[Part 4]- B15- Adaptations, interdependence and competition 🦁 🆚 🐆 Flashcards
Explain how adaptations help an organism to survive, in its habitat.
- adaptations can help an organism to survive in its habitat because it increases an organism’s ability to survive and reproduce in an environment or habitat.
- these adaptations can help an organism find food and water, protect itself, or manage in extreme environments.
What are general adaptations that artic animals may have ? 🐇
- artic animals: artic animals have white fur to provide effective camouflage.
- which helps them to hunt its prey because, their white fur makes them camouflaged against the snow. [this helps them to avoid predators aswell]
What are general adaptations that animals may have ? ❄️
- cold places: animals that live in cold places [like whales], will have a thick layer of fat called blubber which helps them to retain heat because it provides them insulation.
What are general adaptations that marine animals may have ? ❄️
Hint: also cold places
- these animals [including marine animals] will also have a low surface are: volume ratio, which helps them to also retain heat and keep warm, because there’s less of a [relative] area there is to lose heat
What are general adaptations that animals may have ? 🐳🐋
- animals that live in cold places [like whales], will have a thick layer of fat called blubber
- and in their blubber, blood vessels will blubber constrict, or get smaller, when in cold water.
- Constricted blood vessels will them reduce the flow of blood, thus reducing the energy required to heat the body- This conserves heat. [as it decreases blood flow to the skin]
What are general adaptations that animals living in hot places may have ?
- hot places: animals that live in hot places, such as the desert might have a thin layer of fat and a large surface area: volume ratio.
- which helps them, to lose heat because there’s more of an area to lose heat and stay cool. [e.g- the fennec fox]
- these animals may also produce very little sweat and produce small of concentrated urine, to reserve water.
What are general adaptations that animals live in grasslands may have ? 🦬
- grasslands: Animals that live in the grasslands like [bison] have specialised teeth and digestive systems that help in breaking down the tough grass.
- For example, bison have a four-chambered, digestive system allows for the absorption of cellulose.
- This is because bacteria and uni-cellular animals found in most habitats [protozoa] secrete the necessary enzymes, to break down the various forms of cellulose for digestion and absorption.
What are general adaptations that animals living in tropical rainforests may have ?🪰
- tropical rainforest: in tropical rainforests, some animals will use mimicry.
- they will change their physical appearance to mimic other animals, which are usually poisonous or venomous.
- They do this by evolution- a first mutation makes the animal achieve close similarity to the model animal, then it will undergo smaller chances that improves the resemblance to the model animal.
Suggest and explain in detail, how an organism in an extreme location might evolve to become better adapted to its habitat
- An alga, called Chlamydomonas nivalis survives in snowy places.
- They have evolved, to contain an extra pigment that absorbs more light from the sun in order to keep warm.
- this extra pigment also protects the organism from harmful light rays that usually damage their cells.
- ; They have also evolved, to grow flagella, tail-like structures- this helps them to move out of the snow when it’s winter.
Apply your knowledge of extremophiles, to discuss why scientists believe there could be life on other planets (or moons). 🪐🌙
- extremophiles, are organisms that are adapted to live in very extreme conditions.
- scientists believe there might be life on other planets or moons because, extremophiles are able to withstand extreme conditions such as facing extreme stresses.
Further discuss why scientists believe there could be life on other planets (or moons). 🪐🌙
- moreover, scientists may also believe this because previous experiments have shown, that some extremophiles on Earth can survive in radiation, that is strong enough to kill any other known life-form.
- For example, the extremophile: Deinococcus radioduran, found in elephant faeces and the Antarctic, is capable of this.
- and from these expirements, scientists are able to suggests that similair extremohiles and microbes could exist on Mars, and if they did, they could survive (10 meters) beneath the surface, frozen and dried out, for 280 million years.
- so overall, from previous results and expiremnets of extremohiles found in Earth, this is why scientists believe there could be life on other planets.
Name the extremophile that can survive in radiation, strong enough to kill any other known life-form. 🧫🦠
The extremophile: Deinococcus radioduran, found in elephant faeces and the Antarctic, is capable of this.
Describe why it’s important, that most animals contain the correct body temperature
- it’s important, that most animals contain the correct body temperature, otherwise their cellular processes will shut down.
What will happen to cellular processes in animals, if they don’t have the correct body temperature ?
- if the temperature increases constantly, the cells loose their shape.
- The fluid in the cell membrane will also increase= molecules can move across the membrane more easily.
- ; this can lead to damage or destruction of the membrane if the temperature becomes too high- this then affects the overall functioning of the cell.
- The bonds that stabilize the cell and bind proteins together are also broken down.
- When all these things occur, the protein functions are lost due to denaturation leading to cell death and therefore, the cellular process will shut down, leading to death.
Why can fur or feathers, be used to maintain a warm body temperature 🪶
- birds can fluff their feathers.
- fluffing their feathers trap airs between them and their skin.
- This prevents heat dissipation [heat being wasted] and preserves warm air that raises their body temperature.
