Animal Adaptations
Bio.2.1.2 Analyze the survival and reproductive success of organisms in
terms of behavioral, structural, and reproductive adaptations.
Animals
• Animals are multicellular heterotrophic organisms that lack
cell walls.
• Most members of the animal kingdom share other
important characteristics, including:
• sexual reproduction
• movement
• Vertebrates have a backbone.
• Invertebrates do not have a backbone.
• Invertebrates account for more than 95 percent of all
animal species alive today.
Animal Reproductive Adaptations
• Invertebrates are capable of sexual reproduction, and many can also
reproduce asexually.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__RqOzOzWjY
• Some invertebrates are hermaphrodites.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wn3xluIRh1Y
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG9qpZ89qzc
• Vertebrates are chordates that have a backbone.
• Classes of vertebrates include fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and
mammals.
• Many characteristics of terrestrial vertebrates are adaptations to life on
land and fall into two broad categories:
• support of the body, and conservation of water.
• In most fish and amphibian species, eggs and sperm are released
directly into the water, where external fertilization takes place.
Animal Reproductive Adaptations
• In reptiles, birds, and mammals, the egg and sperm unite
within the body of the female with internal fertilization.
• The fertilized eggs of many fishes, amphibians, reptiles,
and birds develop outside the body. The embryo is
nourished by the egg yolk and protected by jellylike layers
or a shell.
• Most mammals give birth to live offspring. Embryos
develop in the female’s body, nourished by the mother’s
blood supply, through the placenta, until the young are
born.
Animal Structural Adaptations
Respiratory and Circulatory Systems
• Gas exchange occurs in the gills of aquatic
vertebrates.
• Lungs evolved in terrestrial vertebrates.
• Vertebrates have a closed circulatory system with a
multichambered heart.
In some
vertebrates, the
multi-chambered
heart has
separate
chambers and is
thus more
efficient.
Animal Structural Adaptations
Digestive and Excretory Systems
• Digestion and absorption of nutrients occurs in the
gut.
• Most vertebrates must expel wastes while conserving
water.
• Most vertebrates convert ammonia to less toxic
substances.
• In most vertebrates, kidneys filter wastes from the
blood while regulating water levels in the body.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Behavior can be defined as any action that an
individual carries out in response to a stimulus or to
the environment.
• Some behaviors are inherited actions that are
performed effectively the first time without being
taught. These types of behaviors are called innate
behaviors.
• Instinct is an innate behavior.
• Ex. Suckling, weaving a web, etc.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Learned behaviors
• When behaviors are modified by experience, it is called
learning.
• The simplest type of learning is called habituation.
• Habituation is a type of learning in which an animal
learns to ignore a frequent, harmless stimulus.
• Cows living next to a road learn to ignore the traffic noise.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• A type of trial and error learning is called operant
conditioning, in which specific animal behaviors are
deterred or reinforced by external actions upon the
animal.
• A natural behavior is reinforced with a positive response
so the behavior continues.
• If the behavior is not reinforced it stops.
• Ex. Mouse in a maze.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Classical conditioning is a type of learning in which an
animal learns to produce a specific response to a
predictive stimulus in anticipation of receiving
external reinforcement.
• Pavlov’s dogs is the classic example. Pavlov rang a bell
every time he fed his dogs. After time the dogs would
salivate when they heard a bell even if there was no food.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qy_mIEnnlF4
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i2rlymfLbE
• This is how we train animals... And humans…
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• In problem-solving learning, an animal uses several learning
mechanisms, such as watching an older offspring or trial and
error, to learn a type of behavior.
• One type of problem-solving, reasoning, involves the ability
to solve a problem not previously encountered by the
individual in a way that is not dictated by instinct.
• This type of behavior occurs without trial-and-error, as if the
animal developed an insight into how to solve the problem.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFzVdfozISo&feature=S
eriesPlayList&p=4D7FC6123CBDA3DF
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Imprinting is determined by both genes and learning.
Imprinting is a form of learning in which a young
animal forms permanent associations with its
environment.
• Imprinting occurs during a sensitive period, early in
development.
• Certain forms of learning that occur during this time
are very difficult to change later.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Feeding Behaviors
• Animals must balance the need to obtain energy with the
amount that they spend to get energy.
• The optimality hypothesis is the idea that animals tend to
behave in a way that maximizes food gathering, while
minimizing effort and exposure to predators.
• Because most resources are limited, competition for these
resources occurs quite often.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qy67XU6xEi8
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Aggressive Behavior
• Aggressive behavior can be defined as physical conflict or
threatening behavior between animals.
• Aggressive behavior can be seen among males looking for
a mate.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Territorial Behavior
• A territory is an area that an animal or group of animals
occupies and defends from other members of he same
species.
• An animal will establish its territory in any number of
ways and defend this area at all costs, because this helps
guarantee the survival of that animal’s offspring.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Dominance Hierarchies
• Competition can lead to a clear ranking of individuals
within the group, from most dominant to most
subordinate. This type of ranking is called a dominance
hierarchy.
• This type of hierarchy reduces the need for competition
and aggressive behavior as subordinates learn to submit
to avoid conflict.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Sexual Selection
• Animals generally choose mates based on certain traits or
behaviors, and this type of tendency is referred to as sexual
selection.
• These traits or behaviors will appear with increased frequency
in a population, because these individuals are most likely to
produce offspring.
• Another means of attracting a mate involves certain behaviors
and is called courtship.
• In some species, courtship can include a complex series of behaviors
called rituals.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Parental Behavior
• The benefit of parental care is that it increases the
likelihood that young will survive to adulthood.
• The costs are that parental care can generally only
be provided for a small number of young because
of the large energy investment by the parent.
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Biological Rhythms
• A daily biological cycle is called a circadian rhythm.
• There are also annual biological cycles.
• Hibernation is a period of inactivity and lowered body
temperature that some animals undergo in the winter as
protection against the cold weather and lack of food.
• Estivation is when animals slow their activity for the hot, dry
summer months. During a period of estivation, many reptiles
go underground where it's cooler.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUsARF-CBcI&feature=fvw
Animal Behavioral Adaptations
• Migratory Behavior
• Migration is a periodic group movement that is
characteristic of a population or species.
• Migration is exhausting and risky yet it allows animals to
find habitats with plentiful seasonal foods and provides
nesting sites safe from predators.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeMQtl9p0q4&feature=SeriesPl
ayList&p=4D7FC6123CBDA3DF