1. Animal Adaptations

2. What are animal adaptations?
An animal adaptation is a special feature or skill an animal has that helps it to survive and thrive in its habitat.
There are 3 types of animal adaptations:
Structural adaptations
Physiological adaptations
Behavioural adaptions

3. Structural Adaptations
Structural adaptations are external physical features that help an animal survive in its environment.
Examples of structural adaptations:
Body coverings – fur, scales, spines, layers of fat, permeable skin
Size and shape of body parts – webbing of feet, beak shape, gills, teeth shape, long legs, trunks, tails, whiskers, wings
Camouflage – colour and patterns on body covering that blends with an animals environment providing hidden protection from predators

4. Physiological Adaptations
Physiological adaptations are internal systems or processes in an animal’s body that respond to physical threats to the animal from the environment or it’s predators.
Examples of physiological adaptations:
Chemical – venomous bites or stings (snakes, bees, spiders)
- poison production (dart frogs, puffer fish)
- ability to change colours of skin (chameleon)
Internal systems – more efficient organs (kidneys in desert
animals, fat storage in humps of camels)
- production of blood thinners (mosquitos)

5. Behavioural Adaptations
Behavioural adaptations are actions that animals take to survive in their natural habitat.
Examples of behavioural adaptations:
Migration – is the movement of animals from one part of the world to another, often mirroring the change of seasons (birds, whales, penguins)
Hibernation – is the retreating of animals (usually in winter months) to a protected and isolated area, going into a deep sleep that will sometimes include slower breathing and lowering of body temperatures (bears, mice, bats, bees, some turtles)
Mimicry – is the ability some animals have to copy a sound or the appearance of another animal as a defense against its predators (lyrebirds, octopus, fish, snakes)