Worms for Breakfast: How To Feed a Zoo, written by Helaine Becker and illustrated by Kathy Boake. Owlkids, 2023. $11.95 ages 7 and up

 

"OWL BOWL-O'-FUN: At the Lincoln
Park Zoo in Chicago, Illinois, eastern 
screech owls are fed one live mouse a day. 

STINKY'S STEW: Skunks are omnivores,
so they enjoy a mixture of meat and veg,
including cooked ground chicken, brown
rice, barley, and rolled oats.

PANGOLIN POTAGE: Wild pangolins use
their extra-long, extra-sticky tongue to snag
ants and termites. At California's San Diego
Zoo, these scaly creatures lap up a soup made 
of blended meat, protein mix, and food pellets
for insectivores."

This 2016 publication has just been released in paperback, making it accessible once again to classrooms and libraries. What a terrific introduction it is to the foods that animals living in zoos and aquariums like to eat. Yum!

Ms. Becker gets right to the task at hand, opening with a recipe for Platypus Party Mix that calls for live crayfish, live earthworms, live mealworms, and live fly pupae. Sounds like a shopping nightmare, but it sure gets this party started. The menu (table of contents) takes intrigued readers straight to whatever grabs attention and runs the gamut from hungry hippos and others to being 'a bestie to the beasties'. 

In between, there are numerous double-page spreads that count as chapters and provide handy facts and recipes that are sure to find favor with interested readers. Meeting zoo nutritionists from Toronto, St. Louis and Upton-by-Chester, England and seeing the care that is taken to ensure good nutrition and careful storage of all foods is eye-opening. Taking care of newborns is needed if zoo moms and dads can't do the job. Endangered animals often need extra care to keep them safe and thriving. There is so much to learn through quick descriptive paragraphs and the Did You Know boxes included. 

A puzzle asks readers to figure out how to get through a maze Polly the parrot faces to snag a seedy treat. Luckily, the answer can be found in back matter that also includes a glossary and an index.  

There's fun to be had in the learning described in this excellent nonfiction. Who knew that animals are 'foodies', too?