Many arctic animals change color from brown in the summer to white in the winter as a camouflage mechanism to blend in with their surroundings and avoid predation. The document discusses an activity where children look at pictures of arctic animals like snowy owls and arctic foxes in different seasons and place cut-out pictures of the animals on summer and winter backgrounds to see how their brown or white fur helps them blend in depending on if there is snow on the ground.

2. Arctic Animal Camouflage Activity
Objective: To understand why many arctic animals change colors from brown in the summer to white in the winter. Directions: Look at pictures
of arctic animals in the summer and fall. (One good resource for this is http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/photos/arctic-animals/). Talk
about how when there is snow on the ground, animals like the snowy owl, arctic fox, arctic hare are white and when there is no snow they are
brown. Talk about how their color helps them blend into their surroundings so that predators cannot see them as well. Then, cut out the animal
pictures on the next page. Have your child place the animals on the “arctic land in summer” and “arctic land in the winter” squares. Have your
child compare the degree to which the animals are camouflaged in the summer and winter with their brown or white fur.
Arctic land in summer Arctic land in winter
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