As humans, we live in homes for many of the same reasons animals live in homes, and just like animal homes, our human homes come in many different shapes and sizes, are built with a wide range of materials, and are built to withstand the climates in which we live.

A variety of factors affect the ability of wildlife to survive. An animal’s habitat must provide food, water, shelter from weather and predators, and a safe place to raise its young. Many animals, from ants and beavers to wolverines and yellow jackets, alter their surroundings to build their own homes. Children will be making observations of the animals and homes they find while outside.

Raccoons live throughout the continental United States in woods, wetlands, suburbs, parks, cities, and anywhere there is cover, food, and water. Predators of raccoons include the coyote, fisher, bobcat, red fox, and great horned owl.

Raccoons are omnivores, meaning they will eat both meat and vegetables. They like grasshoppers, nuts, berries, mice, squirrels, and bird eggs. They are nocturnal and search for food at night. Raccoons are opportunistic feeders and are well known by people for their skillful attempts at stealing food from garbage cans in parks and neighborhoods.

Raccoons can get food that other animals cannot because they have nimble, almost hand-like paws that can grasp tree branches, nuts, fruits, and even the lids of garbage cans.

Raccoons are solitary, except during the breeding season, which occurs from January to June. Females usually have one litter a year, with three to seven offspring per litter.

American robins are year-round visitors to suburban and rural settings. A male robin is often easier to identify than a female. Males have rust-colored feathers on their chest, a yellow bill, a black head, and white outlines around their eyes. They also have gray wings and backs. Female robins look similar to males, but their colors are much duller and sometimes blend, making identification difficult. Males are also easier to identify because only male robins sing their “cheerily, cheer up” song. This song is usually heard in the early morning, before and after sunrise. Robins also sing at dusk or when it’s about to rain.

American robins live in woodlands, suburban backyards, parks, and grasslands with shrubs. Robins can be found year-round in the continental United States, and some migrate north to spend summers in Alaska. Squirrels, snakes, and other birds have been known to eat robin eggs and chicks. Predators to adult robins include hawks, snakes, and cats. These birds are easily spotted hopping around city parks and lawns, searching for food in flocks. They have flexible diets and will eat whatever is most readily accessible, which can be dependent on the season. Robins often depend more on insects and earthworms in the spring, and consume more fruits and berries during the colder winter months.

Like all insects, a bee’s body is divided into three parts: a head with two antennae, a thorax with six legs, and an abdomen. All bees have branched hairs somewhere on their bodies and two pairs of wings. Only female bees have stingers. Many bee species have black and yellow coloration, but many do not—they come in various colors, including green, blue, red, or black. Some are striped, and some even have a metallic sheen. They range in size from large carpenter bees and bumblebees to the tiny Perdita minima bee, which is less than two millimeters long.

There are over 20,000 bee species worldwide, including the honey bee, which originated in Eurasia and has been imported worldwide as a domesticated species. Wild bee species live on every continent except Antarctica. In North America, there are approximately 4,000 native bee species occupying ecosystems from forests to deserts to grasslands. Bees feed exclusively on sugary nectar and protein-rich pollen from flowering plants, unlike the predatory wasps from which they evolved. As they forage, bees perform the critical act of pollination. Bees pollinate a staggering 80 percent of all flowering plants, including approximately 75% percent of the fruits, nuts, and vegetables grown in the United States. Though all female bees can sting, they only do so when threatened.

Unlike the hive-forming domesticated honey bee or wild bumble bee species, most bees are solitary nesters. They don’t form hives, create honey, or live a communal lifestyle. Instead, they lay their eggs in a series of tiny chambers in tunnels in the ground, hollow plant stems, or decaying wood.