NATURE
There are loads of plants and animals in Mexico. It’s very biodiverse, which means there are lots of different types of landscapes in a small area - like deserts, grasslands and mountains.
There are many wonderful animals to be found there.
Mexico also played an important role in the extinction of the dinosaurs.
Let’s find out more...
Activity 9: Monarch Butterflies
Every year millions of Monarch Butterflies fly 4,000 kilometres from Canada to spend the winter in Mexico, sort of like a holiday.
They cluster in thousands on trees, sometimes as many as 20 million in one small area.
You can see a video if you click the button below
Can you match the correct puzzle pieces to the picture? The letters will spell out a word.
What word does it spell? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
(this is the Spanish word for butterfly) ⭐
Activity 10: Animals of Mexico
Can you read about these Mexican animals then rearrange the letters to spell their names? You might have to do some research!
You can also download a version to print out
Don’t forget to look for the star! That’s the answer to this activity.
Activity 11: Where did the dinosaurs go?
Millions of years ago, before there were humans, dinosaurs roamed the earth.
Some dinosaurs were bigger than double-decker buses and much scarier. The dinosaurs were alive for 140 million years (humans have only been alive for 6 million years!). But they disappeared from the earth at almost exactly the same time in a mass extinction.
Did you know that this almost certainly happened because of an amazing, earth-shattering event in Mexico?
Let’s learn more…
Deep underground in Mexico, there is a giant hole, 93 miles wide and 12 miles deep. This hole is called the Chicxulub crater.
(pronounced chick-zoo-lub)
It was caused by a giant asteroid, a flaming lump of rock from outer space, which travelled towards the earth at 30,000 miles per hour and hit Mexico with a humongous crash!
It left a huge hole behind. But this was just the start. The asteroid caused a huge tidal wave in the sea, called a mega-tsunami, which was one mile high in places.
A huge cloud of dust and ash spread from the crater and shock waves caused earthquakes and volcanic eruptions all over the world.
The dust and ash from the volcanoes blocked the sunlight, leading to freezing temperatures everywhere which caused most of the plants to die.
So the dinosaurs died from:
drowning in the tidal wave
from the extreme cold (they had no fur to keep them warm!), or
from starvation because there was nothing left for them to eat
Only a few creatures survived - some flying creatures, some swimming creatures and some who could shelter underground, like frogs. These survivors became some animals we know today like ducks, crocodiles and salamanders. All the other dinosaurs died.
So, which of these words go with which symbol?
Volcano, tsunami, mass extinction, asteroid
Remember, the one with the star is the answer to the activity!
Activity 12: Cacti Sudoku
Cacti are prickly plants which grow in the desert. They need hardly any water to survive. They have spikes on the outside to stop animals eating them.
There are lots of cacti in Mexico. People use them for medicine, food and decoration.
Have you ever done a sudoku? Below you’ll find a special cacti sudoku. Each of six cacti can only be placed once in every row, column and rectangle of six squares. Fill in the missing cacti.
(If you find it difficult, try replacing the cacti with numbers 1 til 6)
