Raining poop! Clouds of moths! Leafless summer trees! Sound too strange to be real? It's not!
Welcome to the creepy, crawly, chaotic world of the spongy moth! This bug-filled adventure is part history, part science, and part first-hand experience. It tells the story of an invasive species that's been chewing through North American forests, annoying humans, and creating unpleasant outbreaks for over 150 years.
Travel back to the 1800s to learn how a curious and well-intentioned amateur entomologist started this problem. Meet a modern-day scientist who's been studying these pesky bugs for over 30 years. Find out how acorns, mice, birds, mammals, weather, and fungi can play a role in a spongy moth outbreak.
Perfect for curious kids ages 8-12 who love weird nature facts, yucky bug stories, and real-life science. This book shows how even icky creatures can teach us something about our world.
Grade Level: 4 - 6
Lexile: 780L
Perfect for: educators, librarians, homeschoolers, environmental education programs, science kits
This story provides literary support for several Disciplinary Core Ideas, such as Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems, Food Webs, Interdependence, Biodiversity, Cause and Effect in Ecosystems, Resilience, and Human Impact. And Cross-Cutting Concepts such as Cause and Effect, Patterns, Stability and Change, Systems and System Models.
Great for parents looking for:
- nature books for kids
- books about ecosystems for children
- environment books for children
- children's books about insects
- children's books about invasive species
- ecology books for kids
Dorna Schroeter, who has over 40 years of experience in environmental education, Education for Sustainability, and biomimicry. She is the author of three other books, the award-winning We Are One: A User's Guide for Young Earthlings, and two books in the series, "How an Idea from Nature Changed Our World", "The Story of Velcro", and "The Story of Eco-Machines".
Natalia Chervochkova has told children many stories with the help of illustrations. She works in the field of book graphics and marketing projects for children for over 10 years. She loves to spend time in her rose garden and taking care of plants. Natalia believes that the most complex things can be explained to children in the simple language of pictures and humor.