SNOWY TUNDRA
How do Arctic animals make warm homes in the cold? Snow falls and fierce winds blow across this frozen land, called the polar tundra. Many animals build their homes under a blanket of snow or shelter out of the wind.
In the spring, all kinds of animals come out of their snowy dens. The weather is warmer, the days are longer and a few shoots begin to show. It’s time to search for food and make nests for new babies.
On a hillside, an Arctic fox hides out of the wind in a burrow, or hole. The fox curls its tail around its body to keep warm. The Arctic fox’s coat changes colour to blend in with its Arctic home. In winter, the coat is white as snow. In spring, it’s speckled like the rocky tundra.
FIND IT
Can you spot the animals on this list? You’ll need the magic lens to find some of them!
A female Arctic hare lines her stony shelter with moss and fur to make a cosy nest. Soon, she will give birth to a litter of up to eight baby hares, called leverets.
All winter long, a group of lemmings crowds into a burrow with tunnels. Above, a layer of snow keeps the warmth inside their home. The lemmings eat roots growing down from the surface. In the spring, the lemmings come above ground to eat fresh buds and leaves. 6
Find the Arctic animals in their burrows, nests and dens. LOOK INSIDE
A pair of eider ducks soars over the tundra. They’re looking for a safe place to make a nest, somewhere hidden from predators. The female lines the nest with soft downy feathers from her chest. This will help to keep her newborn chicks warm.
An Arctic ground squirrel pops up from its underground home, where it spent all winter. Straight away, it starts preparing for its sleep, or hibernation, next winter by fattening up on spring grasses and fruits.
A couple of snowy owls makes a nest on the cold ground. They build out of the wind so snow won’t blow inside the nest. The female scrapes at the rocks, presses the nest with her body and adds a layer of feathers. Then she sits on her eggs.
A wolverine walks away from her snowy den under a heap of large rocks. She has given birth to two babies, called kits. Now she’s hungry! Large paws, long claws and sharp teeth help her to hunt hares and ground squirrels on the snowy plains. She takes some of this food back to the den and buries some to eat later.
Where are polar bears born?
In the middle of the Arctic winter, polar bear cubs are born in a cosy, sheltered den. It is biting cold outside. The newborns are tiny, toothless and blind, with just a thin layer of fur. But the den is safe and warm. Here, the mother feeds her cubs until spring when they will be big and strong enough to go outside in search of food.
EXTREME HEAT
How do animals make homes and keep cool in the hottest places?
Animals use ingenious ways to protect themselves from the burning sunshine.
For some animals, such as Indian harvester ants, jerboas or great desert skinks, it’s a huge task to build a cool home. So, they work as a team. But a fennec fox and a Mojave tortoise dig an underground burrow for themselves. A kangaroo has a unique way of protecting its young in the extreme heat.
Where is a baby kangaroo kept safe?
In the Australian outback, a kangaroo mum provides a snug home for her baby, called a joey. She keeps her joey safe in a pouch of skin on her belly. When the joey is born, it’s the size of a jellybean. The joey drinks milk from its mother’s pouch until it is big and strong enough to live by itself.
Why do Indian harvester ants build a round nest?
These ants have a clever way to keep themselves cool and dry. Above ground, they build spiralling mud walls to stop their nest from flooding during heavy monsoon rains. The nests are built on a slant and the spiralling channels guide the rainwater away. Underground, the ants build tunnels with cool, narrow passageways to protect themselves from the beating, hot sun.
How does a fennec fox use its furry feet to build its home?
In the Sahara Desert, a fennec fox uses its feet like shovels to dig a sandy, underground den. The fox’s feet are covered in thick fur and act like shoes so it can walk over the burning sand. The fox also has huge ears that give off heat and help to keep its body cool.
How does a tortoise avoid the heat of the desert?
A Mojave tortoise escapes the fierce heat of the sun in a cool underground burrow, where it spends most of its time. The tortoise is cold-blooded and so the same temperature as its surroundings. By sleeping through extremely hot periods in its underground burrow, the tortoise can survive on very little food.
LOOK INSIDE
Find out how animals stay cool in the hot sun.
Which animal has more than one underground home?
Jerboas live in hot deserts and steppes, or dry grassy plains. They dig themselves many homes with their feet and teeth. To keep cool in the summer, a female digs a burrow close to the surface, where she looks after her pups. To stay warm in the winter, the jerboa digs another burrow, deeper underground. A jerboa might also build an away-day burrow, where it stays when out hunting.
What do great desert skinks build together?
Great desert skinks are burrowing lizards that live in the Australian desert. They work together to dig a huge underground home. There are rooms for adults, sharing rooms for brothers and sisters, plus a separate room where all the skinks can go to the toilet.
summer burrow
winter burrow
BEAVERS’ LODGE
How do beavers construct a home?
Beavers gnaw down trees and branches on the riverbank, then swim with the logs to the middle of the river where they build their home. It is called a lodge.
First, the beavers prepare the construction site by building a high wall across the river. This is called a dam. It creates a safe pond in the river for their new home, which will have an underwater entrance and a dry room for all the family.
A family of up to eight beavers works together to build a dam and a lodge
Often, the beavers build at night.
Trip after trip, the beavers gather branches, stones and mud from the banks of the river and the river bed. They use this material to build a dam Eventually, the dam shows above the water’s surface.
Behind the dam, a deep pool forms. This is where the beavers will build their lodge on a private island. It will be far away from the riverbank and predators, such as bears, wolves and coyotes.
A beaver gnaws the base of a tree with its sharp front teeth, called incisors. Once it has chewed away enough of the trunk, it lets the wind blow the top section over.
As the beaver swims, the river helps it to carry the heavy logs. A beaver spends lots of time in the water swimming and building. It has a thick, waterproof coat of fur that keeps it warm and dry.
See-through eyelids help a beaver to see what it’s building underwater. It’s a bit like wearing goggles. A beaver can also close its nose and ears and stay underwater for up to 15 minutes.
The beavers build an underwater entrance straight into the dry part of the lodge.
It’s warm in the living chamber, where there are places for eating and sleeping. The beavers eat from an underwater store of food they collect in the autumn.
A beaver’s body is designed to swim fast. It can twist and turn in the water. A beaver also has a flat tail that works like a rudder and large webbed back feet that move up and down for speed.
The lodge is built on a dome-shaped foundation, so the lower parts of the lodge are wet and the higher part is dry
FIND IT
Can you spot everything on this list? You’ll need the magic lens to find some of them!
In the nursery, female beavers look after young beavers, called kits.
incisors
waterproof coat
see-through eyelids
underwater entrance
living chamber
nursery webbed back feet
foundation
emergency exit
There’s an emergency exit so the beavers can swim away from danger quickly. This exit is deep and usually doesn’t freeze in cold weather. lodge dam pool
Author: Jane Wilsher
Illustrator: Laurie Avon
Price: £14.99
Size: 250 x 250 mm
ANIMAL HOMES
Extent: 48 pages
Pub date: 11th Sep 2025
Age: 7+ years
ISBN: 978-1-8046614-7-5
Author – Jane Wilsher
Format: Hardback / Novelty
An exclusive invitation into your favourite animals’ homes! Use the magic lens to see through, peek behind and tunnel deep into bear dens, armadillo burrows, termite nests, beehives, bat tents, squirrel dreys and more. Have you ever wondered what’s going on inside nests, dens, hives, burrows and other animal homes? Deep underground, high up in the mountains and way down at the bottom of the sea, animals make extraordinary homes in surprising places and in ingenious ways. Use the magic lens to look inside these clever constructions and discover all the amazing ways animals make themselves at home in their habitat.
• The third book in the successful Marvellous Magic Lens series, featuring a ‘magic lens’ that reveals hidden illustrations. The magic lens is stored neatly in the front cover. It adds an interactive element, inviting readers to explore their favourite scenes further.
• Bright and detailed illustrations make every spread a visual feast – there’s more to see every time you look.
• Accessible text offers a fun and informative reading experience, explaining scientific concepts clearly and evocatively.
• Features a broad range of animal homes and habitats, including Arctic scenes with snowy owls and polar bears; water homes with otters and parrotfish; tropical rainforests with sloths, snakes and jaguars; and mountain scenes with snow leopards and red pandas
Jane lives in London, and is a writer, editor and publisher of award-winning non-fiction books for children. She enjoys commissioning and making fun fact-packed titles for kids, who tend to ask the best kind of tricky questions. Jane enjoys spending a day out at the museums and art galleries, which are packed with inspiration for new book ideas.
Illustrator – Laurie Avon
Laurie is a freelance illustrator and printmaker based in Brighton. His process is primarily digital, with a focus on narrative, character and handmade textures. His clients include the National Theatre, the Observer, the Guardian, Penguin Books and BBC History.
BOUNCE SALES & MARKETING
320 City Road, London EC1V 2NZ Tel: 020 7138 3650 • Fax: 020 7138 3658 sales@bouncemarketing.co.uk
ORDERS – Macmillan Distribution Limited, Cromwell Place, International Business Park, Lime Tree Way, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG24 8YJ, UK • orders@macmillan.co.uk
WHAT ON EARTH! –
The Black Barn, Wickhurst Farm, Tonbridge, Kent, TN11 8PS, UK
Tel: 01732 464621 • info@whatonearthbooks.com whatonearthbooks.com
linkedin.com/company/what-on-earth-publishing
@whatonearth_books
@whatonearthbook