Adaptations & Natural Selection

NICHE A habitat supplying factors necessary for existence of an organism and its ecological role in regard to food consumption.

Polar Bear Lives(Habitat): Cold environment (Arctic Tundra) Why white fur?(adaptation) Blend in for hunting and protection Job (Niche): Keep population of seals down

Woodpecker Lives (Habitat): – Forest in a tree Why in a tree? – Safe from predators Job (niche): – Control insect population that harms trees

ADAPTATION A characteristic that helps an organism survive and reproduce. – Survive means: eat, blend- in (camouflage), hunt, protect self, find food, etc.

DESERT Fennec FOX Hot environment Big ears

ARCTIC FOX Cold environment Small ears

DESERT RABBIT(hare) Hot environment Big ears

ARCTIC HARE Cold environment Small ears

BIG IDEA Heat escapes through the ears

Bioluminescence-Adaptation Light that is given off by a creature – Reproduction – Hunting Lightening bugs Angler fish Mushrooms in Brazil

Echolocation-Adaptation An animal’s (or human’s) ability to tell where an object is by detecting the sound bouncing off of it Bat Dolphins effects/bat-sounds/bat1.wav

Flippers-Adaptation Legs that are specialized for swimming(movement) Sea turtles Penguins Walrus

Claw-Adaptation Used for gripping, digging and tearing things apart Bears Moles Cats

Sense of Smell-Adaptation Ability to detect scent to find food, a mate, or avoid danger – Hunting, protection, reproduction Vultures Turkey Dogs

Teeth- Adaptation Used for tearing, chewing, ripping food for consumption 1. Sharp Lion Eating Meat (carnivores) 2. Flat Horse Grass/Grains (herbivores) 3. Baleen (filter-like) Blue Whale Krill 4. Mixed-sharp and flat Humans Meat and plants(omnivores)

Another Adaptation Asexual reproduction – A form of reproduction without a mother and a father; genetically identical to its parent (like a clone) – Strawberries plants will make runners, vines that will root and make a new plant – A potato will sprout and produce new potato plants

Natural Selection Process by which individuals that are better adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce than other members of the species – Therefore, they pass on the more desired traits for survival

Natural Selection Its theorized that giraffes adapted to the climate change in Africa when it went from being a lush jungle to a drier savannah over two million years ago. Normal food sources died out. Trees became the main food source, with leaves high up. Offspring that were born with shorter necks could not reach the food and did not survive. Only the giraffes with the longer necks were able to survive and reproduce, so the giraffe population passed on the long neck gene to its offspring.

Vocabulary Genetic Diversity- – Difference in the genes among a species If every human was exactly the same and an infectious, deadly disease came around, what would happen??? Variations- – Any difference between individuals of the same species Resilient- – Able to overcome a tough situation Continuous- – Never ending; cycle Water cycle, carbon cycle, changes Migration- – Movement of a species during certain times of the year Birds, sea turtles, monarchs Competition- – Interaction among organisms by which they compete for survival, for biotic and abiotic factors, reproduction, and hierarchal position.

Vocabulary Bubbles Prey Predator Commensalism Mutualism Parasitism Regeneration

Prey Definition Example 2 Picture Example 1 An animal that is eaten by another A mouse gets eaten by a snake

Predator Definition Example 2 Picture Example 1 An animal that eats another animal A lion eating a gazelle

Commensalism Definition Example 2 Picture Example 1 Relationship between animals where one species benefits while the other is unaffected A whale and barnacles

Mutualism Definition Example 2 Picture Example 1 Relationship between animals where both species benefit A clown fish and sea anemone

Parasitism Definition Example 2 Picture Example 1 Relationship between animals where one species benefits while causing harm to the other A mosquito to a human

Regeneration Definition Example 2 Picture Example 1 The ability of an organism to regrow or renew a part of itself; also part of asexual reproduction A starfish that gets a leg cut will grow it back