Natural fibres facts for kids

A natural fibre is a thin, thread-like material. It comes from living things like plants or animals. People use these fibres to make many things, such as clothes, ropes, and even toys!

Fibres from Animals

Some natural fibres come from animals. These include wool, cashmere, fur, and silk.

Wool and Hair Fibres

Wool is a very common animal fibre. It comes from the soft fleece of sheep. Other animals also provide hair that can be used like wool. These include the yak, camel, alpaca, guanaco, and vicuna.

Cashmere is a very soft and luxurious fibre. It comes from special cashmere goats.

Fur Fibres

The fur from different animals is also used for clothing. Animals like rabbits, beavers, minks, and muskrats provide fur.

Silk Fibres

Silk is another popular animal fibre. It is made by silkworms. A silkworm is a type of large, white moth caterpillar. They spin cocoons of silk thread.

Fibres from Plants

Many natural fibres come from plants. These include flax, ramie, hemp, cotton, and jute.

Coconut Fibres

Coconut trees grow large coconut fruits. These fruits have strong fibres. People clean and smooth these coconut fibres. They can then be used to make various items, like dolls and toys. Often, beads and colourful threads are added to make them look pretty.

Images for kids

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  This image shows the chemical structure of a chitosan chain. Chitosan is a natural fibre found in the shells of shellfish.

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  This robot image is a link to a Spanish article about natural fibres for kids.