What do you think of when you hear adaptation? Adaptations What do you think of when you hear adaptation?

X-Men?

Charles Darwin Who: naturalist What: traveled around the world observing and documenting the natural world Wrote the book: The Origin of Species Where: Studied all around the world, Many of his key discoveries were on the Galapagos Islands, Wrote his book in England

Darwin’s Finches

Natural selection The process in nature that helps the best traits survive and get passed on. This can be seen not just in the natural world If you do not work hard in school you don’t pass the class. This is a very slow process

Know the following for future assessments and life Overproduction Variations Competition Selection Environmental change – a change in the environment can force certain traits to passed on.

Adapation Definition Characteristics that give an organism a better chance of survival. Special traits that help living organisms survive in a particular environment. Species: a living organisms of similar traits that can breed.

Reasons for adaptations To suit their habitat For protection For attack For feeding For movement ***Fittest Survive

Types of adaptations Structural – external characteristics size and shape Feet, eyes, bills, skin Behavioral - differing ways of reacting to the environment Nocturnal Arboreal Burrowing

Types of adaptations Physiological - internal characteristics Hibernation Rumination Endothermic

Examples Sharp teeth and claws for carnivores Flat teeth for grinding and chewing Moving in large groups is a behavioral adaptation; it helps protect the members of the group from predators. The thick fur coat of an arctic fox is a structural adaptation. It helps protect it against the cold weather.

Examples Camouflage Mimicry

Habitat: Dry inland Australia, including deserts and grasslands Adaptations: It is able to go with out drinking as long as green grass is available and it adapts well to drought. They can hop as fast as 40 mph (64 km).  They use this as their first line of defense.  Kangaroos have a tendon in the leg which acts like a rubber band, conserving energy as the animal moves. The tail serves as a balance when the animal leaps and as a prop when it stands.