Hello, my name is Mrs. Mehrin and I am so excited to be learning all about animal adaptations with you.

Let's begin.

Welcome to today's lesson from the unit "Evolution and Inheritance".

Your learning outcome today is I can describe some adaptations in a range of animals.

Now I know that learning can sometimes be a little bit challenging, but that's okay because it just means that we are going to work really hard together and we're going to learn lots of fabulous new things.

Let's begin.

So here are your five keywords for today's lesson.

Now I am going to be referring to these keywords throughout today's lesson.

However, if you feel that it does help you, you can pause the video and jot them down now, however, it's not compulsory.

Fantastic, well done.

And here are your definitions for those keywords.

Again, you don't need to jot these down if you don't want to, but if it does help you, you can pause the video now and jot them down.

Fantastic, well done.

So our lesson is split into two parts today.

Let's begin with the first part, animal adaptations.

Now a habitat is the place where a plant or animal lives.

What types of animals do you think might live in these habitats? So we've got the arctic, the rainforest and the desert.

I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So in the Arctic, the most obvious one is the polar bear.

In the rainforest, you might be thinking of sloths or jaguars, lemurs, those kind of animals or snakes, in the desert, you might be thinking of a sand fox, for example.

So there's lots of different animals that live in these habitats here.

Now all animals have special features called adaptations that help them to survive in their habitats.

Now, adaptations are passed on from one generation of a species to another, and it can take many hundreds or thousands of years for animal adaptations to develop within a species.

Now what is the name for the special feature that animals have that help them to survive in their habitats? Is it A characteristics, B attributes or C adaptations? I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done, the answer is C, adaptations.

Now adaptations are special features A, animals develop in their lifetime, B, are passed on from generation to generation, or C, animals decide to make, again, I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done, the answer is B.

They are passed on from generation to generation.

Now different animals have different adaptations based on the habitats they live in.

Animals that live in very hot environments have adaptations to keep them cool.

So for example, camels have thin fur on their bellies, which helps body heat to escape, keeping them cooler during the hot day, Fennec foxes have large ears through which their body heat can escape, helping them to keep cool.

So animals that live in very cold environments have very different adaptations.

So orcas have a thick layer of fat under their skin that helps keep them warm in cold waters.

And polar bears have a very thick coat of fur and plenty of fat to keep them warm.

So let's do a quick check-in of your learning, it says, which of these adaptations would be useful for animals living in very cold environments? Be A, thick coat of fur B, very thin skin, C, large ears to disperse heat or D, layer of fat under the skin.

I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done, the answer is A and D.

Now many animals have adaptations that allow them to move more easily in their habitats.

So ducks and frogs have webbed feet to help them swim through water more easily.

Camels have large flat feet so they don't sink into the sand.

And animals that live in the treetops have strong hands, paws or claws that help them to grip branches and trunks.

Now, animals that are predators have adaptations that help them to find and catch food.

So tigers for example, have strong claws and sharp teeth for catching and killing prey and anteaters have very long tongues that can reach down into anthills and gather up insects.

Now, herbivores can also have adaptations that help them to find and eat food.

So giraffes, for example, have long necks that allow them to reach leaves high in the treetops and rabbits have teeth that are continuously growing so they don't get ground down by the constant chewing of grass.

Now, animals are adapted so they can blend into their surroundings.

And this is called camouflage.

So camouflage can help pray animals hide from predators.

So I want you to have a little think.

Can you spot the animals that are hiding their habitats in these pictures here? So we've got a stick insect.

See if you can find the stick insect in the picture.

And we have a fish as well, see if you can spot the fish.

I'll give you five seconds, off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So I think the stick insect was much harder to spot there, but if you look really closely, it's kind of on that darker piece of what looks like a darker piece of wood in the middle.

And the fish is right there in the middle of the picture with the spots all over it.

So camouflage can also help predators to sneak up on their prey.

Now can you see the predators that are hiding in their habitats? So we've got a spider and we've got an owl.

See if you can spot where the spider is and where the owl is.

I'll give you five seconds, off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So they're camouflaged quite well.

I think the spider is easier to spot than the owl and see the spider there on the leaf.

And we've got the owl here in the tree, but the owl is definitely more camouflage because the tree has very similar colouring to the owl there.

So that's really interesting how well they can camouflage.

So let's do a quick check-in of your learning.

Why is camouflage is useful adaptation? Is it because A, it can help animals to keep warm? B, it can help animals hide from predators.

C, it can help animals to sneak up on prey or D, it can help animals to scare away predators.

I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done, the answer is B and C.

Now these children have been looking at different animal adaptations.

Laura says, these animals are too brightly coloured to camouflage anywhere, but Izzy says, does that mean they'll get eaten really quickly by predators? What do you think? I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer, off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So some animals are very brightly coloured to warn potential predators that they might be poisonous or that they might sting.

So there are many other adaptations that can help defend them from predators.

So can you see any adaptations of these animals that would make it harder for predators to catch and eat them? So we've got a crab and we've got a hedgehog.

I'll give you five seconds, what do you think? What adaptations do you think these animals have that make it harder for a predator to catch and eat them? I'll give you five seconds, off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So some animals have hard shells, horns or spikes to make it difficult for them to be eaten, and some animals have pincers or stingers to try to fight off any predators.

Now prey animals also usually have eyes on the side of their head.

Now why do you think this is? Why do you think they've got eyes on the side of their head? I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So having eyes on the side of their head gives prey animals a better view of their surroundings to spot any predators that are approaching.

So animals that are predators often have eyes on the front of their heads facing forwards, and this helps them to judge how far away their prey is.

So horns, spikes, stingers and harsh shells are all adaptations that help protect animals from what, is it, A, starvation B, predators or C, overheating.

I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done, the answer is B, predators.

Now, for your first activity, I want you to choose two of these animals to observe and identify any adaptations that help them to survive.

So you've got the arctic fox, a mole, a lionfish or a chameleon, and you could carry out your own research or use the information on the next slide.

So let me show you the information.

So here we have information about the arctic fox, information about the mole, the lionfish, and the chameleon.

So what I want you to do is I'm going to ask you to pause the video here.

You're going to have a go at this activity.

Now remember, I've just been through all of the slides, so you can go back in this video and pause them if you need the information from the slides.

So have a go at this activity and then come back once you are ready.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So this person has written, this animal's fur changes colour with the seasons so it can blend in with ice and snow in winter and rocky landscapes in summer.

This will help it to sneak up on prey.

Its thicker fur in winter will help it to keep warm.

It has eyes on the front of its face pointing forwards, which will help it locate prey.

The mole, so this animal has big scoop shaped paws for digging through soil.

It has a good sense of smell, which will help it to find food in dark underground tunnels.

The lionfish, this animal is black and white, which will help it to blend in with its surroundings and sneak upon prey.

It has venomous spines which can fend off predators.

Its large mouth allows it to eat prey of different sizes.

Eyes on the side of its head will allow it to see predators approaching.

And for the chameleon, this animal has strong feet and toes for gripping trees and eyes on the side of its head that can swivel to look for predators.

It has spikes on its back to deter predators and the ability to change colour to blend in with surroundings.

Its long sticky tongue is used to catch prey from a distance.

Now we are on to the second part of our learning today, which is changing environments.

So these animals are both types of bear.

You've got the polar bear and the sun bear.

Now they are both predators that hunt and kill food.

So why do you think they're so different from each other? So what do you think? I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So these bears have different adaptations because they live in very different habitats.

The polar bear has a thick coat to stay warm, white fur to blend in with snowy surroundings, large flat feet for walking on snow.

Now the sun bear has a thinner coat to stay cool in tropical habitats, dark fur to help hide in forests, long claws to help clinging onto small branches and catch small animals for food.

Now, what do you think would happen if each bear had to live in the other's habitat? I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So if each of these bears had to live in each other's habitats, they wouldn't be able to camouflage firstly with the surroundings very well, which would make it hard for them to catch their prey because they'd be easily spotted.

Secondly, the sun bear would be way too cold living in the arctic because it's got such a thinner coat.

The opposite would be true for the polar bear because its coat is too thick in order to live where the sun bear lives.

So it'd get too hot.

Now animals are adapted to survive in their own habitats.

Many would struggle to survive in a different habitat.

So when an animal's habitat changes quickly, this is a problem for animals that don't have adaptation suitable for the new environment.

So true or false, it is not a problem for an animal if it's habitat changes suddenly.

Is that true or false? I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done, the answer is false.

Now, is it because animals might not have adaptation suitable for surviving in the new environment, or B, animals have finished adapting to their environments and will not be able to adapt any more? Again, I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer, off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

The answer is A, animals might not have adaptation suitable for surviving in the new environment.

Now, environments can change dramatically over a very short period of time due to natural disasters such as floods or tornadoes or human activity like deforestation or pollution.

Now, how might forest fires affect a sun bear? I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So fewer trees mean there will be fewer places for sun bears to find insects to eat and fewer places to shelter.

And the process of a species features adapting to suit new environments happen over many generations.

The adaptation sun bears have might not be suited to the change in their environment and they may no longer be able to survive there.

Now environments can also change very slowly over hundreds or thousands of years.

And slower changes make it more likely that animal species will adapt over time to survive in new conditions.

Our planet is increasingly becoming warmer and this is called climate change.

So how might this pose challenges for animals adapted to survive in their specific habitats? I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So climate change is making it difficult for polar bears to find food.

They live and hunt for food on ice, which is increasingly melting away each summer, and this makes it harder for them to find food, rest and reproduce.

Now, as we know, adaptation can take hundreds of years to happen.

So unfortunately, polar bears are not being able to adapt fast enough because it takes such a long time for adaptation to occur.

Yet climate change is happening at a really quick rate at the moment, especially in places like the Arctic where every single year it is getting hotter and hotter and therefore it's really difficult for the polar bears to survive there because they just cannot adapt fast enough.

And some animal species are able to adapt to slowly changing environments.

And scientists have observed Tawny owls in Finland becoming less grey and more brown in colour over generations as there is less snowy weather.

So we have a grey Tawny owl and a brown Tawny owl here.

Now, which of these statements are correct? A, all animals are adapted to their own habitats.

B, changes to animal habitats always happen very quickly.

C, all changes to animal habitats are caused by humans, or D, natural disasters can cause animal habitats to change.

I'll give you five seconds to think about your answer.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So the answers are A and D.

So let's have a look at task B.

It says, read the scenarios and explain how each environment change would affect the animals.

So A, the global climate is slowly becoming warmer.

This means there is less ice and snow in the Arctic each winter.

How might this affect the Arctic foxes that live in this environment? So what I want you to do now is to pause the video here, have a go at this scenario and then we'll move on to the next one.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done, so here's your second scenario.

Large areas of fields and meadows are being turned into a housing estate with many homes and roads being built on the land.

How might this affect the moles that live in this environment? Again, I'd like you to pause the video here and have a go at this scenario.

Fantastic, well done, now let's have a look at C.

A shipping tanker has released large amounts of oil into an area of coral reef, harming many small animals that live there.

How might this affect the lionfish that live in this environment? Again, I'd like you to pause the video here and have a go at this scenario here.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

And D, a tropical storm has torn through the rainforest stripping plants of leaves and tearing down trees, heavier than usual rainfall has also flooded the rainforest floor.

How might this affect the chameleons that live in this environment? Again, I'll give you five.

So again, I'd like you to pause the video here and have a go at this activity, off you go.

Fabulous, well done.

So for the first one, with less snow and ice, Arctic foxes will not be able to blend it in as well with their surroundings.

This might make it harder for them to catch their prey.

They may also be too warm in winter, as their winter coats are very thick, moles will not be able to dig through the concrete foundations of the homes that are being built.

So they'll have nowhere to hunt for food, rest or reproduce.

They are not adapted to live and hunt above ground.

The lionfish may not be able to find as much food as it eats small animals which have been harmed by the oil.

It is not adapted to be able to eat different types of food.

And with fewer leaves on the trees and waterlogged ground, there will be fewer habitats for insects so they will not survive.

This means there will be less food for the chameleons to eat and also fewer places for them to hide from predators themselves due to the lack of leaves on the trees.

So task number two.

Which of these three animal species do you think would be most likely to be able to adapt to the change in their environment? And I want you to explain why.

So I'd like you to pause the video here and have a go at that activity.

Off you go.

Fantastic, well done.

So I think the arctic fox would be the species most likely to be able to adapt to the change to its habitat because the change to the environment is happening slowly.

The other habitats have changed very suddenly, so the animals that live there won't have enough time to adapt.

Now did you choose a different animal or did you choose the arctic fox? I'll give you five seconds just to have another read through what you have written.

Fantastic, well done.

Now we are on to the summary of your learning today.

So animals have special features or adaptations that help them to survive in their habitat.

Adaptations that pass from one generation of species to another.

Many different animals have adaptations that protect them from predators.

Changes to animal habitats can happen very suddenly or very slowly over hundreds of years.

Well done, you have worked so hard and you've really used your critical thinking today and thinking carefully about different habitats and adaptations and what happens when habit habitat change very suddenly or what happens when they change slowly over hundreds of years.

I'm so proud of you, well done.