NOCTURNAL CREATURES
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In This Lesson:
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After this lesson you should be able to answer the questions: How do animals see in the dark? Do humans have night vision? And, How does light affect night vision? These are the supplies you'll need.
Night can be filled with all kinds of mystery! Join Midnight and Treebeard and see if you can help figure out this creepy conundrum!
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Cat Video 1
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Check it Out! All you need for this activity is a dark room and your device!
What you’ll need:
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Cat Video 2
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Pirate Video
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Humans have the protein called “Rhodopsin”, but animals who live at night need different adaptations to live their whole lives in the dark. |
First, watch the TED video to learn more about adaptations in the ways eyes are built to help creatures see in the dark! Then, watch the Nat Geo Wild! video to see how those adaptations help specific animals. Lastly, after the video, write down at least two adaptations animals have in their eyes and what animal they belong to!
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Think about the question, What did you think the coolest adaptation was in the video? While humans do have night vision, ours is not as good as animals who live their whole lives in the dark. Check out this next fun experiment to see it in action! No Journal needed for this one, just have fun!
What you’ll need:
This experiment works best with objects you’re not familiar with, so if you can, have an adult or another person (like a brother or sister) pick colored objects for you and place them in the container. This also works great if done right after your pirate activity.
What you’ll need:
- 6-8 Brightly colored markers or pens / brightly colored objects (like clothes or paper)
- A bag or container to fit all your items
- A dark room or area (like a bedroom with the curtains drawn or a pantry/closet you can safely be in and close the door
- Take your container of items into your dark space
- Pull out one item. Examine it. What does it feel like? Does it look different in the dark than you thought it would? What color is it?
- Make a mental note of the objects color and set it aside. Pull out one more object and repeat step 2.
- Turn on the light or enter a brighter space and examine your objects, do they look like you thought they would?
This experiment works best with objects you’re not familiar with, so if you can, have an adult or another person (like a brother or sister) pick colored objects for you and place them in the container. This also works great if done right after your pirate activity.
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Why did I make different observations in the dark than in the light?
Rhodopsin helps humans see in the dark by helping our eyes detect light more, but it only makes the parts of our eyes that see shapes and outlines stronger. That means details like color or pattern are lost in the dark; our vision in the dark is like watching a black and white movie! |
Song video from ROEE
All the things you can do in the dark
Nocturnal animals live their whole lives in the dark, so there’s lots of other adaptations they can have that help them survive in their environment. Can you think of a few?
All the ones you thought of (and the ones you didn’t) are influenced by being in the dark. Just like we get tired when the sun goes down and start to wake up when the sun comes up every morning, nocturnal animals use sunlight (or the absence of it) to know when to eat, sleep, and mate.
Have you ever been in a car at night and been practically blinded by the LED headlights of a car going the other way? After learning all about the special features these night time creatures have and doing your pirate experiment, you might not be surprised to hear that porch lights, street lights, and nighttime traffic can all hurt the eyes of nocturnal animals. Watch this video to see just a few ways you can help your new friends of the dark live better lives:
After watching the video, write one way you can reduce your light pollution in your nature journal. Challenge yourself to do this action for at least the rest of the week!
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Journaling Prompts:
Answer the following questions in your field journal or another piece of paper:
What surprised you the most about eyes and nocturnal creatures? How do humans see in the dark?
Answer the following questions in your field journal or another piece of paper:
What surprised you the most about eyes and nocturnal creatures? How do humans see in the dark?
Other Activities & Helpful Resources:
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Video: Out of Depth (Depth Perception Experiment) Experiment: The Red, White, and Blue (30 sec, no materials) Observation Guide: Observing Nocturnal Animals (Only go on nighttime adventures with the proper gear and an adult) |
