A life cycle is the different stages that an animal goes through during its life. All animals are born, grow, reproduce and eventually die. The life cycle will be different for different types of animals. For example, humans have babies, whereas birds and reptiles lay eggs. Some animals undergo metamorphosis – a sudden and noticeable change to the body’s structure and behavior. Butterflies undergo metamorphosis.
Like humans, all animals grow and change. They all vary in size and weight. Some animals change a lot as they grow.
They may have different body coverings when they are young to help to protect them or help them stand out so their parents can see them. For example, when silver leaf monkeys are young, they’re bright orange! As they get older, they turn a grey/black color. Some animals change color as the season’s change, like the Arctic fox, white during the winter, then grey in the summertime.
All these things are part of an animal’s life cycle! Can you think of any of the changes animals go through during their life cycle?
