Fun Facts - Games Animals Play

Here are some fun facts about each of the 26 animals featured in the book "Games Animals Play (When We're Not Looking)."

Here are three fun facts about Alligators:

Alligators have super strong jaws and lots of teeth! They can chomp down really, really hard, but they're very careful with their babies. And guess what? If they lose a tooth, a new one just grows right back! They have a never-ending supply of teeth!
They love to swim and hide in the water! Alligators spend a lot of time in swamps and rivers, and they're excellent swimmers. They can hold their breath for a long, long time underwater, and sometimes only their eyes and noses pop up above the water, like they're playing hide-and-seek!
Alligator moms are great at protecting their babies! Mommy alligators build big nests out of mud and plants for their eggs. When the babies hatch, she keeps them safe in her mouth or close by, watching over them until they're big enough to take care of themselves.

Here are three fun facts about Badgers:

Badgers are super digging champions! They have very strong claws and love to dig tunnels under the ground, like building their very own underground houses called "setts." They dig long, twisty tunnels to live in and hide from other animals.
They have cool striped faces, like a little bandit mask! Badgers have black and white stripes on their faces. This special mask helps them see better at night when they're looking for yummy snacks.
Badgers love to eat wiggly worms! Their favorite food is often earthworms, which they sniff out with their excellent noses. They also like to eat bugs, berries, and sometimes even little mice. They're great at finding hidden treasures for their dinner!

Here are three fun facts about Chickens:

Chickens lay yummy eggs for us to eat! A mommy chicken lays eggs almost every day! Inside the eggs, if there's a daddy chicken around, a baby chick can grow, but most of the eggs we eat are just for breakfast!
They talk to each other with lots of different clucks! Chickens don't just say "Bawk-bawk!" They have special clucks and sounds to tell their friends about food, or if they see something exciting, or even to say "hello!"
Chickens love to scratch and peck in the dirt! They use their strong feet to scratch at the ground, looking for tasty bugs and seeds to eat. It's like they're digging for tiny treasures all day long!

Here are three fun facts about Dalmatians:

Dalmatians have super cool spots, like they're wearing polka dots! When they are born, they are all white, but then their black (or sometimes brown!) spots start to pop out as they grow, like magic! Every Dalmatian has its own special spot pattern.
They used to help firefighters a long, long time ago! Dalmatians were famous for running alongside fire trucks (which were horse-drawn back then!) to help clear the way and keep the horses calm. They were brave fire dog helpers!
Dalmatians love to run and play! They are very active dogs with lots of energy. They love to go on adventures, play fetch, and run around with their families. They're super playful and fun friends!

Here are three fun facts about Elephants:

They have a super long nose called a trunk! Elephants have a very special nose called a trunk. They use it like a hand to pick up food, drink water, and even spray themselves with water to cool off!
They are the biggest land animals! Elephants are enormous! They are the biggest animals that live on land, much bigger than a car!
They love to play in the mud! Elephants love to roll around and splash in muddy puddles. The mud acts like sunscreen to protect their skin from the sun and helps keep pesky bugs away!

Here are three fun facts about Frogs:

Frogs are super jumpers with sticky tongues! They have very strong back legs that help them leap far, far away! And when they see a yummy bug their tongue shoots out super fast and sticks to it, pulling the bug right into their mouth! Slurp!
They love to live in water and on land! Frogs can breathe underwater a little bit and also breathe on land, so they like to hop between ponds and the grass. They need to keep their skin wet to stay healthy!
Some frogs change colors as they grow! When a baby frog hatches from an egg, it's called a tadpole and it looks like a tiny fish. But as it gets bigger, it grows legs, loses its tail, and turns into a hopping frog! It's like magic!

Here are three fun facts about Gophers:

Gophers are super digging machines with big front teeth! They have special, strong claws and big front teeth that stick out, which they use to dig amazing tunnels underground. It's like they're building their own secret underground highways!
They have little pouches in their cheeks for carrying food! Gophers have special pockets inside their cheeks, almost like tiny shopping bags! They stuff them full of yummy roots and plants to carry back to their homes to eat later.
Gophers are busy workers who live all by themselves! Most gophers like to live alone in tunnels. They spend their days digging and finding food, making sure their underground home is just right!

Here are three fun facts about Hippos:

Hippos love to spend their day in the water, like big, happy swimmers! Even though they look super big and heavy, they love to float and play in rivers and lakes. They spend most of the day keeping cool in the water, with just their eyes and noses peeking out!
They have enormous mouths and very big yawns! When a hippo opens its mouth really wide, you can see how big it is! They don't have super sharp teeth like a lion, but their big mouths help them chomp down on lots and lots of grass when they come out of the water at night.
Baby hippos learn to swim right after they are born! When a baby hippo is born, sometimes it's even born underwater! Right away, it knows how to paddle and swim with its mommy. They are natural-born swimmers!

Here are three fun facts about Iguanas:

They love to sunbathe! Iguanas are reptiles, which means they need the sun to stay warm. You'll often see them lying very still on rocks or branches, soaking up the warm sunshine like they're at the beach!
They have a spiky back like a dinosaur! Iguanas have a row of soft, spiky scales that run down their back, making them look a little bit like tiny dinosaurs! These spikes help them blend in with their surroundings.
They can drop their tail if they get scared! If an iguana gets really scared and something grabs its tail, it can actually break off its tail! Don't worry, a new one will grow back, but it's a cool trick to escape danger.

Here are three fun facts about Jackrabbits:

They have super long ears! Jackrabbits have really, really long ears, much bigger than a regular bunny's! These big ears help them hear even the smallest sounds from far away, keeping them safe.
They can hop super fast! Jackrabbits are amazing runners and jumpers! They can zoom across the ground in big, bouncy hops to get away from anything that might scare them.
They are not really rabbits! Even though they have "rabbit" in their name, jackrabbits are actually a type of hare! They are bigger than bunnies and have longer legs and ears.

Here are three fun facts about Kangaroos:

They have a special pouch for their babies! Mommy kangaroos have a cozy pocket on their tummies called a pouch. This is where their tiny baby, called a joey, lives, eats, and grows until it's big enough to hop around on its own!
They hop, hop, hop everywhere! Kangaroos are amazing jumpers! They have super strong back legs and a big, thick tail that helps them balance as they hop, hop, hop super fast across the land.
They live in a faraway place called Australia! Kangaroos live in a special country very far away called Australia. It's a land with lots of unique animals that you won't find anywhere else!

Here are three fun facts about Lions:

Lions are called the "kings of the jungle," but they actually live in grasslands called savannas! They have super loud roars that can be heard from far, far away!
Boy lions have big, fluffy hair around their faces called a mane! It makes them look extra strong and handsome, and it helps protect their necks when they play fight.
Lion families live together in groups called prides. They love to snuggle up, play, and even hunt for food together. It's like a big, happy lion family!

Here are three fun facts about Monkeys:

Monkeys are super good at swinging through trees! They have long arms and a clever tail that helps them swing from branch to branch, like little acrobats in the jungle! Wooosh!
They love to eat yummy bananas and other fruits! Monkeys are big fans of sweet fruits. They use their clever hands to peel bananas and pick other tasty treats to munch on.
Monkeys like to chatter and play with their friends! They live in groups and love to play games, chase each other, and make funny noises to talk to all their monkey buddies. They are very social!

Here are three fun facts about Newts:

Newts are like tiny, colorful lizards that love water! They have smooth, wet skin and spend a lot of time swimming around in ponds and puddles. Sometimes they even walk on land too!
Newts are super good at growing back body parts! If a newt loses its leg or even its tail, guess what? It can grow a brand new one! How cool is that?
Some newts have bright, fancy colors on their bellies, like orange or red! This special color is like a secret signal to other animals that says, "Hey, don't eat me, I don't taste very good!"

Here are three fun facts about Otters:

Otters love to hold hands when they sleep so they don't float away! Sometimes, a whole family of otters will float together holding onto each other's paws like a big raft.
Otters are super playful! They love to slide down muddy hills into the water, just like you might slide down a playground slide. They also juggle little rocks on their tummies!
Otters are amazing swimmers and divers! They can hold their breath for a long, long time underwater while they look for yummy fish and crabs to eat. And they have special pockets under their arms to store their snacks!

Here are three fun facts about Porcupines:

Porcupines have super pokey coats, like a prickly sweater! Their bodies are covered in sharp, pointy things called quills. These quills help keep them safe from other animals, like a secret shield! If something tries to bother them, the porcupine can puff up its quills to say, "Stay away!"
They love to munch on trees! Porcupines really like to eat the bark and leaves from trees, especially in the winter when other food is harder to find. It's like a special tree salad for them! They have strong teeth to help them chew.
Baby porcupines are called "porcupettes"! Isn't that a cute name? When baby porcupettes are born, their quills are soft at first, but they get harder very quickly so they can be safe just like their mommy and daddy.

Here are three fun facts about Quail:

Quails are small, plump birds that love to hide! They are excellent at blending in with the grass and bushes, so sometimes it's tricky to spot them. But you might hear their funny, chirpy calls!
Baby quails are super cute and can run around almost as soon as they hatch from their eggs! Their mommy helps keep them safe and teaches them how to find tasty seeds and bugs to eat.
Sometimes, quail will puff up their feathers and try to look bigger than they are if they feel scared! It's like they're saying, "Woah, I'm bigger than you think!" to make other animals think twice.

Here are three fun facts about Raccoons:

Raccoons wear a special "mask" on their faces! They have black fur around their eyes, just like a little superhero mask! This mask helps them see better at night when they're looking for snacks.
They are super good at using their hands, like little people! Raccoons have very clever front paws, almost like tiny hands, that they use to pick up food, open things, and even wash their food in water before they eat it!
Raccoons are mostly awake at night, like night-time adventurers! While you're sleeping, raccoons are busy exploring, climbing trees, and looking for food.

Here are three fun facts about Squirrels:

They love to bury their snacks! Squirrels are super busy little animals that collect nuts and seeds. They hide them in many different spots, like a treasure hunt, so they can dig them up later when they're hungry!
They have a bushy tail that helps them balance! Squirrels have a big, fluffy tail that they use like a superhero cape to help them balance when they run and jump on thin branches or even telephone wires. It's also like a cozy blanket in winter!
They are super speedy climbers! Squirrels can climb up and down trees super fast, headfirst! They have special claws that help them hold on tight, making them amazing acrobats of the forest.

Here are three fun facts about Turkeys:

They make a funny "gobble, gobble" sound! Male turkeys, called gobblers, love to make a loud "gobble, gobble" sound to talk to other turkeys. It's like their special way of saying hello!
They can change the color of their heads! Turkeys have bare skin on their heads and necks that can actually change colors! When they get excited, their heads might turn bright red, white, or blue, like a magic trick!
They can fly, but not very far! Even though turkeys have wings, they mostly like to walk or run. They can fly up into trees to sleep safely at night, but they're not like birds that fly super high for a long time.

"Unau" is another name for a two-toed sloth!Unau is pronounced Ah-Nah. Here are 3 fun facts about them:

Unaus are super-duper slow! They move so slowly that tiny green plants sometimes grow on their fur, which helps them blend in with the trees like magic camouflage!
Unaus love to hang upside down all day long! They have super strong claws that help them hold onto branches while they eat, sleep, and even have their babies!
Unaus have a big, happy smile on their face all the time! Even when they're just hanging out, their mouth looks like they're giving a friendly grin.

Here are three fun facts about Vultures:

They are nature's clean-up crew! Vultures have a very important job: they eat things that are already dead. This helps keep our world clean and tidy, like a super-helper that picks up all the yucky stuff!
They have a super strong sense of smell! Vultures can smell their food from super, super far away – even higher up in the sky! It's like having a superpower nose to find their snacks.
They have a bald head! You might notice that vultures have little or no feathers on their heads. This helps them stay clean when they're eating, kind of like when you tie your hair back before you eat something messy!

Here are three fun facts about Water Buffaloes:

They love to swim and play in the water! Water buffaloes get their name because they really, really like water. They love to splash around and cool off in muddy puddles and rivers, almost like going for a swim on a hot day!
They have super strong horns! Water buffaloes have big, curvy horns on their heads. These horns help them move through tall grass and even protect them from other animals, kind of like a knight's shield!
They help farmers grow food! In many places, water buffaloes are like big, helpful friends to farmers. They can pull plows in fields to help grow yummy rice, and they're very strong and gentle workers!

Here are three fun facts about Xeruses (Xerus is pronounced "ZEE-rus"):

Xeruses are like little digging machines! They live in Africa and spend a lot of time digging burrows (that's like an underground house) to stay safe and cool from the hot sun.
They have a super fluffy tail that they use like an umbrella! When it's super sunny and hot, a xerus will hold its big, bushy tail over its back to make some shade for itself.
Xeruses love to eat all sorts of things! They munch on yummy seeds, roots, fruits, and even sometimes little bugs. They are busy finding food during the day.

Here are three fun facts about Yaks:

Yaks are super hairy animals that live in very cold, snowy mountains! They have a thick, shaggy coat that's like a warm, built-in blanket to keep them cozy in the chilly weather.
Yaks are amazing climbers! Even though they're big, they're really good at walking and climbing up steep, rocky mountains to find yummy grass and plants to eat.
Some yaks have long, swishy tails that they use to shoo away pesky bugs! It's like having a built-in fly swatter right on their bottom!

Here are three fun facts about Zebras:

Zebras have amazing black and white stripes, and no two zebras have exactly the same pattern! It's like their own special fingerprint or a unique barcode, making each zebra one of a kind!
Zebras live in big groups called herds, which helps keep them safe. All those stripes together can make it hard for a lion to pick out just one zebra to chase!
Zebras are super fast runners! They can gallop away really quickly if they need to escape from a speedy animal like a cheetah.