Adaptation Summary Questions

All of the answers for these come from your reading or notes.  Answer them to the best of your abilities and give as many examples as you can.  

 

1. Define environment and how does it influence traits?
2. What is successful reproduction?
3. List common plant reproductive adaptations.
4. List common animal reproductive adaptations.
5. List common animal adaptations for caring for their young.

 

Genetics Chapter 4 – Part 2

OBJECTIVE 2: STUDENT WILL BE ABLE TO RELATE ADAPTABILITY OF AN ORGANISM IN AN ENVIRONMENT TO THEIR INHERITED TRAITS AND STRUCTURES.

 

Terms to know

• ­­­­Adaptability
• Environment
• Camouflage
• Natural Influences
• Manmade Influences
• Hybridization
• Mimicry
• Adaptability
• Structure

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How are inheritance and adaptability related?

• Does this frog look a little scary?
• It looks that way on purpose.
• This frog is a poisonous dart frog.
• They live in Central and South America.
• Why do you think the frog is so brightly colored?
• Why do you think the frog is poisonous?
• Why does the frog only live in warmer climates?
• There are also many different types of poisonous dart frogs.
• Some are red, some blue, and some yellow.
• So why is there such a great diversity of poisonous dart frogs?

 

Scientists who study heredity are concerned with these types of questions, but they ask them about all of the species on the planet.

• Why are there millions of different types of species?
• Why are some small, some large, some furry, and some covered in feathers?
• The environment- the habitat that an organism lives in-can influence the traits that are expressed by an organism.

 

Adaptations for Reproduction

Explore this Phenomena

If you go to a flower store, you will see flowers in many different bright colors.

• Construct an explanation for why the flowers are brightly colored.

 

Adaptations for Reproduction

Animals and plants have specific adaptations and structures that affect the probability of successful reproduction.

• Examples of adaptations could include:
  • nest building to protect young from cold
  • herding of animals to protect young from predators
  • vocalization of animals and colorful plumage to attract mates for breeding
  • bright flowers attracting butterflies that transfer pollen
  • flower nectar and odors that attract insects that transfer pollen
  • hard shells on nuts that squirrels bury

 

 Reproduction

In the previous section, you learned that organisms need to reproduce in order to ensure that their species continues to live on the earth.

• Successful reproduction can be described as having offspring that also live long enough to reproduce.
• Animals and plants have a number of strategies and adaptations that increase the odds for successful reproduction.

 

Plant Reproductive Adaptations

Some flowers have very strong scents. Others have sweet nectar.

• These traits attract animals.
  • The animals they attract may include insects, birds, mammals, and even reptiles.
  • Animals are able to transfer pollen from one plant to another and carry seeds from one place to another.
  • While visiting a flower, an animal picks up pollen.
  • The animal then travels to another flower and transfers the pollen to fertilize the egg resulting in offspring.

 

Some plants utilize their fruit to attract animals to transport the seeds they create to another location.

• When a horse eats an apple, it does not digest the apple seeds.
• As the horse travels and eliminates waste, the seeds are dispersed over a large area.

 

Other plants developed additional traits that aid in reproduction through seed dispersal.

  

        

Dandelion seeds have tiny “parachutes.” Maple seeds have “wings” that act like little gliders. Burdock seeds are covered with tiny hooks that cling to animal fur.

 

Some plants rely on seeds getting stuck in animal fur.

• Once stuck, the seeds are carried off to another location.
• Eventually, the seeds fall off and grow into a new plant.

 

Other plants developed traits to better disperse their seeds using the wind.

• With time, plants develop better and better traits to help them reproduce.

Animal Reproductive Adaptations

Some of the most important animal adaptations involve mating.

• Mating is the pairing of an adult male and female to produce young.
  • Adults that are most successful at attracting a mate are most likely to have offspring.
• Traits that help animals attract a mate and have offspring increase their ability to survive.
  • As the genes that encode these traits are passed to the next generation, the traits will become more common in the population.

 

In many species, females choose the male they will mate with.

• For their part, males try to be chosen as mates.
  • They show females that they would be a better mate than the other males.
• To be chosen as a mate, males may perform courtship behaviors.
  • These are special behaviors that help attract a mate.
  • Male courtship behaviors get the attention of females and show off a male’s traits.
• These behaviors are often observed as direct competition between males.

 

Different species have different courtship behaviors.

• One example is a peacock raising his tail feathers.
  • The colorful peacock is trying to impress females of his species with his beautiful feathers.
• Another example of courtship behavior in birds is the blue-footed booby.
  • He does a dance to attract a female for mating.
  • During the dance, he spreads out his wings and stamps his feet on the ground.

 

Courtship behaviors occur in many other species.

• For example, males in some species of whales have special mating songs to attract females as mates.
• Frogs croak for the same reason.
• Male deer clash antlers to court females.
• Male jumping spiders jump from side to side to attract mates.

 

Adaptations for Caring for Young

In most species of birds and mammals, one or both parents care for their offspring.

• Caring for the young may include making a nest or other shelter.
• It may also include feeding the young and protecting them from predators.
• Caring for offspring increases their chances of surviving.
  • Birds called killdeers have an interesting way of protecting their chicks.
  • When a predator gets too close to her nest, a mother killdeer pretends to have a broken wing.
  • The mother walks away from the nest holding her wing as though it were injured.
  • The predator thinks she is injured and will be easy prey.
  • The mother leads the predator away from the nest and then flies away.

 

This mother killdeer is pretending she has a broken wing. She is trying to attract a predator’s attention in order to protect her chicks. This behavior puts her at risk of harm. How can it increase her fitness?

 

In most species of mammals, parents also teach their offspring important skills.

• For example, meerkat parents teach their pups how to eat scorpions without being stung.
  • A scorpion sting can be deadly, so this is a very important skill.
• Teaching the young important skills makes it more likely that they will survive.
  • This is especially important for many species of birds and mammals, because they have fewer offspring than other types of animals.