Herbivores, Carnivores ,and Omnivores ...Oh My!

Carnivores, Herbivores, and Omnivores...

Oh my!

by Mr. Braun

Think about the kinds of food that you eat each day.  Many kids eat fruit, pasta, salad, or sandwiches for lunch.

• Did you ever wonder what your food is made of?
• What you eat can tell alot about you.
  

We don't often think about it but, the food that we eat comes from either plants or animals. When we are eating meat, we are eating something that came from an animal such as a cow or pig. Plants provide us with many food sources. Apples, beans, corn, and bread all come from plants.

Animals can be classified by what they eat.

Herbivores are animals that mostly eat plants. They have specialy shaped teeth that allow them to grind up plants.

Some examples of herbivores are:

• cows
• horses
• manatees
  

Herbivores come in all shapes and sizes. Elephants are large herbivores. Honey bees are herbivores also but they are very small.

Different herbivores eat different plant products. Horses and rabbits eat grasses. Giraffes eat leaves. Butterflies eat the nectar of flowers.

Carnivores are animals that eat meat. Meat is the flesh of other animals. Carnivores have pointed teeth that allow them to tear meat.

Many of the animals that we know are carnivores.

Tigers, wolves, spiders, and snakes are examples of carnivores.

Carnivores hunt other animals. They use their powerful jaws and sharp teeth to bring their prey down. Many carnivores are fast runners.

Because carnivores hunt and eat other animals, they are called predators .

The animals that they eat are called prey .

Omnivores are animals that eat meat and plants.

Humans are omnivores. Remember, on pages 3 and 4 we talked about some of the foods that we eat. Humans eat both plants and meat. Sometimes we eat both in the same meal!

There are many other omnivores. Some others are:

• Bears- They eat small animals and berries.
• Raccoons- They eat corn and mice.
• Opossums- They eat plants and insects.
  

Scavengers are animals that eat dead plants and animals.

Scavengers help the world by cleaning up and recycling dead matter.

Some animals that are scavengers are:

• Vultures
• Earthworms
• Seagulls

• Herbivores are animals that mostly eat plants.

• Carnivores are animals that eat meat.

• Omnivores are animals that eat meat and plants.

• Scavengers are animals that eat dead plants and animals.