Pill Bugs
What they look like: Little armored cars moving around. Their little
white legs can barely be seen as they scoot from one place to another.
Their head and tail cannot be seen just two little specks for eyes and
two threadlike antennae. Their back is composed of gray plates that
look like they could be metal.
Habitat: Dark, damp places (like under rotting logs, leaf litter, potted
plants)
Adaptations:
- Protection from predators:
o Roll up in a ball when threatened because some
predators (like the praying mantis) can’t bite through the
hard shell on its back.
- Protect against water loss:
o Live in cool, damp places
o Night air contains more moisture, so they’re active at night
o In very dry conditions, pill bugs bunch together to form a pile. By bunching
together, they lose less water through their skins.
o Roll up in a ball to prevent from losing water through the breathing cavity on its
underside.
Source: Kneidel, Sally. Pet Bugs: A Kid's Guide to Catching & Keeping Touchable Insects. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994.
32-35.
Mealworms
What they look like: White and worm-like. About 1 in. long.
Habitat: under bark of dead trees
Adaptations:
- Protection against water loss:
o They have the special ability to extract water
from the carbohydrates in the food they eat.
Source: Kneidel, Sally. Pet Bugs: A Kid's Guide to Catching & Keeping Touchable Insects. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994.
94-98.
Created by April VanderMolen for the Calvin College Ecosystem Preserve www.calvin.edu/go/preserve
Crickets
What they look like: Brown or black with knobby knees that stick
up above their backs and two feelers that stick out of their back end.
Habitat: Under dead plants, rocks, garbage cans, leaf piles, grass
clippings
Adaptations:
- Protection from predators:
o Cerci (2 little feelers that stick out of their back end)
tell them if someone is sneaking up behind them
o Big legs used to jump away from predators
- Protect against water loss:
o Prefer damp sand
Source: Kneidel, Sally. Pet Bugs: A Kid's Guide to Catching & Keeping Touchable Insects. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994.
82-85.
Earthworms
What they look like: Long, soft, with a segmented body. They
range in color from pink to brown and are about 3 or 4 inches
long.
Habitat: Dark, damp places (like under rotting logs, leaf litter,
potted plants)
Adaptations:
- Protection from predators:
o Tiny bristles on their bodies (called setae) which allow them to grip the walls of
their burrow so they cannot be pulled out by a predator. If they are pulled to hard
they will break in half.
Source: Kneidel, Sally. More Pet Bugs: A Kid's Guide to Catching & Keeping Insects & other Small Creatures. San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass, 1999. 85-88.
Created by April VanderMolen for the Calvin College Ecosystem Preserve www.calvin.edu/go/preserve
Slugs
What they look like: Soft body with two pairs of tentacles like horns sticking up from their
head. The longer tentacles are the slug’s eyes and the shorter ones work as a nose that detects
odors and chemicals.
Habitat: Dark, damp places (like under rotting logs, leaf
litter, potted plants)
Adaptations:
- Protection from predators:
o Slime – slugs secrete large amounts of slime when being eaten so the predator
will spit them out
o Camouflage – many are brown or gray, or gray with black spots like the Leopard
Slug (picture above) and this helps them blend in with their surroundings.
- Protect against water loss
o Slime covering prevents its skin from drying out
- Other
o Mouths directed downwards to pick up food from the surface they glide over
o Slime protects the fleshy underside from sharp objects
Source: http://kennethadair.org/banana.htm
http://daviswiki.org/Slugs_&_Snails
Kneidel, Sally. More Pet Bugs: A Kid's Guide to Catching & Keeping Insects & other Small Creatures. San Francisco: JosseyBass, 1999. 81-84.
Millipedes
What they look like: Long tube-like body with dozens of
short legs. They have two pairs of legs per body segment.
Habitat: Damp places, under logs, bark, and rocks.
Adaptations:
- Protection from predators:
o Stink glands- when a millipede is bothered or picked up by a predator the give off
an awful smell as well as taste.
o Hard skin- they have hard slick skin on them that makes it difficult for predators
to get a grip on them.
Source: Kneidel, Sally. Pet Bugs: A Kid's Guide to Catching & Keeping Touchable Insects. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994.
36-38.
Created by April VanderMolen for the Calvin College Ecosystem Preserve www.calvin.edu/go/preserve
Snails
What they look like: Much like a slug, soft body with two pairs of tentacles, but snails have an
outside shell.
Habitat: Dark, damp places (like under rotting logs, leaf
litter, potted plants)
Adaptations:
- Protection from predators:
o Shell – pull into their shells as protection
against predators
o Camouflage – many are brown or gray which
allows them to blend in well with their
surroundings.
o Active at night to avoid being seen by predators
- Protect against water loss
o Slime covering prevents its skin from drying out
o Night air contains more moisture, so they’re active at night
o Can “hibernate” in their shells during extremely dry conditions
- Other
o Mouths directed downwards to pick up food from the surface they glide over
o Slime protects the fleshy underside from sharp objects
Source: Kneidel, Sally. More Pet Bugs: A Kid's Guide to Catching & Keeping Insects & other Small Creatures. San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass, 1999. 81-84.
Created by April VanderMolen for the Calvin College Ecosystem Preserve www.calvin.edu/go/preserve