No, the hero shrew doesn't fly or rescue people from burning buildings. In fact, scientists are not quite sure what it does with its amazing adaptation! Take a closer look at a rodent with a most unusual spine with a video from a larger mammals playlist. The narrator discusses where to find the hero shrew, how it differs from other shrew, and what we think is the reason for its super-strong spinal column.

Concepts

mammals, animal anatomy, animal adaptations, rodents, making observations, making inferences, evolution

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Additional Tags

science

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Instructional Ideas

• Add the video to an adaptations or evolution lesson for a perfect example of both topics
• Provide pictures of a variety of other shrew so the class can compare them
  

Classroom Considerations

• Students should know a little about evolution and physical adaptations before watching the video
  

• This video is hosted on YouTube

Pros

• The resource does a fantastic job of illustrating the evolutionary process
• Scientists in the video explain how a hypothesis is generated and worked on across many labs and research teams
  

Cons

• None

Common Core

SL.6.2 SL.7.2 SL.9-10.2