Animal Adaptations Take notes on important points – an outline has been provided on the second slide (and as a handout) to help you organize your notes.

Outline

Have you ever wondered how animals are able to survive in the wild?

Animals have certain adaptations that help them to

survive.

I. What is an adaptation?

A. An adaptation is a change in an animal’s physical structure or behavior that helps an animal to survive or reproduce l  Examples: The shape of a bird’s beak, number of

fingers and toes, or the color of an animal’s fur.

B. Physical adaptations do not develop during one lifetime, but over many generations.

II. Physical adaptations

A. are body structures that allow an animal to find and consume food,

defend itself, and to reproduce its species.

B. Physical adaptations help an animal survive in

its environment.

Hey! I’m a walking

stick. I look just like a stick you’d find on the

ground.

© A. Weinberg

C. Examples of Physical adaptations

1. Camouflage (use of color in a surrounding)

The chameleon can change its color to match its surroundings. Can you do that?

2. Mimicry- (looking or sounding like another living organism)

The Viceroy butterfly uses mimicry to look like the Monarch butterfly. Can you tell them apart?

Poisonous

Not poisonous

Examples of Physical adaptation

I’m the Monarch!

I’m the Viceroy!

3. Chemical defenses (like venom, ink, sprays)

Examples of Physical adaptations

4. Body parts (bird’s hollow bones) Physical adaptations

The bird’s bones are a physical adaptation that helps it to fly

With hollow bones, birds can fly for long distances (less body weight) Some bird’s bones also have air cavities (extensions of the air sacs)

5. Body parts (claws, beaks, feet, armor plates, skulls, teeth)

Physical adaptations

The bird’s beak is a physical adaptation that helps it to eat, drink, and to pick things up.

Hawk’s beak adapted to catch and eat prey

Heron’s beak adapted to catch and eat moving fish

Finch’s beak adapted to cracking seeds

hummingbird’s beak adapted to sipping nectar

6. Body parts (fish gills) Physical adaptations

The fish’s gills is a physical adaptation that helps it to breathe oxygen.

Fish gills allow fish to absorb oxygen from the water as it passes over the gills

III. Behavioral Adaptations…

A. Behavioral Adaptations enhance survival and allow animals

to respond to their environment.

We can divide Behavioral Adaptations into two groups:

1. Instinctive 2. Learned

These behaviors happen naturally & don’t have to be

learned. These behaviors must be taught.

Instinctive behaviors happen naturally

& don’t need to be learned

=

4. Finding shelter

1. Methods of gathering & storing

food 2. Defending

oneself

5. Raising young

3. Hibernating

6.Migrating

Examples:

1. Mating Behaviors – include males competing for mates, how females choose mates, if the pair stay together to raise offspring

B. Behavioral Adaptations are animals’ actions.

2. Migration B. Animals migrate for different reasons.

l  better climate l  better food l  safe place to live l  safe place to raise

young l  go back to the place

they were born.

A. This is when an animal or group of animals moving from one region to another and then back again.

3. Hibernation ¡  A. This is deep sleep in which animal’s

body temp drops, body activities are slowed to conserve energy.

¡  B. Ex. Bats, woodchucks & bears.

4. Burrowing

¡  Animals can have multiple reasons to burrow – to escape predators, to hibernate, to have a safe place to raise young

5.Care of young ¡  Animals have adapted MANY ways to care for

the young. Some examples are: penguins regurgitating food, elephant herds protecting the young, and joeys in mother’s pouches

6. Response to danger

¡  Fight or flight response – fear is the base of this response that occurs neurologically in the brain.

Check your outline!

¡  Make sure it is complete, with examples!

¡  If you used the outline handout to take notes, now glue it into your journal, on the page next to where you answered questions on the video.