Animal Babies Born in Spring
We tend to associate springtime with renewal. Depending on where you are, it’s likely the weather will start to get a touch warmer and with that green will be the predominant hue as the grass starts to grow and the trees start to bud. It might surprise you that some animals have babies in spring following this timeline too. Here we get to know some animals born in the spring. You just might spot one in your neck of the woods!
Baby Foxes
Unlike humans, fox life cycles are specific. For foxes, life begins in spring! In the northern hemisphere, March (yes right now!) is the highest birth rate for foxes. A female fox will give birth in a den. A den, or burrow as it is sometimes called, is dug into the ground, and used to raise cubs and store food. The female fox stays with her cubs in the den while the male fox brings back food. The cubs are reliant on their mother for warmth in this early stage. It takes about a month before the cubs venture out on their own. They will start to molt their initial coats for a thinner ‘summer’ coat. If you can believe it by Fall, they will be almost full grown.
Baby Bear Cubs
Baby Deer
White-tailed deer are found in many parts of the United States, Canada and even in Central America. Since mating season occurs in the fall, springtime is when white-tail doe tend to give birth. One fun fact is that most doe give birth to a single fawn the first time. However, the following years they are more likely to have twins and, in some cases, even triplets! White-tailed doe frequently return to the same place every spring to give birth. For the first few weeks, the doe will nurse her fawns 2-3 times a day. Similarly to foxes, after about a month the fawn will start to venture out. It takes 2 months with mom before these babies are ready to be alone. Oh deer.
Do-it-Yourself Fizzy Dino Surprise!
Welcome back to our craft and activity corner! Easter is just around the corner and we wanted to scramble the usual chocolate egg hunt formula with an Easter egg craft. (Not that we would ever argue with extra chocolate – that would just be crazy.) If you have some Terra small dinosaurs or other small animal figurines, we have a fizzy and fantastic DIY Dino Egg Surprise to try! Here’s what you will need:
Take a peek at the DIY Fizzy Dino Egg Surprise full process below in this Youtube video. This activity makes 3 fizzy egg surprises
Tools:
- Whisk
- Bowl
- Plastic Egg Molds (find these at your local dollar store)
Ingredients:
- Baking Soda 1/2 cup
- Citric Acid 1/4 cup
- Cornstarch 1/4 cup
- Vegetable Oil 4 tsp
- Water 1 tbs
- 3 drops of food coloring
In a bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (baking soda, citric acid, and cornstarch). In a separate bowl, mix wet ingredients together (vegetable oil, water, and food coloring). Slowly add the wet ingredients to dry mix while whisking. Complete this until fully mixed.
In a plastic Easter egg, pour the mixture in to one half, and place your toy in the center. Fill the other egg half with the mixture and close the two parts together. Tap the sides of the egg to be sure the mixture doesn’t stick to the egg. Leave them to dry overnight.
The next day, open your egg to find a mystery fizzy dinosaur egg! Place in water to reveal the surprise inside!
