🌴 Rainforest animal reports, grades 3–4
14 sheets, one animal each, so every child in a group gets a different one. Pick another set or one animal.
My report: the tiger
Panthera tigris · Grades 3–4
| Length | 7.2 to 9.8 ft (2.2 to 3 m) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | 249 to 375 lb (113 to 170 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 15 years |
Read about it
Every tiger's stripes are different, like a fingerprint. The stripes break up its shape in tall grass and shadows, so deer don't see it coming. Unlike most cats, tigers enjoy water and are strong swimmers.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- US Fish and Wildlife Service, Federal Register 2010 (tiger delisting petition 90-day finding), federalregister.gov/d/2010-19895, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the three-toed sloth
Bradypus variegatus · Grades 3–4
| Length | not checked yet: look it up! |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | not checked yet: look it up! |
Read about it
A sloth eats leaves, which give very little energy, so it saves energy by moving slowly and resting a lot. Green algae grow in its fur and help it blend in with the leaves. It climbs down to the ground only about once a week, to go to the bathroom.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- No checked numbers yet: find them in a library book and write the book here.
My report: the asian elephant
Elephas maximus · Grades 3–4
| Length | not checked yet: look it up! |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | 5.9 to 12 ft (1.8 to 3.8 m) |
| Weight | 3 to 6 tons (2.8 to 5.4 tonnes) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 47 years |
Read about it
An Asian elephant's trunk ends in one finger-like tip, while an African elephant's has two. Only some males grow long tusks. Asian elephants live in family herds led by an older female, and they need lots of water and plants every day.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- Smithsonian's National Zoo, nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/asian-elephant, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the western gorilla
Gorilla gorilla · Grades 3–4
| Length | not checked yet: look it up! |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | 5.9 ft (1.8 m) |
| Weight | 300 to 500 lb (136 to 227 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 30 to 40 years |
Read about it
A troop is led by an older male called a silverback, because the hair on his back turns silvery gray as he grows up. He keeps the troop safe and leads it to where the best food grows. Gorillas spend most of the day eating, and they thump their chests to show how strong they are.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- Smithsonian's National Zoo, Western lowland gorilla, nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/western-lowland-gorilla, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the chimpanzee
Pan troglodytes · Grades 3–4
| Length | not checked yet: look it up! |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | 3.9 ft (1.2 m) |
| Weight | 130 lb (59 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | not checked yet: look it up! |
Read about it
Chimpanzees live in big groups called communities, and they spend the day finding fruit, leaves and insects. A chimp can strip the leaves off a twig and poke it into a termite mound, or crack a nut open with a rock. Friends keep close by grooming, which means picking through each other's fur.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- US Fish and Wildlife Service, Federal Register 2015 (Listing All Chimpanzees as Endangered), federalregister.gov/documents/2015/06/16/2015-14232/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-and-plants-listing-all-chimpanzees-as-endangered-species, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the bornean orangutan
Pongo pygmaeus · Grades 3–4
| Length | not checked yet: look it up! |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | 170 to 220 lb (77 to 100 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 27 years |
Read about it
Orangutans spend almost all their time in the treetops, swinging along with their long arms. Their feet grip branches almost as well as their hands do. A mother teaches her baby which fruits are good to eat and stays close to it for many years.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- Smithsonian's National Zoo, Orangutan, nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/orangutan, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the jaguar
Panthera onca · Grades 3–4
| Length | 4.9 to 7.9 ft (1.5 to 2.4 m) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | 79 to 348 lb (36 to 158 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 10 to 15 years |
Read about it
A jaguar's coat has rosettes, which are rings of spots with little dots inside. They help it hide in the dappled light of the forest. It swims and climbs well, and often hunts near rivers for fish, turtles and capybaras.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- US Fish and Wildlife Service, Jaguar species profile, fws.gov/species/jaguar-panthera-onca, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the capybara
Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris · Grades 3–4
| Length | 3.9 ft (1.2 m) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | 24 in (61 cm) |
| Weight | 150 lb (68 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 12 years |
Read about it
A capybara is a rodent, a cousin of guinea pigs and rats, but much bigger. Its eyes, ears and nose sit high on its head, so it can keep them above the water while the rest of it floats. Its feet are partly webbed, which helps it paddle.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- US Geological Survey, Nonindigenous Aquatic Species: capybara profile, nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=2587, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the scarlet macaw
Ara macao · Grades 3–4
| Length | 33 to 35 in (84 to 89 cm) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | 2 to 3.3 lb (900 g to 1.5 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | not checked yet: look it up! |
Read about it
Scarlet macaws use their strong beaks to crack open nuts and seeds, and to climb through the branches. They fly in pairs or in flocks, calling to each other with loud squawks. Many macaws gather at muddy riverbanks to eat clay, which may help them with the seeds they eat.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- US Fish and Wildlife Service proposed rule, Federal Register 6 July 2012, federalregister.gov/documents/2012/07/06/2012-16445/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-and-plants-listing-the-scarlet-macaw, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the green anaconda
Eunectes murinus · Grades 3–4
| Length | 26 ft (8 m) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | 551 lb (250 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 10 years |
Read about it
A green anaconda spends most of its time in the water, where its heavy body moves more easily. It is not venomous. After a big meal, an anaconda may not need to eat again for a long time.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- US Geological Survey, Nonindigenous Aquatic Species: green anaconda profile, nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.aspx?speciesID=2636, checked 2026-10-30
- Smithsonian's National Zoo, Green anaconda, nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/green-anaconda, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the golden poison frog
Phyllobates terribilis · Grades 3–4
| Length | 0.59 to 2.4 in (1.5 to 6.2 cm) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 10 years |
Read about it
The skin of the golden poison frog holds a strong poison, and its bright color is a warning to other animals. Scientists think the frog gets its poison from the ants and beetles it eats in the wild, because frogs raised in care are not poisonous. Never touch a wild frog, whatever color it is.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- US Geological Survey, Nonindigenous Aquatic Species: poison dart frog (Dendrobates sp.) profile, nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.aspx?speciesID=51, checked 2026-10-30
- Smithsonian's National Zoo, Poison frogs, nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/poison-frogs, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the goliath frog
Conraua goliath · Grades 3–4
| Length | 13 in (32 cm) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | 7.3 lb (3.3 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | not checked yet: look it up! |
Read about it
A goliath frog lives beside rushing rivers and waterfalls in African rainforest. It has no vocal sac, the pouch other frogs use to make loud calls, so it is almost silent. It clears small pools by moving stones and lays its eggs there.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- Federal Register (US Fish and Wildlife Service), federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/text/1994/12/08/94-30132.txt, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the red-bellied piranha
Pygocentrus nattereri · Grades 3–4
| Length | 12 in (31 cm) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | 4 lb (1.8 kg) |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | 10 years |
Read about it
A piranha's teeth are sharp and shaped like little triangles that fit together. The scary stories about piranhas are mostly made up. Most of the time they eat insects, small fish and seeds, and they swim in groups, which keeps each fish safer.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- Smithsonian's National Zoo, Red-bellied piranha, nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/red-bellied-piranha, checked 2026-10-30
My report: the leafcutter ant
Atta cephalotes · Grades 3–4
| Length | 0.079 to 0.47 in (2 mm to 1.2 cm) |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Weight | not checked yet: look it up! |
| Top speed | not checked yet: look it up! |
| How long it lives | not checked yet: look it up! |
Read about it
Leafcutter ants don't eat the leaves. They carry them underground and chew them into a paste that feeds a fungus the ants grow like a garden. The ants then eat the fungus, and tiny ants sometimes ride on the leaf pieces to guard the carriers.
Where it lives (its habitat):
What it eats:
How its body helps it live there:
My favorite fact:
A question I still have:
Where my facts came from
- National Park Service, Park Science: leafcutter ant Atta mexicana at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, nps.gov/articles/parkscience34-1_32-42_mintzer_3876.htm, checked 2026-10-30