Moulting

High school (ages 12+)
Animals & Nature

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/moulting

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the regulating hormones?Ecdysteroids are key hormones controlling moulting in arthropods
2. What is the taxonomic groups?Moulting is characteristic of Ecdysozoa, including arthropods and nematodes
3. What is moulting and why do animals do it?Moulting is when animals shed their old skin, feathers, or exoskeleton to grow and stay healthy. It helps them get bigger and repair damage.
4. How do insects know when to moult?Hormones called ecdysteroids tell the insect when to break down its old cuticle and grow a new, larger one.

Ecdysozoans: A major group of invertebrates characterized by the shedding of their cuticle during growth.
Cuticle: The non-cellular outer layer secreted by the epidermis, forming an exoskeleton in arthropods and nematodes.
Plumage Moult: The periodic shedding and replacement of feathers in birds, crucial for insulation and flight.