OUR ENVIRONMENT

Introduction

In this project we find out about some of the different ecosystems in our environment. We also gain
knowledge on the term Adaptation and how different animals and plants have adapted to survive in
their respective ecosystems. We discuss the different animals and plants that live in the various
ecosystems and hope that at the end of reading this project you will be more informed on the subject.
 Acknowledgement

I would like to thank my teacher for getting me started on this subject and guiding me in class. I would
also like to thank my family for supporting me and assisting me to complete this project.
 Table of Contents

Environment…………………………………… 4

Adaptation

Desert

Marine (fresh water)

Forests

Grasslands

Tundra

Wetlands

Bibliography
 Environment

An environment is the natural world as a whole or in a particular geographical area in which a person,
animal or plant lives or operates. Some types of environment are : Desert, Marine, Freshwater,
Grasslands, Tundra, and Wetlands.
 Adaptation

Adaptation is the process of change by which an organism or species become better suited to it’s
environment.

Five (5) ways which plants adapt in the desert are :

 The size and number of leaves. Desert plants have seasonal leaves, smaller leaves or no leaves at
all therefore they lose less water through evapotranspiration.
 They have modified leaves in the form of thorns to reduce the loss of moisture from the surface
of leaves
 Many plants such as the cactus plants have thick and succulent stems with a pulpy interior to
store water.
 Some plants have stunted growth to reduce water loss and conserve food and nutrients.
 Some plants such as living stone only expose a few leaves to the surface while the rest of the
plant is underground.

Five (5) ways animals adapt in the desert are:

 Some animals have thick fur on their feet to protect them from the hot ground.
 Some animals have long thick fur that insulates them during the cold nights and protect them
from the hot sun during the day.
 Some animals live in borrows during the days to avoid extreme heat
 Some animals like the camels rarely sweat even in hot temperatures so when the do take in
fluids they can conserve it for a long time.
 Some animals lose little water through urination and perspiration.
 Deserts

A desert is any large, arid area of land where little to no rainfall occurs along with little vegetation.
Although incredibly dry, deserts are one of Earth’s ecosystems and are home to a variety of plants and
animals that have adapted to live in the harsh conditions. Deserts can be found on every continent and
are home to a large proportion of the Earth’s population.

Two types of plants living in the desert are the Joshua tree and the cactus plant while two of the animals
living in the desert are the coyote and the meerkat.

Cactus. Joshua tree

Coyote Meerkat
 Fresh Water Marines

Fresh Water ecosystem are a subset of Earth’s aquatic ecosystems. They include lakes, ponds, rivers,
streams, springs, bogs and Wetlands. They can be contrasted with marine ecosystems which have large
salt content.

Two (2) ways plants to fresh water Marines are:

 They adapt underwater leaves which are very thin to be able to absorb as much light as possible.

 They also adapt floating leaves which are broad have lacunae that contains gas to offer the
leaves buoyancy.

Two (2) ways animals adapt to fresh water Marines are:

 Some baby fish have pelvic sucking disks which allows them to attach to rocks and other hard
surfaces to withstand strong movements.

 Crayfish adapt to tolerate low oxygen conditions and exposure to air

River weeds water lily

Alligator. Otter
 Forests

Forest ecosystem are areas of landscape that are dominated by trees and consists of biologically
integrated communities of plants and animals and microbes together with local soils and atmospheres
with which they interact.

Two (2) ways which plants adapt to the forest are:

 Having there roots in the ground and climbing high into the tree canopy to reach available
sunlight.

 Drip Tips. The leaves of forest trees have adapted to cope with exceptionally high rain fall

Two (2) ways which animals adapt to the forest are:

 Mimicry, this is the animals tend to look like something meant to be seen.

 Nocturnality, this is when the animals are active at nights and are usually asleep or resting
during the days.

Wild Boar Rabbits

Elm. . Bamboo
 Grasslands

Grasslands is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous (non woody)
plants. It is called transitional landscape because grassland ecosystem are dominated by the grass with
few or no trees in the area where there is not enough for a forest and not too much of a forest.

Two (2) ways plants adapt to the grasslands are:

 Since grasslands don’t get a lot of rain, many of them have long narrow leaves that don’t need
water.

 Winters can be tough to beat so some grassland plants go dormant, meaning they stop growing
leaves, seeds and roots until spring.

Two (2) ways animals adapt to the grasslands are:

 Nesting behavior, lacking in trees animals must nest on or underground. This is how most
grassland birds hide and keep their eggs safe.

 Lacking trees, rocks or other support structures to hide behind, grassland animals have often
evolved highly effective camouflage which allows them to hide while in plain sight.

Bees Bison
 Clover Grasses

Tundra

These are treeless regions found in the Arctic and on the tops of mountains where the climate is cold
and windy and rainfall is scant. Tundra lands are covered with snow for much of the year but summers
bring bursts of wild flowers.

Two (2) ways plants adapt to the tundra are:

 Some tundra plants retain old leaves rather than dropping them. This conserves nutrients and
helps to protect the plant from snow

 Some plants protect themselves from wind and snow by growing “fur” which is made up of
thousands of tiny curly hairs.

Two (2) ways animals adapt to the tundra are:

 Many mammals have specialized coats to ward off the winter cold

 Many tundra animals grow more slowly and reproduce less frequently than their non tundra
relatives.

Cloudberries. Cotton grass

Wetlands

Wetlands are areas where water covers the soil or is present either at or near the surface of the soil all
year or for varying periods of time during the year including during the growing season.

Two (2) ways plants adapt to the wetlands are:

 Many plants have hollowed stems that transport oxygen down to the roots where it is needed

 Some plants store excess salt in fleshy leaves and then periodically shed them.

Two (2) ways animals adapt to the wetlands are:

 Some animals will borrow themselves in the mud to stay cool and wait for passing prey

 Beavers keep warm in the swamp with waterproof coats.

Frog. Snake
Marsh Marigold Pickerel weed

Bibliography

www.istockphoto.com

www.botanic.co.uk

www.twinkl.com
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