Do you know what adaptations are? Adaptations are inheritable characteristics that increase an organism’s ability to survive and reproduce in an environment. There are two main ways of organism adaptation: physical adaptation and behavior adaptation. Physical adaptation is a body structure that helps an organism to find and consume food and water, protect itself, cope with tough environments and reproduce. Behavior adaptation is an action by an organism to survive.
Physical adaptation is a body structure that a living thing has to help itself to survive in extreme environments. Here are some examples: If there was a sandstorm, camels can protect themselves by having thick layers of eyelashes to block sand from blowing into their eyes from the desert. Barbary squirrels have long bushy tails to blend into their environment. If you can’t stand on the ice, polar bears will solve that problem because they have large, furry feet and short, sharp claws that give them good traction on ice. Brightly colored male peacocks use color to attract females. Sharp spines and thick skin protect the cactus’s water store from predators and water loss. These are all physical adaptations.
Behavior adaptation is an action that helps an organism to survive. Here are some examples: Some animals burrow their homes underground to avoid predators or extreme weather above. Birds fly to the north in fall so they can better find food in the winter. In winter, a skunk's heart rate beats slower and its body temperature drops, it moves very little and needs to hibernate. Most rabbits stop and get very still when they see a bigger animal. This behavior is for protection, it can help rabbits prevent from being attacked. When the puffer fish is faced in a dangerous situation, it will suck air or water into its stomach, and grow to three times its original size. This behavior adaptation can help the puffer fish to avoid being eaten. These are all behavior adaptation examples.
Physical adaptation and behavior adaptation are two different ways for an organism. For me, I will choose physical adaptation, because this type of adaptation is a very unique feature among all animals including human beings that helps in survival of the species and existence over generations. Physical adaptation doesn’t need to learn or practice skills like behavior adaptation. And physical adaptation makes us different or unique from others.
Physical adaptation and behavior adaptation are all useful to us to survive in some dangerous environments, but if the Earth environment is strongly polluted, from air and water to dirt and food, your life will be destroyed and physical adaptation and behavior adaptation will have no use. If you don’t want your life to be destroyed, please protect our earth and nature for a better life!
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