooper travels widely to gather information for his books.
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LET’S LOOK AT ANIMALS Young children love animals. Each of these eight Discovery Library books showcases interesting animal parts or characteristics and is designed to expose early readers to many types of animals. Beaks, fangs, tails, or feathers; kids will learn to easily identify common parts of many animals. Stunning high-quality photography brings them all to life.
Titles in the Series Animal Tails Antlers and Horns Beaks and Bills Camouflage and Disguise Feathers and Fur From An Egg Hooves and Claws Teeth and Fangs
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