Survival Strategies

Survival Strategies

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The Strategies Used by an Animal to Survive in its Environment

Introduction

Every species has an impressive and unique way of living on our planet. Some animals can swim, some can fly, and others can do both. Some animals move very slowly and others incredibly fast. Some live in water while others live in air. How the animals look and behave determines how they live, forage for food, attract mates, build their shelter, and defend themselves from the elements and predators. They have special features that help them survive.

Students will explore the special features of a number of different animals through a series of demonstrations and activities.

Objectives

  • Compare and contrast human features with other the features of other animals.
  • Compare the structures and behaviours of animals in different habitats.
  • Assess survival needs and interactions between animals and the environment.

Background

Individual animals may have features that make it easier for them to survive, find food and shelter, and reproduce in their particular surroundings. Ecology is the science that examines the relationships between living things and their surroundings. Their surroundings make up their habitat and include biotic factors (plants and animals) and abiotic factors (weather, light, water, and soil).

Competition between animals happens when something (often food or shelter) is limited. Having special features mean that animals can live in different places or find different foods. This specialization can be obvious, found in the appearance of the animal, or it could be 'under the skin'. Specializations that aren't obvious to the eye are often because that animal lives in a unique habitat, like the ability to take oxygen out of the water to breathe.

Entire Lesson

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Other Resources

Science World at TELUS World of Science | Search: The Sara Stern Gallery
Engaging Science | Online Games | What a Mouthful
University of British Columbia | Department of Geography | Biodiversity of BC
PBS | Evolution | Educational Multimedia and Online Games

 

Comments  

 
#1 Activity Delivery tips — Eugene Luk 2012-03-08 13:29
•Feathers, Fur, or Fin?: get entire class involved by allowing all team members to come up and place cards on the board.
•Sound and Smell: sounds can be too easy; for more challenge, use more smell canisters. Alternatively, do 2 rounds: 1 for sounds and 1 for smells. For students who finish early, have a secondary activity they can do while waiting for rest of class.
•Create a Creature: to ensure enough supplies for everyone, you may want to limit each student to a certain number of each item. Provide an objective (e.g. design a creature w/ 3 different adaptations). Allow time at the end for students to present their creature to rest of class!
•Carrying Capacity: probably best to first divide class into the 2 teams (Predators vs. Prey), and then have 2 different facilitators explain each team's goal to them separately. Emphasize that once a prey has been caught, it is "killed" and cannot fight back or escape from its predator!