Answer key

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Last edited 25 days ago by Learn LoopHQ.

Chapter: 08. Adaptation

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Fish possess several adaptations for aquatic life. Their streamlined, spindle-shaped body offers minimal resistance while swimming, allowing for efficient movement. Fins, including paired pectoral and pelvic fins for balance, and median caudal and dorsal fins for propulsion and stability, are crucial for movement and direction control. Gills enable efficient gas exchange, extracting dissolved oxygen from water. Additionally, many fish have an air bladder for buoyancy control, and scales and slime protect their body from decay.

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Desert plants, or xerophytes, exhibit remarkable adaptations to conserve and store water. Their roots are typically long, extending deep into the soil to access water from lower layers. Stems are often spongy and succulent, serving as water storage organs, and are green to take over photosynthesis from the leaves. Leaves are frequently reduced to spines, minimizing surface area for water loss through transpiration and also deterring herbivores. A thick, waxy coating on the stem further reduces water evaporation.

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Camels are supremely adapted to desert life due to several specialized features. Their padded feet allow them to walk on hot, soft sand without sinking. The iconic hump stores fat, providing a crucial energy and water source when food is scarce. Camels can drink vast quantities of water and store it in their stomach’s water cells for prolonged survival. Long eyelashes and nostril flaps protect their eyes and respiratory system from sandstorms, while their ability to adjust body temperature and lack of sweat glands conserve vital water.

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Birds exhibit numerous adaptations for efficient flight. Their forelimbs are modified into powerful wings, the primary organs of flight. A streamlined body shape, tapering at both ends, minimizes air resistance during flight. Feathers cover their body, providing warmth, lightness, and aiding in flight and steering. Strong, enlarged breast muscles control wing movements. Hollow, pneumatic bones make their skeleton light, and air sacs, extensions of the lungs, provide additional oxygen, all contributing to sustained aerial mobility.

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A habitat is crucial for an organism’s survival as it provides all the necessary resources such as food, air, water, and shelter. For animals, it also offers a safe place to reproduce and protect their young ones. Furthermore, a habitat allows animals to hide from predators and escape danger by blending in with their surroundings, ensuring their long-term survival in a specific environment.

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Aquatic plants are grouped into floating, submerged, and fixed types, each with unique adaptations. Floating plants like water hyacinth are light and spongy with air-filled spaces for buoyancy and waxy leaves to prevent rotting. Submerged plants such as Hydrilla grow entirely underwater, having long, tapered leaves for minimal water resistance and no stomata, exchanging gases directly through their surface. Fixed aquatic plants like water lilies have hollow stems for flotation, broad waxy leaves (stomata only on upper surface), and long roots anchored to the waterbed.

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