Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2025, Issue 134 i Eco Kids Planet Magazine

Hello, Eco Kids! KER-SPLASH! That blur flying off the iceberg and into the freezing Antarctic Sea? That’s me – Pippin the Gentoo Penguin. Have you spotted me on the cover yet? Go on, check. I’ll wait. Back? Brilliant. I’m ridiculously proud of that – the whole colony has been honking about it ever since. Down here, nothing stays calm for long. One minute we’re belly-sliding in a noisy penguin pile-up, the next we’re shooting into the water from the ice edge. Then it’s underwater races, twisty turns, surprise splashes – and usually somebody comes up with seaweed on their head. Sometimes it’s me. We don’t plan it – the waves and kelp just like to join in the chaos. That’s why I’m so excited about this issue. It’s crammed with…

In the far north, where winter rules the landscape and the sea freezes into shifting ice, one of the planet’s most remarkable predators makes its home. Polar bears depend on sea ice for almost everything – travelling, hunting, resting and raising cubs. But as the Arctic warms fast, the ice beneath their paws is disappearing. Polar bears are built for the cold: • A thick, dense coat traps warm air close to their skin • Black skin under all that fur soaks up sunlight • A deep layer of blubber provides extra warmth • Tiny ears and a long nose help prevent heat loss • An incredible sense of smell helps them sniff out a seal from almost a mile away They are powerful swimmers, too. A polar bear can…

Amy: Hey, readers. When Rusty gets here, we have a great topic to chew on. Rusty: Hi, Rusty fans! Rhona: Rusty… Rusty: Give our readers a moment to cheer now I’ve arrived, Rhona. Rhona: …you’re late! Rusty: I was playing outside. Rhona: I know – I heard your football thumping against the wall. Thump thump thump. Very annoying! Simon: But play is exactly what we’re here to discuss, and whether animals actually enjoy it as much as we do. Charlie: I saw an otter juggling with pebbles yesterday, tossing them between his paws. I didn’t speak to him in case it made him drop them! Simon: Even komodo dragons like playing with objects. And when I play ball with my dog Nelson, he makes a snorty sound like he’s laughing.…

Hello, Eco Kids! We all enjoy a good laugh when something is funny! But did you know that animals can giggle and guffaw, too? This issue of Eco Kids Planet is all about animals at playtime. Simon has even investigated some of the weirdest games of the wild, proving that, just like us kids, animals can have fun, too! So, can animals LAUGH, like we do when we play? What’s a laugh? Laughter is a noise we make to say we’re excited or enjoying time together – it even helps us make friends! Laughing comes to us so naturally that we often don’t even realise we’re doing it. We might go… HA-HA! (If it’s a regular laugh.) TEE-HEE! (If it’s a small laugh.) HE-HE! (If it’s a cheeky laugh.) JA…

Now, nobody’s saying the animal world is one big playground – but we all know that some animals play, especially when they’re young. Who hasn’t seen a happy dog romping around, tail wagging so fast they might launch into orbit, helicopterstyle? Or kittens swatting, batting and pouncing on things? Shoelaces and balls of wool, beware! We see lambs springing in springtime as if they’ve decided to simply ignore gravity. Baby goats also boing about like they have invisible trampolines hidden beneath their hooves. Bear cubs love goofing around, too, jumping on each other and wrestling. Even kangaroos can’t resist play fighting. Little joeys square up to their mums for pretend boxing matches, both shaking their heads to show it’s not serious. And have you seen foals frolicking in fields, galloping…

I’m Moksha and I’m 10 years old. When I was three, I became an ambassador for the Plastic-Free Christmas campaign. It is part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The campaign asks us to enjoy a green Christmas by swapping plastic things for planet-friendly choices – trees, decorations, wrapping and even gifts. Creative swaps at home and school can inspire everyone around us – even adults – to follow our lead! Make swapping fun Organise Christmas jumper swaps at school and swap games, books and festive costumes with friends. You can also donate old toys, clothes and books to local charities and libraries. Eco-tree magic Skip plastic baubles. Instead, get crafty with old toys and cards, pine cones, paper stars or stained-glass sugar cookies. You can also use toilet…

RHONA REPORTS! N0. 70 And don’t forget about me – Rusty! The Comedy Wildlife Awards have revealed the funniest photo finalists for this year’s competition, and I’ve picked my favourites to show you. Read on! SQUIRREL AIRBORNE: SURRENDER MODE The world’s funniest photo competition uses the make-you-smile side of animal photography to promote the protection of wildlife and its precious habitats. (If smiles can help save them, I’m all for it!) Here’s one of the finalist photos, taken by Stefan Cruysberghs from Belgium. A few years ago, Stefan rented a simple hide in a forest packed with red squirrels. He started snapping them mid-jump and, as you can see, he got pretty good at it. He thinks this one looked like it was throwing its paws up to say “OK,…

My weirdness files are bulging with cases of playful creatures – and the deeper I probe, the weirder things get… So do animals have fun? For real? Ask the 2.5-metre-long crocodile spotted surfing the waves near an Australian beach. Or the dolphin filmed tossing a jellyfish high into the air near Denmark, diving underwater before the jellyfish splashed back down with a big plop, and then tossing it up again and again. Or the stingrays in aquariums batting balls around with their flat bodies and fins, and swimming through hoops like it’s Underwater Sports Day. You could ask the crow in Russia captured on video using a plastic lid to keep sledging down a snowy roof! Or all the fox cubs recorded bouncing on garden trampolines when they think no…

It’s me, Charlie, the Eco Kid who can chat with animals. This time I’m meeting a very playful marine mammal! Charlie: I’m at the UK’s northernmost part, sailing around the Shetland Isles. But I’m not here to interview a Shetland pony! I heard a humpback whale has been spotted in these waters. I bet he’s stopped off to feed before migrating to warmer breeding grounds! I’m told they’re super-playful, so he’d be ideal to chat with for this issue. They’re even said to throw kelp up in the air and give themselves seaweed wigs with it! Hey, a strange bubble ring is forming in the water just ahead. And something’s rising up through the middle of it. I recognise that nobbly head! It’s a humpback whale spyhopping. That’s when they…

Playful Crossword Across: 2. A cheeky parrot with contagious laughter. 5. How polar bear cubs slide on their tummies. 8. A scavenger with a highpitched ‘laugh’. 10. A swirling trap whales use to gather fish. 11. Rough-and-tumble play many young animals enjoy. Down: 1. The frozen platform polar bears live and hunt on. 2. A noisy Australian bird with a wild cackling laugh. 3. A feel-good brain chemical released during fun. 4. A bird seen sliding down roofs for fun. 7. A thick layer that keeps polar bears warm. 9. A key skill animals practise through play. TRUE OR FALSE How much do you know about the way animals play? YARN BALL TANGLE Follow each strand of yarn to find out which ball belongs to which cat. SPOT 12 DIFFERENCES…

What you need: • Pine cones • One-inch wooden beads for the head (we up-cycled some orange ones from an old necklace) • Black and yellow felt (small pieces) • Paint brush • Black and white craft paint • Glue gun and glue • Scissors • String/twine • Newspaper/sheet (to cover your work surface) What to do: Step 1: Cover your workspace. Paint the tips of your pine cones white. Leave to dry. Step 2: Paint your wooden beads white. Allow them to dry. They will need at least two coats. Step 3: Cut out some wings from the black felt. With help from an adult, use your glue gun to glue them to the sides of each pine cone. Step 4: Cut out some feet from the yellow felt. Glue these…