10.7 Adaptions

Question 1

What are Adaptions?

Answer 1

Characteristics that increase an organisms chance of survival and reproduction

Question 2

Anatomical adaptions

Answer 2

1. Body coverings
2. Camoflage
3. Teeth
4. mimcry

Marram grass:

1. a thick waxy cuticle to reduce water loss by evaporation
2. hairs on the inside surface of the leaf to trap moist air and reduce the diffusion gradient
3. Stomata sunken into pits, making them less likely to open and lose water
4. curled leaves to minimise surface area of moist tissue exposed to air, and protect the leaves from the wind

Question 3

Behavioural adaptions

Answer 3

1. survival behaviours eg. playing dead
2. courtship eg. scorpian dance
3. seasonal behaviours eg. migration and hybernation

there are 2 categories:

Innate- the ability to do this is inherited through genes
eg. spiders building webs or woodlice avoiding light

Learned- from experience or observing other animals
eg. use of tools, sea otters use of stones to hammer shells of rocks

Many are a combo

Question 4

physiological adaptions

Answer 4

poison production e.g. reptiles, plants

antibiotic production- bacteria produce it to kill other bacteria in the surrounding area

water holding- water holding frog, cactus

reflexes, blinking, temperature regulation

Question 5

Anatomical adaptions provide evidence for convergent evoloution

Answer 5

analogous structures- adaptions to carry out the same function but have a very different genetic origin

convergent evolution takes place when unrelated species begin to share similar traits, because they have adapted to similar environments or selection pressures

Marsupials in Australia and placental mammals in the Americas resemble each other as they have similar ecological niches

Placental mammals- placenta connects embryo to mothers circulatory system. Reaches a high level of maturity before birth.
Marsupials- enter marsupium while they’re still embryos, but start of in the uterus. They complete their development by suckling milk

Converged ages ago but have similar overall shape, locomotion and feeding techniques because they have adapted to similar climates and food sources

Marsupial and placental mice- both small agile climbers living in dense ground cover

M and P moles different colours(m is white to orange but P is grey) but have other similar characteristics

Question 6

Plant example

Answer 6

Aloe- Africa and Agave- Mexico

Similar as both adapted to the desert

But they adapted entirely separately to each other