About This Lesson
Have you ever watched your dog while he’s asleep? He might kick his legs out like he’s chasing a cat or a squirrel in his dreams. Some dogs even sleep bark. People do the same things in their beds. While you sleep, your brain stays busy and creates all sorts of interesting dreams for you. You might dream you’re a dog or that you’re chasing a squirrel up a tree. You might even have a conversation out loud with someone you see in our dreams. Some animals don’t get to drift off into dreamland in a comfortable bed like you or your pets. Animals sleep in the most interesting ways.
Giraffes
Giraffes sleep lying down when they’re young and their older taller family members can protect them. After they get bigger, however, giraffes spend most of their time sleeping on their feet. How do giraffes sleep standing up? A giraffe will bow his head a little and just nod off for a few minutes – just like your dad when he gets home from work. Giraffes nap on and off throughout the day. They sleep enough to keep eating and to keep watching out for danger.
Sharks
Taking a nap with a shark may seem dangerous, but sharks are actually quite calm when they sleep. How do sharks sleep underwater? Some sharks like white-tipped reef sharks huddle together in a group near the bottom of the ocean or the mouth of a cave and just chill out. They don’t really go into a fully unconscious dream state like humans do at night. They just rest (like you do in front of a video) and then get on their way. Sharks spend their days and nights switching between relaxing and being active.
Sloths
Do sloths do anything other than sleep? The eat! Sometimes it takes sloths a month to digest one meal. If they aren’t eating, mating, pooping or swimming sloths are sleeping. In fact, wild sloths sleep about 10 hours a day and captive sloths can sleep for 20 hours a day. They like to sleep curled up in the crook of a tree or even hanging by their long toenails. Sloths move so slowly that they grow algae on their fur which camouflages their sleeping bodies.
Otters
If you’ve ever gotten tangled in your sheets when you sleep then you know what it’s like to be a sea otter. Otters tend to sleep in groups on their backs in the water. How do otters keep from floating away while they sleep? Otters will wrap themselves in kelp or seaweed. Mother otters wrap their pups up too when they swim away to hunt. Think of it like an otter playpen!
Frigatebird
Frigate birds can fly for two months without landing. How does a frigatebird sleep in the air? These large pterodactyl-looking birds sleep with only half their brain 10 seconds at a time for a total of 45 minutes per day. They have no predators in the sky, so they just find an updraft and catch some shut eye while the swirling wind does its work. They don’t sleep too deeply or for too long because they must make sure they don’t run into any other napping birds. It’s amazing that they barely sleep and they’re not even cranky!
Brown Bears
Brown bears are the best nap-takers ever! These massive creatures bulk up and then bed down for 5-6 months. Why do bears sleep so long? Bears hibernate to conserve their energy during the winter months when food is scarce. Some mother bears even give birth during hibernation. Mother and cub just curl up together. The baby nurses until spring when it’s time to go out into the world.
Which kind of funny animal do you resemble when you sleep? Do you like to snuggle in for a long sleep like the bears and sloths, or curl up with your buddies like the sharks and otters, or do you prefer to catch a quick nap like the frigatebird and giraffes and then get right back to being busy? Whichever way you sleep, there is probably an animal who thinks what you do is funny too.
