Squid

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/squid

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 lifespan?Generally short, typically 1-3 years for most species, with semelparous reproduction
2. How do squids change their color to hide from predators?Squids have special skin cells called chromatophores, iridophores, and leucophores. By expanding or contracting these cells, they can show many colors and patterns that match their surroundings.
3. How do squids move fast through the water?They suck water into their mantle cavity and then push it out through a funnel called the siphon. This jet of water propels them quickly forward or backward.

Gladius: The internal, feather-shaped chitinous support structure within a squid's mantle.
Semelparity: A reproductive strategy where an organism reproduces only once in its lifetime, typically dying afterward.
Trophic Level: The position an organism occupies in a food chain, indicating its feeding relationships.