Types of Adaptations For Kids

Adaptations in Animals

The body features by which a species becomes better suited to its environment is called adaptation.

If you happen to see animals that live in different parts of the world, you would realise that unlike humans, their bodies are different from each other.

Different animals have different features, different body parts. These features and body parts have evolved over the years. They help these animals to survive in the environments (habitats) they happen to live.

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Some adaptations provide protection from predators or environmental extremes. Others may help in getting food, water, or shelter.

Different Types of Adaptations

Camouflage : It is one way animals adapt to their environment. They’ve started looking like the environment itself! For example, animals that live in the Arctic often have white fur, which matches the colour of snow.

Extra layer of fat : In cold regions, animals sometimes have an extra layer of fat to help keep them warm. Example: polar bears.

Selection of food : Some animals adapt by becoming very specialised, and develop some special habits such as eating a specific plant or animal that few others eat .For example, the giraffe's long neck and tongue are adaptations that allow it to graze at heights that other animals cannot reach, so it does not need to compete for food

In some habitats where there is a lot of competition for food, some animals have become arboreal, living and eating in treetops and rarely coming to the ground where they are in danger from predators.

Body color and features: Many animals have traits that help them hide from other animals that want to attack them. Deer are colored shades of brown, like the trees in the forests where they live.

Aquatic Animals : These animals have features that help them to live in water.

Frogs and alligators have their eyes and nostrils near the top of the head. This means that the animal may remain almost completely underwater and yet be able to see and breathe. Water birds have webbed feet to help them paddle in the water.

In this short video, kids can learn more about animal's habitats and adaptations.

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