Animals Classification
Primary 4 · Science and Elementary Technology
Animals Classification
Lesson 4 of 5
12 min
Let's begin
After school, Uwase gives fresh grass to her family's goats. The hen pecks at maize grains and a fat earthworm. Then the cat pounces on a rat near the store!
The goat, the hen and the cat all eat very different food. We can also group animals by what they eat.
Herbivores eat only plants: grass, leaves, fruits and seeds. Examples: cow, goat, sheep, rabbit, and the zebras and buffaloes of Akagera. They have wide, flat teeth for grinding plants.
Carnivores eat other animals. Examples: lion, leopard, hyena, cat, and the kite that swoops down to snatch a chick. They have long, sharp, pointed teeth or sharp beaks and claws for catching and tearing meat.
Some carnivores, like hyenas and vultures, often eat animals that are already dead. They are called scavengers. Carnivores that eat mostly insects, like many small birds and frogs, are sometimes called insectivores.
Omnivores eat both plants and animals. Examples: people, chickens, pigs, rats and baboons. You are an omnivore when you eat beans and rice with fish!
Omnivores often have both kinds of teeth: sharp ones at the front and flat ones at the back. Check your own teeth in a mirror.
| Teeth | What the animal eats |
|---|---|
| Flat, grinding teeth | Plants (herbivore) |
| Long, sharp, pointed teeth | Meat (carnivore) |
| Both kinds | Plants and meat (omnivore) |
Tip
HERB-ivore eats HERBS (plants). CARNI-vore eats CARNE (meat). OMNI-vore eats OMNI-thing: everything!
Try each one first, then tap Show answer to check.
A cow eats grass all day. What kind of eater is it?
Answer: A herbivore.
A hen eats maize grains and termites. What kind of eater is it?
Answer: An omnivore, because it eats plants (grains) and animals (termites).
What kind of teeth would you expect a leopard to have?
Answer: Long, sharp, pointed teeth for catching and tearing meat.
Is a hyena that eats a dead zebra it did not kill a scavenger?
Answer: Yes. A scavenger eats animals that are already dead.
What you learned today
Sources and credits
The exercises (Try it yourself and the practice questions) are written by Ganzaa.
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Quick check
A cow eats grass all day. What kind of eater is it?
