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Habitat

Habitat is a place where an organism lives. It is also referred to as environmental complex, which
includes physical factors like climate, soil and organisms which interact with each other and also the
environment.

Habitat of an organism comprises of two main components

Abiotic/Physical Components
These are the physical or geographical conditions of any area, such as temperature, rainfall,
air, sunlight, soil and altitude.

Biotic/Living Components
These are the living organisms, such as plants, animals and microbes. If an organism has to
breed and flourish well, the physical and biotic factors of its habitat must be suitable.

The plants and animals live in three types of habitats

Aquatic Habitat (Water)

Terrestrial Habitat (Land)
Aerial Habitat (Air) or Arboreal Habitat (Tree)

Aquatic Habitat

It includes rivers, lakes, ponds, swamps, streams, oceans. Animals like fish, tadpoles, crabs, and
plants like algae, lotus, prills live in aquatic habitat.

Marine habitat includes all the oceans. It is the largest eco system. It has a large variety of fish and
other marine animals. They form a good source of food.

Terrestrial Habitat

It includes the entire land of Earth such as land, grassland, desert, mountains, etc. This type of
habitat is unstable and changes very rapidly. Changes in temperature, moisture, soil and rainfall are
common.

Aerial Habitat

Animals are secondarily adapted for aerial existence as no organism is born in air. Organisms such as
insects, birds, bats, etc. are called aerial organisms or arboreal organisms.
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ADAPTATION

Adaptation refers to the changes made by an individual organism during its lifetime by which it
adjusts to varying conditions of that environment.

Adaptation in Plants

Water is the most important factor for growth, nutrition and protection of animals. On the basis of
availability of water in a particular habitat, the plants are grouped into three types-

1. Hydrophytes
2. Mesophytes
3. Xerophytes

Hydrophytes

Such plants grow in well moisture places because they need abundant water. These are of five types-

- Free floating
- Rooted with free floating leaves
- Submerged and rooted
- Submerged and floating
- Emerged and rooted

Adaptation in Hydrophytes

1. Roots Roots are either absent (Ceratophyllum, Wolffia) or are poorly developed ( Hydrilla)
since they do not play an important role in water absorption.
2. Stems In some plants, stem is long, slender, spongy and flexible (eg. Hydrilla).
3. Leaves Leaves are thin, long and ribbon-shaped (eg. Vallisnaria) or finely dressed (eg.
Ceratophyllum) in submerged plants. Leaves below the water are long, narrow and
dissected, while those outside water are full and broad.
4. Air Chambers All hydrophytes possess large air chambers.

Mesophytes

Mesophytes grow in places which are neither very dry nor very wet, example cultivated lands (soil
has enough salt and oxygen).
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Adaptation in Mesophytes

1. Roots Roots are well developed and branched, with root hair and root caps.
2. Stems Well developed, erect and strong stems are present.
3. Leaves Larger and closer leaves are present with abundant chloroplast.

Examples of Mesophytes are garden plants like rose, vegetable plants like mango.

Xerophytes

Xerophytes occur in those habitats where there is scarcity of water, such as deserts.

Adaptation in Xerophytes

1. Roots Well developed roots are present which go deep into soil to absorb water. Root
hairs are present.
2. Stem Stem is thick, fleshy, and stores water.
3. Leaves Leaves are spiny.

Adaptation in Animals

Adaptation in animals is of the following types

1. Terrestrial Adaptations
2. Aquatic Adaptations
3. Aerial Adaptations

Terrestrial Adaptations

The animals living here maybe walkers, runners, burrowers, climbers and fliers.

Deserts

Animals living in desrts adapt to the intense heat and lack of water. For example, Camels have long
legs which help them to keep their bodies away from the heat of the sand. They can live for many
days without water due to very less amount of water loss from their bodies

Mountains
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Animals living in mountains have thick fur or long hair on their bodies to keep warm (Example
Snow leopard, Yak).

Grasslands

Predators like lions kill their prey like deer for food. Predators have sharp teeth and long claws. Their
eyes are at the front of the head.

Preys have large ears to know about their predator. They have eyes on the side for a wider view.
They have a faster running speed.

Aquatic Adaptations

- These organisms have spindle-shaped body to move easily in water.

- Fish have slippery scales on their bodies for protection and easy movement.
- Gills in fishes help them use dissolved oxygen.
- Fins are the swimming organs in fishes.

Aerial Adaptations

- Birds have spindle-shaped bodies for easy and swift passage through air.
- Forelimbs are modified into wings for flying.
- Their body is covered with light, elastic and water proof feathers.