Image Source – 20 Amazing Animal Adaptations for Living in the Desert

Living organisms are spread across the planet in a wide variety of different habitats and environments. Various adaptations assist organisms to survive in the hottest and driest deserts, coldest arctic tundra and wettest rainforests. Structural adaptations are how an organism is built, such as the wings, feathers and hollow bones of birds that assist them to escape from predators and find their food. Functional or physiological adaptations are how an organism works, which you may not necessarily be able to see from the outside, such as the ability of desert dwellers to survive without drinking water by re-absorbing much of the water from their faeces and producing small amounts of very concentrated urine. Behavioural adaptations are the actions that an animal takes – what it does – to survive, such as migration, resting in the heat of the day or huddling with other individuals to conserve body heat and moisture.

• Watch this video (Bird Evolution and Adaptations – YouTube) and list the structural, functional and behavioural adaptations mentioned and observed.
• Behavioural adaptations of the Australian Bowerbird (David Attenborough on YouTube)
• Baking Deserts with David Attenborough (YouTube)
• Life in the Freezer with David Attenborough (YouTube playlist – 8 short videos)