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Learn how adaptation is the process by which a species becomes fitted to its environment through natural selection. See examples of adaptation in structure, physiology, genetics, and behavior of various organisms.
May 20, 2022 · Learn how animals have evolved to survive in different environments, from deserts to oceans, with unique adaptations for self-defense, prey, and harsh conditions. See 15 examples of animal adaptations, such as camouflage, venom, and cooperative fishing.
Oct 19, 2023 · Learn how organisms adapt to their environment with examples of structural, behavioral, and coadaptive traits. Explore how adaptations can lead to speciation, mimicry, and co-extinction.
- Adaptation Definition
- Types of Adaptation
- Examples of Adaptation
- Quiz
An adaptation, or adaptive trait, is a feature produced by DNA or the interaction of the epigenome with the environment. While not all adaptations are totally positive, for an adaptation to persist in a population it must increase fitness or reproductive success. All offspring, whether formed sexually or asexually, inherit their traits from their p...
Genetic Mutation and Recombination
Deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, is the molecule that carries the information necessary for creating and maintaining life. DNA is made from a series of nucleotides, 4 small chemicals which chain together. The sequence of these chemicals can be read by specialized enzymesand organelles within cells to produce new proteins. These proteins have various functions, and determine how the cell functions within its environment. Since the first proteins and cellular constituents aggregated to form the f...
Changes in Environment
Changes in the environment are second major category of adaptation. In many cases the epigenome is as or more important that the DNA itself. Large environmental changes, such as a change in ocean temperature or acidity, can affect a great number of species. As the environment changes, the proteins of the organisms start to function differently. Changes to the DNA or to how the epigenome interacts with the new environment can lead to a novel adaptation. For instance, life on Earth currently de...
Rhinocerous Beetle
If you’ve ever seen a Rhinoceros Beetle, you’ve probably wondered what it uses those huge horns for. Seen below is a male Rhino Beetle, with its distinctive headgear. Like all arthropods, the beetle is divided into segments. These various sections are very responsive to adaptation. In the Rhino Beetle, the head section has developed these large thorns. The male beetles use these large obtrusions to fight each other, in competition for females. It is presumed that ancestral beetles had little...
Digestive Tract in Mammals
If you were to dissect various mammals, you would find something very peculiar in the size and composition of their digestive tract. Carnivores, like wolves and cats, have very short and simple digestive tracts. In fact, the more carnivorous an animal, the shorter and simpler the digestive tract is. Meat and animal products are easily digested. The adaptation of a short gut allows these animals to quickly process the energy out of their meaty meal, before it starts to rot in their gut. Herbiv...
1. A fox has a litter of 3 kits. 1 of the kits is randomly eaten by an eagle. Only 1 of the remaining kits learns how to successfully feed itself, the other starves to death. Which of the following could be considered an adaptation? A. The learning that allowed the survivor to feed itself B. Any genetic basis for the intelligence of the surviving f...
Oct 19, 2023 · Organisms can adapt to an environment in different ways. They can adapt biologically, meaning they alter body functions. An example of biological adaptation can be seen in the bodies of people living at high altitudes, such as Tibet. Tibetans thrive at altitudes where oxygen levels are up to 40 percent lower than at sea level.
Adaptations can take many forms: a behavior that allows better evasion of predators, a protein that functions better at body temperature, or an anatomical feature that allows the organism to access a valuable new resource — all of these might be adaptations.
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Mar 5, 2019 · Here are some further examples of how animals have made themselves adaptable to the specific environment in which they live. Examples of land adaptation. Shells of certain animal embryos such as reptiles and birds are examples of adaptation to a terrestrial environment.
