CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE All living things change to fit their

CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE All living things change to fit their environment ADAPTATIONS!!!!!!!!

Inherited Characteristics Why do tigers have stripes? Why are bullfrogs green on the back and white on the belly? Why do giraffes have such a long neck? Why do geese fly south for the winter? Why do waterlilies float? Why do some plants bear fruit? All of these questions deal with adaptations!!!

What are adaptations? Adaptations – an inherited characteristic that helps an organism to survive long enough to reproduce more successfully in its changing environment and can either be structural or behavioral.

If red touches yellow, deadly fellow. If red touches black, friendly jack.

Structural Adaptations Definition: Actual body parts or coloration that help an organism survive in their environment. EX: camouflage, mimicry, bent hind legs, sharp teeth and claws, body structures.

Behavioral Adaptations Definition: Ways an organism act to help them survive in their environment. EX: Migration, hibernation, warning calls, mating dances, hunting in packs.

Types of Structural Adaptations CAMOUFLAGE/COLORATION: blending in with the environment for protection from predators or to help sneak up on prey. Use: Obtaining food and protection

Types of Structural Adaptations MIMICRY: copying a behavior or appearance. Used for protection or obtaining food and protection.

Types of Structural Adaptations Bent hind legs – prey run fast to escape & predators run fast to catch prey Used for: protection, locomotion

Types of Structural Adaptations

Types of Structural Adaptations Body Structures Predator – Eyes facing forward to find prey.

flippers wings Bent legs

We have been looking at structural adaptations of animals. ADAPTATIONS ON THE BODY, but animals can also have behavioral adaptations. This type of adaptation cannot be seen on the body. It is the way an animal reacts or behaves in certain situations. In other words: INSTINCTS

In simple animals, behavior is governed almost entirely by instinct, meaning that it is pre-programmed by an animal's genes. In more complex animals, instinctive behavior is often modified by learning, producing more-flexible responses to the outside world.

Behavioral Adaptations 1. Migration - seasonal or periodic movement of animals in response to changes in climate or food availability, or to ensure reproduction. Migration most commonly involves movement from one area to another and then back again. Examples: geese, whales, salmon, Monarch butterflies

Behavioral Adaptations 2. Hibernation – adaptive winter survival technique where animal becomes inactive and all body processes slow down. In cold weather most animals must eat large quantities of food to obtain the energy needed to carry on normal body activities.Examples: bears, chipmunks, squirrels, bats,

Behavioral Adaptations 3. Living in a Group – more eyes in a group to watch out for prey or predator, protection Examples: fish, wildebeest, walruses, lions

Behavioral Adaptations 4. Tool Use - any object manipulated by an animal in order to perform a specific task. (monkeys, otters, birds) 5. Playing Dead - By pretending that they are dead, some animals escape bodily harm. (snakes, possums)

Behavioral Adaptations 6. Calling – communication between animals 7. Threatening Gestures – scares off potential predators