ADAPTATIONS

Adaptations

• Every organism has features that allow it to survive in its own particular habitat

• These features are called adaptations.

The white-faced heron

• Lives in the wetland areas throughout NZ• Can you think of any adaptations it may have

to live here?

• Lives in the wetland areas throughout NZ• Long legs to walk through swampy areas to

find food• Long, pointed beak so it can collect snails,

insects, frogs and fish from the water and mud• Large, strong wings to help it escape from

danger• These adaptations make it successful in its

habitat

The white-faced heron

Types of adaptations

• Structural adaptations – the shape and size of the organism (e.g. beak shape, skeleton, etc.)

• Functional adaptations – the workings of an organism’s body (e.g. digestion, photosynthesis)

• Behavioural adaptations – how the organism behaves (e.g. Predator avoidance, how they find food, mates, etc.)

The morepork

Leopard seal skull

Bird beaks

Structural, behavioural, functional?

• You only have one arm• Every time you hear your name, you put both

your hands up for protection• You have a hunched back for protection • You need to pull your jersey over your head

because you don’t like the light• Your knees and elbows don’t bend• You can’t speak

• You walk sideways• Your thumbs don’t work on either hand• Your voice is high pitched so that predators

can’t hear you• When you hear the word “don’t” you whistle• You drop to your hands and knees if a male

speaks to you

Structural, behavioural, functional?

Poster!• Create your own habitat and an organism within

it that has structural, behavioural and functional adaptations to suit where it lives.

• Work individually – homework if you don’t finish in class, will collect tomorrow for marking

Long beak for reaching deep into leaf litter and soil to find food – structural

Strong feet for digging and moving rapidly through bush – structural

Active at night (nocturnal) to avoid predators – behavioural

Short, compact body for easy movement through dense bush - structural

Fluffy feathers for warmth – structural

Nose at end of beak – structural

Nose helps kiwi to smell in soil for food – functional

Exemplar – KiwiHabitat: NZ native bush