Biochemical adaptations are animal examples. Mechanisms of adaptation of plants to adverse environmental conditions. Adaptations to extreme living conditions

Adaptations (devices)

Biology and genetics

The relative nature of adaptation: according to the specific habitat, adaptations lose their value when it changes; the hare is delayed in winter or during a thaw in early spring; it is noticeable against arable land and trees; aquatic plants perish when water bodies dry up, etc. Examples of adaptation Type of adaptation Characterization of adaptation Examples Special shape and structure of the body Streamlined shape of the body of the gill fins Pinnipeds Fishes patronizing Coloring is continuous and dissecting; formed in organisms living openly and makes them invisible ...

Adaptations (devices)

Adaptation (or adaptation) is a complex of morphological, physiological, behavioral and other characteristics of an individual, population or species, which ensures success in competition with other individuals, populations or species and resistance to environmental factors.

■ Adaptation is the result of the action of evolutionary factors.

The relative nature of adaptation: according to the specific habitat, adaptations lose their value when it changes (white hare with a delay in winter or with a thaw, in early spring it is noticeable against the background of arable land and trees; aquatic plants die when the reservoirs dry up, etc.).

Adaptation Examples

Type of adaptation	Adaptation Characteristic	Examples
The special shape and structure of the body	Streamlined body shape, gills, fins	Pinnipeds
Protective coloration	It is continuous and dissecting; formed in organisms living openly and makes them invisible against the background of the environment	Gray and white partridges; seasonal change of color of the hare's fur
Caution coloring	Bright, noticeable against the background of the environment; develops in species with protective equipment	Poisonous amphibians, stinging and poisonous insects, inedible and burning plants
Mimicry	Less protected organisms of one species resemble protected poisonous species of another species in color.	Some venomous snakes are similar in color to poisonous
Disguise	The shape and color of the body makes the body look like environmental objects	Caterpillars of butterflies are similar in color and shape to the knots of the trees where they live
Functional fixtures	Warm-blooded, active metabolism	Allow to live in different climatic conditions
Passive protection	Structures and features that determine the high probability of saving life	Shells of turtles, shells of mollusks, needles of hedgehogs, etc.
Instincts	Swarming in bees with the appearance of a second uterus, care for offspring, food search
Habits	Behavior in minutes of danger	Cobra inflates hood, scorpion raises tail

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Identification of limiting factors is of great practical importance. First of all, for growing crops: applying the necessary fertilizers, liming the soil, land reclamation, etc. allow to increase productivity, increase soil fertility, improve the existence of cultivated plants.

1. What does the prefix “evry” and “wall” mean in the name of the species? Give examples of euribionts and stenobionts.

Wide range of tolerance of the species   in relation to abiotic environmental factors, they are indicated by adding the prefix factor to the name evry. Inability to tolerate significant fluctuations in factors or a low endurance limit is characterized by the prefix "wall", for example, stenothermic animals. Small temperature changes have little effect on eurythermic organisms and may prove fatal for stenothermic. A view adapted to low temperatures is cryophilic   (from Greek cryos - cold), and to high temperatures - thermophilic.   Similar patterns apply to other factors. Plants can be hydrophilic, i.e. demanding on water and xerophilic   (dry-hardy).

In relation to the content saltsin the habitat emit eurygals and stenogals (from Greek. Hals - salt), to illumination -euriphotes and stenofotov, in relation to acidity- euryonic and stenoionic species.

Since eurybiontism makes it possible to populate a variety of habitats, and stenobiontism sharply narrows the range of places suitable for a species, these 2 groups are often called evry - and stenobionts. Many terrestrial animals living in a continental climate are able to withstand significant fluctuations in temperature, humidity, and solar radiation.

Stenobionts include   - orchids, trout, Far Eastern hazel grouse, deep-sea fish).

Animals, stenobiontic at the same time in relation to several factors are called stenobionts in the broad sense of the word (fish that live in mountain rivers and streams that cannot tolerate too high a temperature and low oxygen content, inhabitants of humid tropics, not adapted to low temperature and low humidity).

Euribionts includecolorado potato beetle, mouse, rats, wolves, cockroaches, reeds, wheat grass.

1. Adaptation of living organisms to environmental factors. Types of adaptation.

Adaptation (from lat. adaptation - adaptation ) - This is an evolutionarily arisen adaptation of environmental organisms, expressed in a change in their external and internal features.

Individuals who for some reason have lost the ability to adapt, in the conditions of changing regimes of environmental factors, are doomed to eliminationi.e. to extinction.

Types of adaptation: morphological, physiological and behavioral adaptation.

Morphology isthe doctrine of the external forms of organisms and their parts.

1.Morphological adaptation- This is adaptation, which is manifested in adaptation to fast swimming in aquatic animals, to survive in conditions of high temperatures and moisture deficiency - in cacti and other succulents.

2.Physiological adaptations   are the features of the enzymatic set in the digestive tract of animals, determined by the composition of the food. For example, the inhabitants of dry deserts are able to meet the need for moisture due to the biochemical oxidation of fats.

3.Behavioral (ethological) adaptations   manifest in a wide variety of forms. For example, there are forms of adaptive behavior of animals aimed at ensuring optimal heat exchange with the environment. Adaptive behavior can be manifested in the creation of shelters, movements in the direction of more favorable, preferred temperature conditions, the choice of places with optimal humidity or lighting. Many invertebrates are characterized by a selective attitude towards light, which is manifested in approaching or moving away from the source (taxis). Daily and seasonal migrations of mammals and birds are known, including migrations and flights, as well as intercontinental movements of fish.

Adaptive behavior can occur in predators during the hunt (tracking and stalking prey) and in their prey (hiding, entangling the trail). The behavior of animals during the mating season and during the feeding of offspring is extremely specific.

There are two types of adaptation to external factors. Passive adaptation path - this is an adaptation according to the type of tolerance (tolerance, endurance) lies in the emergence of a certain degree of resistance to this factor, the ability to retain functions when the strength of its influence changes. This type of adaptation is formed as a characteristic species property and is implemented at the cellular-tissue level. The second type of fixture is active. In this case, the body using specific adaptive mechanisms compensates for changes caused by the acting factor, so that the internal environment remains relatively constant. Active devices - this is an adaptation of the resistant type (resistance) to support homeostasis of the internal environment of the body. An example of a tolerant type of device is poikiloosmotic animals, an example of a resistant type is homoosmotic .

1. Define the population. What are the main group characteristics of the population? Give examples of populations. An increasing, stable and dying population.

Population- a group of individuals of the same species, interacting with each other and co-inhabiting a common territory. The main characteristics of the population are as follows:

1. Abundance - the total number of individuals in a particular territory.

2. Population density - the average number of individuals per unit area or volume.

3. Fertility - the number of new individuals that appeared per unit time as a result of reproduction.

4. Mortality - the number of dead individuals in a population per unit time.

5. Population growth - the difference between fertility and mortality.

6. Growth rate - average growth per unit of time.

The populations are characterized by a certain organization, the distribution of individuals by territory, the ratio of groups by sex, age, and behavioral characteristics. It is formed, on the one hand, on the basis of the general biological properties of the species, and on the other, under the influence of abiotic environmental factors and the population of other species.

The population structure is unstable. The growth and development of organisms, the birth of new ones, death from various causes, changes in environmental conditions, increase or decrease in the number of enemies - all this leads to a change in various ratios within the population.

Growing or growing population - this is a population in which young individuals predominate, such a population grows in number or is introduced into the ecosystem (for example, countries of the "third" world); The excess of fertility over mortality is more often noted and the population is growing up to such an extent that an outbreak of mass reproduction can occur. This is especially true for small animals.

With a balanced intensity of fertility and mortality is formed stable population.In such a population, mortality is compensated by growth and its number, as well as the range, are kept at the same level . Stable population -this is a population in which the number of individuals of different ages varies uniformly and has the character of a normal distribution (as an example, the population of Western Europe).

Shrinking (dying) populationIs a population in which mortality exceeds fertility .   A declining or dying population is a population in which older individuals predominate. An example is Russia of the 90s of the XX century.

However, it cannot limitlessly shrink. At a certain level of abundance, the mortality rate begins to fall, and fertility increases . In the end, a declining population, having reached a minimum number, turns into its opposite - into a growing population. Fertility in such a population is gradually growing and at a certain point is aligned with mortality, that is, the population becomes stable for a short period of time. In declining populations, old individuals predominate, no longer able to multiply intensively. This age structure indicates adverse conditions.

1. The ecological niche of the body, concepts and definitions. Habitat. Mutual arrangement of ecological niches. The ecological niche of man.

Any kind of animal, plant, microbe can normally inhabit, eat, breed only in the place where evolution “prescribed” it for many millennia, starting with its ancestors. To identify this phenomenon, biologists have borrowed term from architecture - the word "niche"   and they began to say that each type of living organism occupies its nature, its only ecological niche.

The ecological niche of the body - this is the set of all its requirements for environmental conditions (composition and modes of environmental factors) and the place where these requirements are met, or the entire set of many biological characteristics and physical parameters of the environment that determine the conditions for the existence of one kind or another, its energy conversion, information exchange with environment and their own kind.

The concept of ecological niche is usually used when using relationships of ecologically close species belonging to the same trophic level. The term “ecological niche” was proposed by J. Grinnell in 1917to characterize the spatial distribution of species, that is, the ecological niche was defined as a concept that is close to the habitat. C. Eltondefined the ecological niche as the position of the species in the community, emphasizing the particular importance of trophic links. A niche can be represented as part of an imaginary multidimensional space (hypervolume), the individual dimensions of which correspond to factors necessary for the species. The more the parameter varies, i.e. the adaptability of a species to a certain environmental factor, the wider its niche. The niche may increase in the case of weakened competition.

Species habitat   - this is the physical space occupied by the species, organism, community, it is determined by the combination of conditions of the abiotic and biotic environment, providing the entire development cycle of individuals of one species.

The habitat of the species can be designated as "Spatial niche."

The functional position in the community, in the ways of processing matter and energy in the process of nutrition, is called trophic niche.

Figuratively speaking, if the habitat is, as it were, the address of organisms of a given species, then the trophic niche is a profession, the role of the organism in its habitat.

The combination of these and other parameters is called an ecological niche.

Ecological niche   (from the French. niche - a recess in the wall) - this is a place occupied by a biological species in the biosphere, includes not only its position in space, but also its place in trophic and other interactions in the community, as it were, the “profession” of the species.

Fundamental ecological niche(potential) is an ecological niche in which a species may exist in the absence of competition from other species.

Realized ecological niche (real) -ecological niche, part of the fundamental (potential) niche that a species can defend in competition with other species.

According to the mutual arrangement, the niches of the two types are divided into three types: non-adjacent ecological niches; contiguous but not overlapping niches; contiguous and overlapping niches.

Man is one of the representatives of the animal kingdom, a biological species of the class of mammals. Despite the fact that many specific properties are inherent in it (reason, articulate speech, labor activity, biosociality, etc.), it has not lost its biological essence and all environmental laws are just as valid for it as for other living organisms . Man has   his only inherent ecological niche.The space in which a person’s niche is located is very limited. As a biological species, a person can live only within the land of the equatorial belt (tropics, subtropics), where the hominid family arose.

1. Formulate the fundamental law of Gause. What is a "life form"? What environmental (or life) forms are distinguished among the inhabitants of the aquatic environment?

Both in the plant and in the animal world interspecific and intraspecific competition is very widespread. There is a fundamental difference between them.

Rule (or even law) of Gause:two species cannot simultaneously occupy the same ecological niche and, therefore, are necessarily crowding out each other.

In one of the experiments, Gauze bred two types of ciliates - Paramecium caudatum and Paramecium aurelia. As food, they regularly received one of the types of bacteria, which in the presence of paramecium does not multiply. If each species of ciliates was cultivated separately, then their populations grew according to the typical sigmoid curve (a). In this case, the number of paramecium was determined by the amount of food. But with the coexistence of paramecias, P. aurelia began to compete with the pillars and replaced its competitor (b).

Fig. Competition between two closely related species of ciliates, occupying a common ecological niche. a - Paramecium caudatum; b - P. aurelia. 1. - in one culture; 2. - in mixed culture

With the joint cultivation of ciliates, only one species remained after a while. At the same time, ciliates did not attack individuals of a different type and did not emit harmful substances. The explanation is that the studied species differed in different growth rates. In the competition for food, the faster breeding species won.

When breeding P. caudatum and P. bursaria No such crowding occurred, both species were in equilibrium, the latter being concentrated on the bottom and walls of the vessel, and the former in free space, i.e., in another ecological niche. Experiments with other types of ciliates have shown a pattern of relationship between the victim and the predator.

Gauzo principlecarries the name - principle exception competitions. This principle leads either to the ecological separation of closely related species, or to a decrease in their density where they are able to coexist. As a result of competition, one of the species is crowded out. The Gause principle plays a huge role in the development of the concept of a niche, and also forces ecologists to look for answers to a number of questions: How do similar species coexist? How big are the differences between the species so that they can coexist? How to avoid a competitive exception?

The life form of the species is   This is a historically developed complex of its biological, physiological and morphological properties, which determines a certain reaction to environmental influences.

Among the inhabitants of the aquatic environment (aquatic organisms), the classification distinguishes the following life forms.

1.Neuston(from Greek. Neuston - able to swim) – the totality of marine and freshwater organisms that live near the surface of the water ,   for example, mosquito larvae, many protozoa, water-bugs, and from plants - the well-known duckweed.

2. Closer to the surface of the water plankton.

Plankton(from the Greek. planktos - soaring) - floating organisms that can make vertical and horizontal movements mainly in accordance with the movement of water masses. Allocate phytoplankton   - photosynthetic freely floating algae and zooplankton- small crustaceans, larvae of mollusks and fish, jellyfish, small fish.

3.Nekton   (from the Greek. Nectos - floating) - free-floating organisms capable of independent vertical and horizontal movement. Nektonlives in the water column - these are fish, in the seas and oceans, amphibians, large aquatic insects, crustaceans, also reptiles (sea snakes and turtles) and mammals: cetaceans (dolphins and whales) and pinnipeds (seals).

4. Periphyton(from Greek. Peri - around, about, phyton - plant) - animals and plants attached to the stems of higher plants and rising above the bottom (mollusks, rotifers, bryozoans, hydra, etc.).

5. Bentos (from Greek. benthos - depth, bottom) - bottom organisms leading an attached or free lifestyle, including those living in the thickness of the bottom sediment. These are mainly mollusks, some lower plants, crawling insect larvae, and worms. In the bottom layer live organisms that feed mainly on decaying residues.

1. What is a biocenosis, biogeocenosis, agrocenosis? The structure of biogeocenosis. Who is the founder of the doctrine of biocenosis? Examples of biogeocenoses.

Biocenosis(from Greek koinos - common bios-life) is a community of interacting living organisms consisting of plants (phytocenosis), animals (zoocenosis), microorganisms (microbocenosis) adapted for cohabitation in this territory.

The concept of "biocenosis" -conditional, since organisms cannot live outside the environment of existence, but it is convenient to use it in the process of studying the ecological relations between organisms. Depending on the locality, attitude to human activity, degree of saturation, usefulness, etc. they distinguish between biocenoses of land, water, natural and man-made, saturated and unsaturated, full-bodied and incomplete.

Biocenoses, as well as populations -it is the supraorganism level of organization of life, but of a higher rank.

The sizes of biocenotic groups are different   - this is a large community of pillows of lichens on tree trunks or rotting stump, but it is also a population of steppes, forests, deserts, etc.

The community of organisms is called a biocenosis, and science studying the community of organisms - biocenology.

V.N. Sukachev   a community term has been proposed (and generally accepted) biogeocenosis(from Greek bios– life, geo – Earth, cenosis – community) - it is a combination of organisms and natural phenomena characteristic of a given geographical area ..

The structure of biogeocenosis includes two components biotic -community of living plant and animal organisms (biocenosis) - and abiotic -set of inanimate environmental factors (ecotope, or biotope).

Spacewith more or less uniform conditions, which occupies a biocenosis, is called a biotope (topis - place) or ecotope.

Ecotope   includes two main components: climatop   - climate in all its diverse manifestations and edafotop   (from Greek. edafos - soil) - soil, relief, water.

Biogeocenosis\u003d biocenosis (phytocenosis + zoocenosis + microbocenosis) + biotope (climatop + edaphotope).

Biogeocenoses -these are natural formations (in them there is an element of "geo" - Earth ) .

By examples biogeocenosescan be a pond, meadow, mixed or single-breed forest. At the level of biogeocenosis, all processes of transformation of energy and matter in the biosphere occur.

Agrocenosis(from lat. agraris and buckwheat koykos - common) - created by man and artificially supported by him community of organisms with increased productivity (productivity) of one or more selected species of plants or animals.

Agrocenosis is different from biogeocenosis   main components. It cannot exist without the support of man, as this is an artificially created biotic community.

1. The concept of "ecosystem." Three principles of ecosystem functioning.

Ecological system   - one of the most important concepts of ecology, abbreviated as ecosystem.

Ecosystem(from the Greek. Oikos - dwelling and system) - this is any community of living beings together with their environment, connected within a complex system of relationships.

Ecosystem -these are supraorganismal associations, including organisms and inanimate (inert) environment, which are in interaction, without which it is impossible to maintain life on our planet. This is a community of plant and animal organisms and inorganic environment.

Based on the interaction of living organisms that form an ecosystem, between themselves and their habitat, in any ecosystem, interdependent aggregates are distinguished biotic   (living organisms) and abiotic   (inert or inanimate nature) of the components, as well as environmental factors (such as solar radiation, humidity and temperature, atmospheric pressure), anthropogenic factors   other.

To abiotic components of ecosystems   inorganic substances - carbon, nitrogen, water, atmospheric carbon dioxide, minerals, organic substances located mainly in the soil: proteins, carbohydrates, fats, humic substances, etc., that got into the soil after the death of organisms.

To the biotic components of the ecosystem   include producers, autotrophs (plants, chemosynthetics), consumers (animals) and detritophages, reducers (animals, bacteria, fungi).

Kazan physiological school. F.V. Ovsyannikov, N.O. Kovalevsky, N.A. Mislavsky, A.V. Kibyakov

This observation is interesting. In animals of northern populations, all elongated parts of the body — limbs, tail, ears — are covered with a dense layer of wool and look relatively shorter than in representatives of the same species, but living in a hot climate.

This pattern, commonly known as Alena, applies to both wild and domestic animals.

There is a noticeable difference in the structure of the body of the northern fox and Fenech in the south, northern boar and wild boar in the Caucasus. Outbred domestic dogs in the Krasnodar Territory, cattle of local selection are less lively in comparison with representatives of these species, say, Arkhangelsk.

Often animals from southern populations of long-legged and long-eared. Big ears, unacceptable at low temperatures, arose as an adaptation to life in a hot belt.

And the animals of the tropics have simply huge ears (elephants, rabbits, ungulates). The ears of the African elephant are significant, the area of \u200b\u200bwhich is 1/6 of the surface of the entire body of the animal. They have profuse innervation and vascularization. In hot weather, an elephant passes through the circulatory system of the ear shells about 1/3 of the circulating blood. As a result of increased blood flow, excessive heat is transferred to the external environment.

Even more impressive with its adaptive abilities for high temperatures is the desert resident hare Lapus alleni. In this rodent, 25% of the entire surface of the body falls on the bare auricles. It is not clear what the main biological task of these ears is: to fix the approach of danger in time or to participate in thermoregulation. Both the first and second tasks are solved by the beast very effectively. The rodent has a delicate hearing. The developed circulatory system of the auricles with a unique vasomotor ability serves only thermoregulation. Due to the enhancement and limitation of blood flow through the auricles, the animal changes heat transfer by 200-300%. His hearing organs perform the function of maintaining thermal homeostasis and saving water.

Due to the saturation of the auricles with heat-sensitive nerve endings and rapid vasomotor reactions from the surface of the auricles, a large amount of excess thermal energy is given to the elephant, and especially lepus.

The body structure of the relative of modern elephants - the mammoth - fits well into the context of the discussed problem. This northern analogue of the elephant, judging by the surviving remains found in the tundra, was significantly larger than its southern relative. But the mammoth's ears had a smaller relative area and, moreover, were covered with thick hair. The mammoth had relatively short limbs and a short trunk.

Long limbs are disadvantageous at low temperatures, since too much thermal energy is lost from their surface. But in hot climates, long limbs are a useful adaptation. In desert conditions, camels, goats, horses of local breeding, as well as sheep and cats, are usually long-legged.

According to N. Hensen, as a result of adaptation to low temperatures in animals, the properties of subcutaneous fat and bone marrow are changed. In arctic animals, bone fat from the phalanx of the fingers has a low melting point and does not freeze even in severe frosts. However, bone fat from bones that do not come in contact with a cold surface, such as a femur, has the usual physicochemical properties. Liquid fat in the bones of the lower limbs provides thermal insulation and mobility of the joints.

Fat accumulation is noted not only in northern animals, for which it serves as thermal insulation and a source of energy during a period when food is unavailable due to severe inclement weather. Fat accumulate and animals living in a hot climate. But the quality, quantity and distribution of body fat in northern and southern animals is different. In wild arctic animals, fat is distributed evenly throughout the body in the subcutaneous tissue. In this case, the animal forms a kind of heat-insulating capsule.

In animals of the temperate zone, fat as a heat insulator accumulates only in species with a poorly developed coat. In most cases, the accumulated fat serves as a source of energy in a hungry winter (or summer) period.

In hot climates, subcutaneous fat deposition carries a different physiological load. The distribution of body fat over animals is characterized by great unevenness. Fat is localized in the upper and rear parts of the body. For example, in ungulate African savannahs, the subcutaneous fat is localized along the spine. It protects the animal from the scorching sun. The belly is absolutely free of fat. It also makes a lot of sense. Land, grass or water that is colder than air provides effective heat dissipation through the abdominal wall in the absence of body fat. Small fat deposits in animals in hot climates are a source of energy for the period of drought and the hungry existence of herbivores associated with it.

The internal fat of animals in a hot and arid climate performs another extremely useful function. In conditions of lack or complete absence of water, internal fat serves as a source of water. Special studies show that the oxidation of 1000 g of fat is accompanied by the formation of 1100 g of water.

Camels, fat-tailed and fat-tailed sheep, and zebu cattle serve as a model of unpretentiousness in arid desert conditions. The mass of fat accumulated in the humps of a camel and fat tail of a sheep is 20% of their live weight. Calculations show that a 50-pound fat tail sheep carries around 10 liters of water with it, and a camel even more - about 100 liters. Recent examples illustrate the morphophysiological and biochemical adaptations of animals to extreme temperatures. Morphological adaptations extend to many organs. In northern animals, there is a large volume of the gastrointestinal tract and a large relative length of the intestine; more internal fat is deposited in the omentums and perinephric capsule.

In animals of the arid zone, there are a number of morphofunctional features of the system of urination and excretion. At the beginning of the XX century. morphologists found differences in the structure of the kidneys of desert animals and animals of a temperate climate. In animals of a hot climate, the cerebral layer is more developed due to an increase in the rectal tubular part of the nephron.

For example, in an African lion, the thickness of the brain layer of the kidneys is 34 mm, and in a domestic pig, only 6.5 mm. The ability of the kidneys to concentrate urine is positively correlated with the length of the Gendle loop.

In addition to structural features in animals of the arid zone, functional features of the urinary system were found. So, for a kangaroo rat, normal expressed ability of the bladder to reabsorb water from the composition of secondary urine is normal. In the ascending and descending channels of the Gendle loop, urea is filtered - a process common for the nodule of the nephron.

The adaptive functioning of the urinary system is based on neuro-humoral regulation with a pronounced hormonal component. In a kangaroo rat, the concentration of the hormone vasopressin is increased. So, in the urine of a kangaroo rat, the concentration of this hormone is 50 units / ml, in a laboratory rat - only 5-7 units / ml. In the tissue of the pituitary gland of a kangaroo rat, the content of vasopressin is 0.9 u / mg, in a laboratory rat it is three times less (0.3 u / mg). With water deprivation, differences between animals remain, although the secretory activity of the neurohypophysis is enhanced in both one and the other animal.

Loss of live weight during deprivation of water in arid animals is lower. If a camel during a working day, receiving only low quality hay, loses 2-3% of its live weight, then a horse and a donkey under the same conditions will lose 6-8% of their live weight due to dehydration.

The temperature of the habitat has a significant effect on the structure of the skin of animals. In cold climates, the skin is thicker, the coat is thicker, there are downers. All this helps to reduce the thermal conductivity of the body surface. In animals of a hot climate, the opposite is true: thin skin, rare coat, low heat-insulating properties of the skin as a whole.

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Basically, adaptation systems relate to the cold in one way or another, which is quite logical - if you manage to survive with a deep minus, the remaining dangers will not be so terrible. The same, incidentally, applies to extremely high temperatures. Who is able to adapt, most likely will not disappear anywhere.

Arctic whites are the largest hares of North America, which for some reason have relatively short ears. This is an excellent example of what an animal can sacrifice to survive in harsh conditions - although long ears can help to hear a predator, short ones reduce the return of precious heat, which is much more important for Arctic whites.

Frogs from Alaska of the species Rana sylvatica, perhaps, even surpassed the Antarctic fish. They literally freeze in ice in the winter, waiting in this way for the cold season, and return to life in spring. Such a “cryoson” is possible for them due to the special structure of the liver, which doubles during hibernation, and the complex biochemistry of the blood.

Some species of praying mantis, unable to spend all day in the sun, cope with the problem of heat shortage through chemical reactions in their own bodies, concentrating heat flashes inside for short-term heating.

A cyst is a temporary form of the existence of bacteria and many unicellular organisms, in which the body surrounds itself with a dense protective shell to protect itself from an aggressive external environment. This barrier is very effective - in some cases, it can help the owner survive for a couple of decades.

Notothenoid fish live in the waters of Antarctica, so cold that ordinary fish there would freeze to death. Sea water freezes only at a temperature of -2 ° C, which cannot be said about completely fresh blood. But Antarctic fish secrete a natural antifreeze protein that prevents ice crystals from forming in the blood - and survive.

Megatermy - the ability to generate heat using body weight, thereby surviving in cold conditions even without antifreeze in the blood. Some sea turtles take advantage of this, remaining mobile when the water around them almost freezes.

Asian mountain geese, crossing the Himalayas, rise to great heights. The highest flight of these birds is recorded at an altitude of 10 thousand meters! Geese fully control the temperature of their bodies, if necessary, even changing the chemical composition of the blood in order to survive in icy and thin air.

Mudskippers are not the most common plan fish, although they are fairly commonplace gobies. At low tide, they crawl along the silt, getting their own food, climbing trees on occasion. In their lifestyle, mud jumpers are much closer to amphibians, and only fins with gills give out fish to them.

The grand inventions of the human mind do not cease to amaze; fantasy has no limit. But what nature has created for many centuries surpasses the most creative ideas and designs. Nature has created more than one and a half million species of living individuals, each of which is individual and unique in its forms, physiology, and fitness for life. Examples of adaptation of organisms to constantly changing living conditions on the planet are examples of the creator’s wisdom and a constant source of problems for biologists to solve.

Adaptation means fitness or addiction. This is a process of gradual degeneration of the physiological, morphological or psychological functions of a creature in a changing environment. Both individual individuals and entire populations undergo changes.

A striking example of the adaptation of direct and indirect is the survival of the plant and animal world in the zone of increased radiation around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Immediate adaptability is characteristic of those individuals who managed to survive, get used to and begin to breed, some did not pass the test and died (indirect adaptation).

Since the conditions of existence on Earth are constantly changing, the processes of evolution and fitness in living nature are also a continuous process.

A fresh example of adaptation is the change in the habitat of a colony of green Mexican parrots. Recently, they changed their habitat and settled in the vent of the Masaya volcano, in an environment constantly saturated with high concentration of sulfur gas. Scientists have not yet given an explanation for this phenomenon.

Types of adaptation

A change in the whole form of the organism’s existence is a functional adaptation. An example of adaptation, when a change in conditions leads to the mutual adaptation of living organisms to each other, is a correlative adaptation or co-adaptation.

Adaptation can be passive when the subject’s functions or structure occur without his participation, or active when he consciously changes his habits to fit the environment (examples of people's adaptation to natural conditions or society). There are times when the subject adapts the environment to his needs - this is an objective adaptation.

Biologists divide the types of adaptation according to three criteria:

• Morphological.
• Physiological.
• Behavioral or psychological.

Examples of adaptation of animals or plants in their pure form are rare, most cases of getting used to new conditions occur in mixed species.

Morphological adaptations: examples

Morphological changes are changes in the shape of the body, individual organs, or the entire structure of a living organism that have occurred during evolution.

The following are morphological adaptations, examples from the animal and plant world, which we take for granted:

• The degeneration of leaves in thorns in cacti and other plants of arid regions.
• Tortoise shell.
• Streamlined body shapes of residents of water bodies.

Physiological adaptations: examples

A physiological device is a change in a number of chemical processes that occur inside the body.

• Emitting a strong odor to attract insects promotes dusting.
• The state of suspended animation, in which the simplest organisms are able to enter, allows them to maintain vital activity after many years. The oldest breeding bacterium is 250 years old.
• The accumulation of subcutaneous fat, which is converted into water, in camels.

Behavioral (psychological) adaptations

Examples of human adaptation are more associated with the psychological factor. Behavioral characteristics are characteristic of flora and fauna. So, in the process of evolution, a change in the temperature regime causes some animals to hibernate, birds to fly south to return in the spring, trees to dump foliage and slow down the movement of juices. The instinct of choosing the most suitable partner for procreation drives the behavior of animals in the mating season. Some northern frogs and turtles completely freeze for the winter and thaw, come to life with the onset of heat.

Drivers for Change

Any adaptation processes are a response to environmental factors that lead to environmental change. Such factors are divided into biotic, abiotic and anthropogenic.

Biotic factors are the influence of living organisms on each other, when, for example, one species that serves as food for another disappears.

Abiotic factors are changes in the surrounding inanimate nature when the climate, soil composition, water availability, and solar activity cycles change. Physiological adaptations, examples of the influence of abiotic factors are equatorial fish, which can breathe both in water and on land. They are well adapted to conditions when the drying up of rivers is a frequent occurrence.

Anthropogenic factors - the influence of human activity, which changes the environment.

Habitat adaptations

• Illumination. In plants, these are separate groups that differ in the need for sunlight. In open spaces, light-loving heliophytes live well. In contrast, sciophytes: thickets, feel good in shaded areas. Among animals, there are also individuals whose activity is designed for an active lifestyle at night or underground.
• Air temperature.   On average, for all living things, including humans, the optimal temperature range is considered to be from 0 to 50 ° C. However, life exists in almost all climatic regions of the Earth.

Opposite examples of adaptation to abnormal temperatures are described below.

Arctic fish do not freeze due to the production of a unique antifreeze protein in the blood, which prevents the blood from freezing.

The simplest microorganisms were found in hydrothermal springs, the water temperature in which exceeds a boiling point.

Hydrophyte plants, that is, those that live in or near water, die even with a slight loss of moisture. Xerophytes, on the contrary, are adapted to live in arid regions, and die in high humidity. Among animals, nature has also worked to adapt to an aquatic and anhydrous environment.

Human adaptation

Man's abilities to adapt are truly grandiose. The secrets of human thinking are far from fully disclosed, and the secrets of people's adaptive ability will for a long time be a mysterious topic for scientists. The superiority of Homo sapiens to other living beings lies in the ability to consciously change their behavior to the requirements of the environment or, conversely, the world around them to their needs.

The flexibility of human behavior is manifested daily. If you give the task: "give examples of the adaptation of people," the majority begins to recall exceptional cases of survival. These are rare cases, and in new circumstances, it is common for a person daily. We try on a new environment at the time of birth, in kindergarten, school, in a team, when moving to another country. It is this state of acceptance of new sensations by the body that is called stress. Stress is a psychological factor, but nevertheless, under its influence, many physiological functions change. In the case when a person accepts the new environment as positive for himself, the new state becomes habitual, otherwise stress threatens to become protracted and lead to a number of serious diseases.

Human adaptation mechanisms

There are three types of human adaptation:

• Physiological. The simplest examples are acclimatization and adaptability to changing time zones or daily working hours. In the process of evolution, various types of people have formed, depending on the territorial place of residence. Arctic, alpine, continental, desert, equatorial types differ significantly in physiological indicators.
• Psychological adaptation.   This is a person’s ability to find moments of understanding with people of different psychotypes in a country with a different mentality. It is common for a reasonable person to change his established stereotypes under the influence of new information, special cases, stress.
• Social adaptation.   A type of addiction that is peculiar only to man.

All adaptive types are closely interconnected, as a rule, any change in habitual existence causes a person to need social and psychological adaptation. Under their influence, mechanisms of physiological changes come into effect, which also adapt to new conditions.

This mobilization of all body reactions is called adaptation syndrome. New reactions of the body appear in response to sudden changes in the situation. At the first stage - anxiety - there is a change in physiological functions, changes in the work of metabolism and systems. Next, the protective functions and organs (including the brain) are connected, they begin to include their protective functions and hidden capabilities. The third stage of adaptation depends on individual characteristics: a person either enters a new life and enters into a normal course (in medicine, recovery occurs during this period), or the body does not accept stress, and the consequences take on a negative form.

The phenomena of the human body

In man, nature has a huge margin of safety, which is used in everyday life only to a small extent. It manifests itself in extreme situations and is perceived as a miracle. In fact, a miracle is inherent in ourselves. An example of adaptation: the ability of people to adapt to normal life after removal of a significant part of the internal organs.

Natural innate immunity throughout life can be strengthened by a number of factors or, conversely, weaken with an improper lifestyle. Unfortunately, passion for bad habits is also the difference between a person and other living organisms.