Organisms compete for resources such as food, water, space, shelter, light, mates, pollinators and seed dispersers.
The populations of species within a community are interdependent (they rely upon and affect one another).
Organisms have adaptations that help them survive and compete in their environment.
Adaptations can be physiological, structural or behavioural.
Extremophiles are adapted to live in extreme environments, e.g. high salt concentration or very high or low temperature.

Common misconception

That organisms are able to quickly adapt to the place where they live.

Referring to inheritance, explain that changes to organisms take time to evolve - responses to any environmental change is not instant. In some organisms, where reproduction is slow, responses can be too slow to avoid extinction.

Keywords

Competition - Competition is when organisms in a community or population are seeking the same limited resource (e.g. food, mates).
Adaptation - An adaptation is a feature that organisms have to help them live in a particular place.
Physiological - Physiological adaptations are body processes that help an organism to survive and reproduce.
Microorganism - A microorganism is an organism that can only be seen using a microscope.
Extremophile - Extremophiles are organisms that are able to successfully survive and reproduce in extreme environments (e.g. very hot/very cold).

Pupils can produce a poster or media presentation to show plants, animals and/or microorganisms to explain how their adaptations help them to survive in their habitat. This can be extended to include extremophiles.

Teacher tip

Equipment

None required.

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.

What is it called when an animal's colour or pattern helps it blend into its surroundings?

habitat

Correct answer: camouflage

mimicry

environment

Q2.

Some animals travel from one habitat to another at different times of year. Other animals spend the cold winter months in hibernation. These are both examples of adaptations.

Correct Answer: behavioural, behaviour

Q3.

Which of the following could increase biodiversity?

Correct answer: creating wildflower meadows on waste ground

cutting down hedgerows around fields of crops

cutting down large areas of forest

building roads and houses in an area

Correct answer: creating and protecting wild areas in parks and gardens

Q4.

Which of these factors are biotic?

Correct answer: decomposers

pollution

Correct answer: diseases

nutrients in the soil

Water availability

Q5.

Match the ecological term with its definition.

Correct Answer:community,all of the populations that live and interact in a habitat

all of the populations that live and interact in a habitat

Correct Answer:habitat,the place where an organism lives

the place where an organism lives

Correct Answer:ecosystem,the interacting living and non-living parts of the environment

the interacting living and non-living parts of the environment

Correct Answer:interdependence,how organisms rely on each other for their survival

how organisms rely on each other for their survival

Q6.

The gorse plant has small leaves and sharp spines. How do these features help the gorse plant to survive in their dry sandy habitats?

The small leaves help the plant to absorb lots of light.

Correct answer: The spines helps to protect the plant from being eaten.

Correct answer: The small leaves help to reduce water loss.

The spines help the plant to absorb water.

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.

What do we call organisms that you can only see with a microscope?

Correct Answer: microorganisms, micro-organisms

Q2.

What is an extremophile?

Correct answer: An organism that lives in harsh environments.

An organism that has a large number of adaptations.

A harsh environment.

An organism that has a unique diet.

Q3.

Match the examples of adaptations with the type of adaptation that they represent.

Correct Answer:behavioural adaptation,animals hunting at night time to avoid being eaten by predators

animals hunting at night time to avoid being eaten by predators

Correct Answer:structural adaptation,leaves of a cactus being modified into spines

leaves of a cactus being modified into spines

Correct Answer:physiological adapation,producing venom to paralyse and/or kill prey

producing venom to paralyse and/or kill prey

Q4.

What is the name given to the process of organisms seeking the same limited resource (e.g. food) within a habitat?

Correct Answer: competition

Q5.

In which of the following places might you be more likely to find an extremophile?

Correct answer: very deep in the ocean

in a pond

Correct answer: frozen in Arctic ice

in a compost heap

Q6.

Look at the picture of the fennec fox. It has a structural adaptation of having big ears. The fennec fox lives in the desert. How might this adaptation help the fennec fox to survive in its habitat?

Correct answer: To hear predators, as the large ears allow the fennec fox to hear better.

To help shade the eyes of the fennec fox from the sun.

To help the fennec fox trap more heat from the environment.

Correct answer: To help the fennec fox lose more heat and stop it from overheating.

To allow it to be nocturnal and avoid the sun's heat during the day.