How Do Animals Survive In The Wild?

Have you ever wondered how animals are able to

survive in the wild?

Think about the way you dress in the winter.

You don’t wear your shorts and bathing suit when it’s snowing outside!

You wear warm clothes, and maybe even a hat and mittens to protect

yourself from the weather.

And what if you are having a snowball fight?

You probably run away from the person throwing at you,

and maybe even try to sneak up on that person and

throw some snowballs!

The way you dress in the winter, as well as the way that you run and

hide from someone throwing snow at you are kinds of …

Adaptations.

DERIVED FROM

Aptare- A Latin word which means, to fit/to adjust.

DEFINITION :Technically, Adaptation is defined as, “ Any morphological, physiological, behavioral and environmental adjustments which helps the animal to survive successfully in their habitat.”

•Anything that helps an organism survive in its environment is an adaptation. 

•It also refers to the ability of living things to adjust to different conditions within their environments. 

Who experiences adaptations?All species have experienced adaptation

and will continue to slowly adapt as the next generations are born.

We will identify certain species from each of these groups and the reasons for their success:MammalsBirdsReptilesAmphibians

1.Find food to grow2. Defend against

predators3. Find mates for

reproduction

Body parts—structural adaptationBehavioral adaptationPhysiological adaptationLearned behaviorColoration/Camouflage

body part or behavior that helps an animal survive in a particular environment.

help an animal breathe,

catch food, or

hide.

adapted to live in certain habitats. Physical Behavioral

body structures that allow an animal to find and consume food, defend itself, and to reproduce its species.

help an animal survive in its environment

Camouflageuse of color in a

surrounding

Mimicry (looking or

sounding like another living

organism)

Chemical defenses (like venom, ink,

sprays)

Body coverings & parts

(claws, beaks, feet, armor plates, skulls,

teeth)

allow animals to respond to life needs.

animals’ actions

Types of AdaptationStructural adaptation Protective colorationMimicry Behaviour adaptationsMigrationHibernation

Structural adaptationsA structural adaptation involves some part of an animal's body.

Teeth Body coverings    Body shapes

The shape of an animal’s teeth is related to its diet. Herbivores, such as deer, have many molars for chewing tough grass and plants.

Carnivores, such as lions, have sharp canines to kill and tear meat.

Camel

Has long legs to keep body away from hot sand

Can store fat in hump.

Can go for long periods without water.

Camel

Can close nostrils to keep out sand.

Has long eyelashes to keep out sand.

Many blood vessels just under the skin to cool the blood.

Golden Eagle

Large wing span for gliding.

Sharp talons for catching and holding prey.

Hooked beak for tearing meat.

Large eyes for spotting prey from great distances.

SharkStream lined body for swimming.

Fins to propel through the water.

Sharp teeth.Gills to breath under water.

OstrichLong legs to run

fast.Large eyes to

see long distances.

Long feathers to provide more shade to eggs and to keep body warm at night.

How do different feet types aid in survival?

Camouflage Have you ever

wondered why animals have spots, strips, or certain colors?

Sometimes an animal’s colors can be a difference between life and death.

Animals use their colors to blend into the environment.

Protective ColorationColoration and protective resemblance allow an animal to blend into its environment. 

Another word for this might be camouflage.  Their camouflage makes it hard for enemies to single out individuals.  

Polar Bear

Has white fur for camouflage.

Each hair is hollow for extra insulation.

Has sharp teeth and claws to catch and eat prey.

Has ridged foot pads to prevent slipping.

Deer!

Look closely to find this animal!

See if you can find the camouflaged animals in these pictures. The animals you are looking for are a deer, frog, and quail.

Find the critters!

Quail

MimicryMimicry allows one

animal to look, sound, or act like another animal to fool predators into thinking it is poisonous or dangerous.  

CamouflageProtective Resemblance

Physical adaptation

Camouflage (use of color in a surrounding)

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

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

I’m the Monarch!

I’m the Viceroy!

•Physical adaptations are body structures that allow an animal to find and consume food, defend itself, and to reproduce its species.

•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

Behavioral Adaptations…

Behavioral Adaptations allow animals to respond to

life needs.

Behavioural adaptations

Behaviour adaptations include activities that help an animal survive. 

Behaviour adaptations can be learned or instinctive. Social behaviour   Behaviour for protection  

Instinctive behaviors happen

naturally & don’t need to

be learned

=

Finding shelter

Methods of gathering & storing food

Defending oneself

Raising young

Hibernating

Migrating

Learned behaviors

Obtained by interacting with the environment and cannot be

passed on to the next generation

except by teaching.

=

Behavioral Adaptation

I have learned to adapt to my new home.

I have learned to live

in your backyard.

LEARNED BEHAVIOURSFood stimulus/response Pavlov’s Dog experiment – the ringing of a bell prior to feeding a dog. Eventually

the dog salivates just at the ringing of the bell.

Feeding BehaviourFeeding may be:-On an individual basis On a group basis

MigrationAnimals migrate for

different reasons. 

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

go back to the place they were born.

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

MigrationThe movement of large numbers of animals

over long distances from one area to another area, and their subsequent return to their original home, is called migration.

Animals usually migrate using the same route each time.

A diverse range of species migrate – birds, fish, eels, insects and mammals

How do birds know where to fly?Innate, young birds are born

‘knowing’ to migrateSun, stars, Earth’s magnetic field

help determine the direction of flightMagnetite has been found in the

tissues of some birds. Its presence is related to the bird’s ability to navigate using the magnetic field.

HibernationThis is deep sleep in which animal’s body temp

droops, body activities are slowed to conserve energy.

E.g. Bats, woodchucks & bears.

Better understanding of the process of evolution.Survival of the fittest.Natural selection.Moral teaching of adjustment in society.

The next time you

read about an animal

in the wild, or when you see one on

television, think about

its adaptation

s….

Presented by:Dr. Sameer Mishra

Dept of Zoology