Tooling Around

Book excerpt: Dig these crafty creatures! We all use tools every day: a pen to write a story, a paint brush to illustrate a book, a fork to eat dinner. But it's not just humans who use tools. Chimpanzees often poke sticks, straw, or blades of grass into termite mounds to draw out insects for a tasty treat. Veined octopuses have been observed carrying coconut shells—they crawl inside them and hide from predators when they need a rest. A New Caledonian crow can even bend a twig with its beak to use as a hook to dig out bugs. Scientists don't all agree on what counts as a tool, but young readers will be inspired to observe the animals that live around them and how they use various objects to find food, to attract a mate, to protect themselves, or to build or conceal a home. Renné Benoit's illustrations get closeup with each animal, exploring habitats, the special problems they face, and the ways they solve these problems—either by intelligence or instinct. Tooling Around: Crafty Creatures and the Tools They Use is a wonderful introduction to the animal kingdom and the many different ways animals survive.