Hey there! I’m Jay, and I want to share a story from when I was a kid. My family lived near a city with lots of traffic and tall buildings, but behind our house, there was a magical forest. Sometimes, we had special visitors like deer. They would munch on our flowers, which was a bit annoying, but it reminded us that we shared our world with wild animals.
Today, we’re going to talk about a great question from someone named Kesiah: Why do animals become endangered?
When an animal is endangered, it means that there aren’t many of them left, and they might disappear forever. If there are none left, that’s called extinction. But why do animals become endangered?
To understand why animals become endangered, let’s think about what they need to stay healthy. All animals need food, safety, space to move, and a safe place to have babies. The place where they find all these things is called their habitat. Different animals have different habitats because they need different things.
For example, a lizard might love a sunny desert with rocks and ants to eat. But a salmon, which is a type of fish, wouldn’t like it there at all because it’s too hot and dry!
Our planet has changed a lot over the years. Sometimes, these changes make it hard for animals to find the right habitat. Imagine a lake drying up. The fish living there wouldn’t survive without water. If they can’t find a new home, they might become extinct.
Humans can also change animal habitats. Let’s look at the bald eagle. Bald eagles live near water and tall trees because they eat fish and build nests high up to protect their eggs. But many years ago, bald eagles became endangered.
Scientists found out that a chemical called DDT was causing problems. People used DDT to kill pests, but it ended up in rivers where fish lived. When bald eagles ate these fish, it made it hard for them to have healthy babies.
Pollution is when harmful things get into nature. For example, a sea turtle might get stuck in trash in the ocean. If it can’t get free, it won’t be able to live a healthy life. Luckily, people can help by cleaning up trash and pollution.
In 1972, the US made it illegal to spray DDT outdoors. This helped bald eagles have more healthy babies. People also built tall platforms for eagle nests, giving them a safe place to live even when trees were scarce.
Thanks to these changes, there are now many more bald eagles. We can all help protect animals by keeping our environment clean and making sure they have what they need to survive.
That’s all for today! Remember, every animal has a special place they call home. When we take care of our world, we help keep these amazing creatures safe. Keep asking questions and stay curious about the world around you!
Animal Habitat Exploration: Take a walk in your neighborhood or a nearby park with an adult. Look for different animals or signs of animals, like birds, squirrels, or insects. Observe where they live and what they might eat. Draw a picture of one animal you see and its habitat. Think about what would happen if their habitat changed. Share your drawing and thoughts with your class.
Endangered Animal Research: Choose an endangered animal you are curious about. With the help of an adult, find out where it lives, what it eats, and why it is endangered. Create a small poster with pictures and facts about your animal. Present your poster to your family or friends and explain how people can help protect this animal.
Pollution Cleanup Activity: Organize a mini cleanup day with your family in your backyard or a local park. Collect any trash you find and think about how it might affect animals living there. Discuss with your family how reducing waste and recycling can help protect animal habitats. Write a short story about an animal that finds a cleaner, safer home because of your efforts.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
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(device ringing)(notification chiming) – Hey, it’s Jay. When I was a kid, my family lived on the edge of a city. We didn’t have to go far from home to see traffic and tall buildings, but behind our house was a forest. Occasionally, we’d get visits from our wilder neighbors, like deer. Sometimes, deer poking around our yard was annoying because they ate our flowers, but it was also a reminder that we shared our space with wild animals.
Someone named Kesiah has a question about the animals we share the world with. Let’s call Kesiah now. (device ringing)(notification chiming) – Hi, Jay. – Hi, Kesiah. – I have a question. Why do animals become endangered? – Great question. An animal is considered endangered when that species is in trouble. When there are zero of a species left, that’s called extinction. An endangered species is a species in danger of extinction.
But what makes a species go extinct? To answer that question, it might help to think about the opposite: What keeps a species healthy? Now would be a good time to pause the video and discuss. Okay, ready? All animals need certain things to stay alive and healthy, like food, protection from danger, room to move, and a safe place to have babies. The place an animal lives that has the things it needs is its habitat. Different animals have different habitats because they need different things.
This desert has everything this lizard needs: sunny rocks to warm up on, ants to eat, and sand for burrowing. But imagine if this salmon tried to live here. Yikes, way too hot and dry! This is a terrible habitat for a salmon. Our planet has gone through lots of changes over the years. As the Earth changes naturally, sometimes a species can no longer find a habitat that has what it needs. For example, imagine a lake slowly drying up. The fish that live in the water won’t be able to survive on dry ground, right? If they can’t find more water, they won’t survive. In the end, sometimes a species that loses its habitat goes extinct.
But there’s something else that can make big changes to animal habitats: humans. Let’s take a closer look at how this happened for one kind of animal. This is a bald eagle. Bald eagles live in many places from Alaska to Mexico. They tend to live in places that have water, like rivers or lakes, and tall trees. Bald eagles eat fish that live in bodies of water, and they build nests in tall trees to protect their eggs.
Many years ago, bald eagles became endangered. Even in places where bald eagles had tall trees to live in and lots of fish to eat, they still weren’t having many healthy babies, and wildlife experts were confused why. The answer turned out to be something hidden. Years earlier, scientists had discovered a chemical called DDT, which was used to kill pests. People sprayed it on their farms, lawns, parks, and even public pools. But DDT didn’t always stay where it was sprayed; sometimes, it dripped into streams and rivers. Fish in those rivers soaked up DDT.
When bald eagles ate fish loaded with DDT, it made it hard for them to have healthy babies. Chemicals like DDT aren’t the only thing that can cause harm. This sea turtle is swimming in its habitat, the ocean, but it got caught in trash. If the turtle stays stuck, it won’t be able to lead a healthy life and have healthy babies. When something harmful gets into nature, it’s called pollution. Luckily, in this case, divers cut the sea turtle free. Still, pollution is a problem in many habitats around the world, but we can help solve this problem.
In 1972, the US passed a law making it illegal to spray DDT outdoors. As people stopped spraying DDT where it could enter bald eagle habitats, they started having more healthy babies. While leftover DDT in natural spaces may continue to be a challenge, limiting the flow of new DDT into animal habitats was an important first step. People also took steps to protect bald eagle habitats in other ways, like building tall platforms perfect for nesting. These help bald eagles find what they need, even in areas where trees have become more scarce.
Because of changes like these, there are now many more bald eagles than there once were. So in summary, every animal has a habitat, the place they live that has the things they need to stay alive and healthy. When habitats change naturally over time or when humans harm or pollute animal habitats, the species that live there might not have what they need anymore. Sometimes, they become endangered. Still, there’s a lot we can do to protect animals and their habitats and help keep species from going extinct.
We can keep our streets free of trash so it doesn’t end up where it can harm animals like sea turtles, and we can help endangered animals near us find what they need, like by building platforms for eagle nests. Small changes to how we live can keep habitats healthy for us and the incredible animals we share the world with.
That’s all for this week’s question. Thanks for asking, Kesiah. We’re going to be answering one more question about endangered animals. We picked out three questions sent in to us that we’re thinking about answering. When this video’s done playing, you’ll get to vote on one. You can choose from: Why does it matter if an animal’s endangered? How long does it take an endangered species to become extinct? Or how do we protect endangered animals? So submit your vote when the video’s over. We want to hear from all of you watching. There are mysteries all around us. Stay curious and see you next week.
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