Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2023, issue 110 i Eco Kids Planet Magazine

Why, you don’t think I look like an Antarctic superstar? Don’t mind my grumpy stare; I’ve got lots of superpower tricks and tales under my scales! Actually, about those… I adapted to live without scales. Sure, scales provide protection, but they also create drag in the water. Having smooth skin helps me move swiftly and nimbly in icy waters. Ice could also form between the scales and cause damage. So I’m better off without them! Clever, eh? But that’s just the tip of the iceberg… One of my other remarkable features is my blood. Unlike other fish (or you), my blood has no red cells that carry oxygen. Instead, I can absorb it right through my scale-less skin. And unlike you, I don’t wear a coat to keep me warm…

FIVE-POINTED HEADS! Hi, Rusty fans! My annoying sister Rhona has used a lot of puns this month. It’s as if she thinks she’s the funny kid in this family. Well, she’s not – I am! I’ll prove it when I’m a world famous comedian. Now here’s something funny. You know starfish? Yes, those marine creatures with five pointy arms (although some species have up to 40!). More people call them sea stars now because they’re not actually fish. But I still call them starfish because it annoys Rhona! Well, have you ever wondered where their heads are? “No, because they don’t have one,” I hear you say. Well, they do. What they don’t have are bodies! Scientists now say that they’re just a big, squished head. Yes, each starfish is…

Down: 1. The largest whale to have lived on Earth. 2. This regal Antarctic bird is the largest of its kind. 3. What type of whales have bristly plates instead of teeth? 4. The world’s fastest swimming birds. 8. A ‘white-blooded’ fish with antifreeze superpowers. Across: 5. This friendly seal spends most of its time hunting under the Antarctic ice. 6. A misnamed, krill-loving seal. 7. The largest member of the dolphin family. 9. Which whale has the biggest brain? 10. Tiny crustacean, a key food source for various animals. Wild Questions Test your knowledge with these multiple-choice questions. No wild guesses! 1. How long can a wandering albatross fly without flapping? a. 20 minutesb. 46 daysc. Several hoursd. One hour 2. Why was the albatross circling the Southern Ocean…

This month is all about giving, spreading love, and making people around us smile. We’re inviting you to make a splash with your very own whale greetings card. Open this magazine to the middle and you’ll find all the templates you need for this competition. Simply pull them out. Follow the instructions on the opposite page to create your card. Feel free to use the suggested colours or let your imagination flow and create your own style. Once you’ve finished, remember to snap a picture of your card and send it to us before giving the card itself to that special person. Tell us who this greetings card is for and why. We’d love to hear about the special people in your life and can’t wait to see your creations.…

What’s that? The world had a new ocean in 2000 – covering 21,960,000 square kilometres? Where did all that water suddenly come from? In truth, the Southern Ocean was just a new name for the body of water surrounding Antarctica. There was a time it wasn’t there – but you’d have to go back over 34 million years. Funnily enough, that still makes it the world’s youngest ocean! Ocean or oceans? There’s really only one world ocean, covering almost three quarters of our planet. (Seas are much smaller.) It’s made of five major ocean basins – think of them as giant bowls holding ocean water. The Southern Ocean blends into the Indian, Atlantic and Pacific – every ocean basin except the Arctic. It’s like a mixing zone for them all!…

OK, so the Southern Ocean might be a bit BRRRR, but whales seem to love it. Some visit during the summer months to feed in its food-filled waters, while others stay here all year long. Let’s meet some of this extreme ocean’s most wonderful whales! Baleen vs Teeth Let’s get one thing straight first! Have you ever heard people talking about baleen whales and toothed whales? I discovered that all whales are either one or the other. Baleen whales have no teeth. Instead, they have bristle-covered plates in their mouths called baleen. To feed, they take in mouthfuls of krill or other tiny creatures, along with lots of seawater (yuck!). The prey sticks to the baleen bristles, while the water flows back out to sea. How clever! It’s like when…

In our October ‘Ready, Steady, Glow!’ issue, we asked you to create glowing art and, wow, were the entries glorious! Thank you to everyone who sent us their bioluminescent works-of-art. Congratulations to our four winners: To see more of your amazing entries, go to www.ecokidsplanet.co.uk/moon-myth-competition…

Six 3D eco crafts complete with templates and instructions. Bring the ocean to your room with our new craft booklet, which includes six fantastic ocean-themed crafts by our brilliant artist Shobhna Patel. Enjoy hours of fun cutting out, assembling and colouring your marine creations. Here’s what you can make: 1. A lovely sea turtle 2. A playful dolphin scene 3. An incredible octopus 4. A stunning jellyfish decoration 5. A colourful ocean playset 6. A cheeky shark finger puppet All the templates are included, so you can dive straight into the fun and easily make these paper toys yourself. Ages 7+. RRP: £6.90 Available on our site: www.ecokidsplanet.co.uk/ocean-papercrafts How to submit your entries: Send a photo of your greetings card to win@ecokidsplanet.co.uk. Your entry must arrive before 10th January 2023.…

That wild, remote ocean is so hard to explore, I bet many mysteries lurk in its cold waters – especially under its floating ice crusts! Sometimes, you can see the deep, dark waters below those ice sheets. How? Through mysterious holes that often appear in them! They’re called polynyas, and Antarctic wildlife makes good use of them. They give seals, penguins and other animals a chance to gulp air after swimming underwater. Even whales and dolphins are mammals that need to breathe air into their lungs – just like us. Humungous hole Sometimes, these polynyas can be real shockers. In 1974, a truly huge hole opened up in the Southern Ocean’s ice. It was about the size of New Zealand! This was the Weddell Sea Polynya, and it remained over…