Nocturnal Animal Crafts for Kids
We’ve rounded up 6 of our favorite nocturnal animal crafts here. Enjoy them for Halloween or any time of the year!
1. Firefly Jar Craft
Everyone knows how fireflies got their name, but many people don’t know how the insects produce their signature glow. Fireflies have dedicated light organs that are located under their abdomens. The insects take in oxygen and, inside special cells, combine it with a substance called luciferin to produce light with almost no heat. Firefly light is usually intermittent, and flashes in patterns that are unique to each species. Each blinking pattern is an optical signal that helps fireflies find potential mates! Create a swarm of glowing fireflies with this fun firefly jar craft.
Supplies:
- Glass jar
- Glow in the dark paint
- Black marker
- Paint brush
Instructions:
Step 1: Paint small dots of paint inside the jar.
Step 2: Take your marker, and on the outside of the jar, draw little firefly wings and heads on your paint dots.
Step 3: Take into a closet or dark room and watch them glow!
2. Bat Painting
Whether you are looking for a nocturnal animal craft or the perfect Halloween craft, we got your covered with this awesome bat silhouette art project.
Supplies:
- Black construction paper
- White paint
- Spray bottle
Instructions:
Step 1: Cut a bat shape out of paper. We folded a piece of paper in half to cut out the bat so it would be symmetrical.
Step 2: Put white paint diluted with some water into a spray bottle.
Step 3: Place the bat on the black construction paper and begin spraying the paper. The end result is the silhouette of a bat in a starry night sky!
3. Golf Tee Porcupine
Turn a styrofoam egg and some golf tees into an adorable porcupine! This golf tee porcupine is a prickly nocturnal animal craft that makes a fun gift for the golf player in your life.
Supplies:
- Styrofoam oval
- Golf tees
- Paint
- Paintbrush
- Googly eyes
- Glue
Instructions:
Step 1: Cut the Styrofoam oval in half.
Step 2: Paint your porcupine. We painted our with a green head, an orange body, and with green dots.
Step 3: Glue on the google eyes.
Step 4: Stick the golf tees into the body to make the quills.
4. Glowing Eyes Art
Nocturnal animals are more active at night than during the day. These animals sleep during the day, often in a burrow or den. They have special adaptations that help them survive in the dark. Over millions of years, these animals have developed traits that help them survive in the darkness. Nocturnal animals may have larger ears to hear better, bigger eyes to see better, and body parts that glow in the night. Create your own big-eyed nocturnal animal art with our fun nocturnal animal crafts!
Supplies:
- Black and yellow/or grey construction paper
- Tacky glue
- Twigs
- Google eyes
- Silver glitter paint or silver glitter
Instructions:
Step 1: Paint the background of the black paper with silver glitter.
Step 2: Break the twigs and glue them onto the paper.
Step 3: Add google eyes around the twigs.
Step 4: Cut out a moon and glue onto paper.
5. Glow in the Dark Firefly
Everyone knows how fireflies got their name, but many people don’t know how the insects produce their signature glow. Fireflies have dedicated light organs that are located under their abdomens. The insects take in oxygen and, inside special cells, combine it with a substance called luciferin to produce light with almost no heat. Firefly light is usually intermittent, and flashes in patterns that are unique to each species. Each blinking pattern is an optical signal that helps fireflies find potential mates! Make your own glow in the dark fireflies with this fun project.
Supplies:
- Black construction paper
- Black pipe cleaner
- Plastic spoon
- Glow in the dark paint
Instructions:
Step 1: Paint each spoon with glow in dark paint.
Step 2: Cut two wings and one body per spoon.
Step 3: Glue the body to the spoon, then glue the wings to the body. Cut 2 little antennae from the pipe cleaner and glue to the head.
Step 4: Take into a closet or dark room and watch them glow!
6. Bat Hat
Whether you are looking for a nocturnal animal craft or the perfect Halloween bat hat, we got your covered with this awesome bat hat project.
Supplies:
- Stiff black felt
- White felt
- Tacky glue
- Black stocking cap
Instructions:
Step 1: Cut two bat wings and two bat ears out of the black felt.
Step 2: Glue the wings and ears onto the stocking cap. Use clothes pins to secure on the hat while glue is setting.
Step 3: Cut white eyes with black centers out of felt. Glue onto the front of the hat.
Nocturnal Animals List:
African hunting dog • American Porcupine • Armadillo • Badger • Bat Beaver • Bush baby • Cat • Coyote • Deer • Deer mouse • Owl monkey • Firefly • Fish (SOME: flashlight fish, flying fish, lantern fish, viper fish, wandering albatross) • Flying squirrel • Fox (Red fox) • Frog (SOME: Asian flying frog) • Gecko (flying gecko and tokay gecko) • Gerbil • Ghost crabs • Green sea turtle • Hamster • Hare (snowshoe hare) • Hedgehog • Heron • Hippo • Hyenas • Kangaroo rat • Kangaroo • Kiwi • Koala • Leopard • Moth • Whippoorwill • Opossum • Owl • Pangolin • Raccoon • Rats • Rhinoceros • Skunk • Snake • Southern flying squirrel • Tiger • Toad (Asian climbing toad) • Weasel • Wolf • Wombat
More about nocturnal animals:
Nocturnal animals are more active at night than during the day. These animals sleep during the day, often in a burrow or den. They have special adaptations that help them survive in the dark. Over millions of years, these animals have developed traits that help them survive in the darkness. Nocturnal animals may have larger ears to hear better, bigger eyes to see better, and body parts that glow in the night.
You can also learn all about these creatures in our nocturnal animals activity box. Or, find other activities for kids on Facebook!
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