As you learned in section one of this resource an animal's adaptations allows them to survive in certain environments. If you study the different environments you will see how the animals and plants have adaptations for the specific environment in which they live.

Watch this video to see how plants and animal are adapted to life in the desert.

Scientists divide the major land environments into different biomes. In this section we will look at six major biomes. Take notes on the different adaptations of plants and animals in each environment.

Click on the images below to learn more about that biome and the adaptations of the plants and animals that live there.

Tropical Rainforest

Rainforest

Abiotic Factors: The tropical rainforest is hot and it rains year round - about 80 to 180 inches per year. The soil is thin, lacks nutrients, and erodes quickly.

Biotic Factor:
Plant Adaptations:

• Drip tips and waxy surfaces allow water to run off.
• Buttress roots help hold up plants in the shallow soil.
• Plants have many stomata increasing the rate of transpiration.
• Some plants climb and grow on others to reach the sunlight.
• Flowers on the forest floor are designed to lure animal pollinators since there is relatively no wind on the forest floor to aid in pollination.
• Plants have shallow roots to help capture nutrients from the top level of soil.
• Bromeliads collect water into a central reservoir from which they absorb the water through hairs on their leaves instead of collecting water through roots.

Animal Adaptations:

• Animals use camouflage to hide from predators and some can even change colors.
• Animals that live in the upper part of the forest have adaptations for climbing, jumping, and or flight.
• Birds have long beaks for eating fruit.
• Animals that live on the forest floor have the ability to see in dark conditions.

Tundra

Tundra

Abiotic Factors: The tundra is characterized by strong winds, low precipitation, short summers, long cold and dark winters. The soil is poorly developed and has permafrost which is a permanently frozen layer of subsoil.

Biotic Factor:
Plant Adaptations:

• Plants are small (usually less than 12 inches tall) and low-growing due to lack of nutrients, because being close to the ground helps keep the plants from freezing, and the roots cannot penetrate the permafrost.
• Plants are dark in color—some are even red—this helps them absorb solar heat.
• Some plants are covered with hair which helps keep them warm.
• Some plants grow in clumps to protect one another from the wind and cold.
• Some plants have dish-like flowers that follow the sun, focusing more solar heat on the center of the flower and helping the plant stay warm.

Animal Adaptations:

• Animals migrate to avoid long harsh winters.
• Animals that do not migrate will hibernate.
• Animals have small extremities such as limbs and ears to limit heat loss.
• Animals have thick fur which turns white in the winter to camouflage them in the snow.

Boreal Forest/Tiaga

Taiga

Abiotic Factors: The Taiga is characterized by long cold winters and short mild summers that are long enough to allow the ground to thaw. There is moderate precipitation and high humidity. The soil is acidic and nutrient poor.

Biotic Factor:
Plant Adaptations:

• Many trees are evergreen so that plants can photosynthesize right away when temperatures rise.
• Many trees have needle-like leaves which shape loses less water and sheds snow more easily than broad leaves.
• Waxy coating on needles prevent evaporation.
• Needles are dark in color allowing more solar heat to be absorbed.
• Many trees have branches that droop downward to help shed excess snow to keep the branches from breaking.

Animal Adaptations:

• Animals migrate to avoid long harsh winters.
• Animals that do not migrate will hibernate.
• Animals have small extremities such as limbs and ears to limit heat loss.
• Animals have extra insulation in the form of fat or down feathers to help keep them warm.
• Animals are camouflaged to blend into their environment to help protect them from predators.

Temperate Forest

Temperate Forest

Abiotic Factors: The temperate forest has four distinct seasons and has cold to moderate winters and warm summers. There is precipitation year round. The soil is fertile often rich in humus which is a material formed from decaying leaves and other organic matter.

Biotic Factor:
Plant Adaptations:

• Wildflowers grow on the forest floor early in the spring before trees leaf-out and shade the forest floor.
• Many trees are deciduous (they drop their leaves in the autumn, and grow new ones in spring). Most deciduous trees have thin, broad, light-weight leaves that can capture a lot of sunlight to make a lot of food for the tree in warm weather; when the weather gets cooler, the broad leaves cause too much water loss and can be weighed down by too much snow, so the tree drops its leaves. New ones grow in the spring.
• Trees have thick bark to protect against cold winters.
• Conifers have needle-like leaves to prevent water loss.

Animal Adaptations:

• Animals migrate to avoid winters.
• Animals that do not migrate will hibernate.
• Animals are camouflaged to hide when leaves fall off trees in the fall.

Desert

Desert

Abiotic Factors: The desert is very dry and often hot with strong winds. Annual rainfall averages less than 10 inches per year, and that rain often comes all at the same time. The rest of the year is very dry. There is a lot of direct sunlight. The soil is often sandy or rocky and unable to hold much water.

Biotic Factor:
Plant Adaptations:

• Some plants, called succulents, store water in their stems or leaves.
• Some plants have no leaves or small seasonal leaves that only grow after it rains. The lack of leaves helps reduce water loss during photosynthesis. Leafless plants conduct photosynthesis in their green stems.
• Long root systems spread out wide or go deep into the ground to absorb water.
• Some plants have a short life cycle, germinating in response to rain, growing, flowering, and dying within one year. These plants can evade drought.
• Some plants have spines to discourage animals from eating plants for water.
• Waxy coating on stems and leaves help reduce water loss.
• Flowers that open at night lure pollinators who are more likely to be active during the cooler night.

Animal Adaptations:

• Many animals migrate during the dry season to search for water.
• Animals burrow for protection.
• Animals are camouflaged to blend into their environment to help protect them from predators.
• Many of the animals feed on grass and have teeth adapted for grinding.

Grassland

Grassland

Abiotic Factors: The grasslands have hot summers and cold winters. Rainfall is uncertain and drought is common. The temperate grasslands usually receive about 10 to 30 inches of precipitation per year. The soil is extremely rich in organic material due to the fact that the above-ground portions of grasses die off annually, enriching the soil.

Biotic Factor:
Plant Adaptations:

• During a fire, while above-ground portions of grasses may perish, the root portions survive to sprout again.
• Some trees have thick bark to resist fire.
• Prairie shrubs readily resprout after fire.
• Roots of prairie grasses extend deep into the ground to absorb as much moisture as they can.
• Extensive root systems prevent grazing animals from pulling roots out of the ground.
• Prairie grasses have narrow leaves which lose less water than broad leaves.
• Grasses grow from near their base, not from their tip; thus, are not permanently damaged from grazing animals or fire.
• Many grasses take advantage of exposed, windy conditions and are wind pollinated.
• Soft stems enable prairie grasses to bend in the wind.

Animal Adaptations:

• Many animals migrate during the dry season to search for water.
• Animals burrow for protection.
• Animals are camouflaged to blend into their environment to help protect them from predators.
• Many of the animals feed on grass and have teeth adapted for grinding.