School › Habitats › Ages 10–11
Habitats and adaptations
What every habitat must provide, how camels and Arctic foxes are adapted to extreme habitats, and a fair test: do woodlice choose damp or dry places?
Read
A habitat is a place where an organism makes its home and finds all the conditions it needs to survive. Its main parts are shelter, water, food and space.[2]
Features that help a living thing survive in its habitat are called adaptations. The Arctic fox has very short ears and a short tail, so it does not lose too much body heat.[1]
Camels are adapted to the desert: wide feet with two toes spread their weight so they do not sink in sand, and their noses take back moisture from each breath. Camels can lose up to 30% of their body weight in water, and a dromedary camel can travel 161 km without a drink.[3][2]
An organism adapted to one habitat often cannot survive in another: an Amazon river fish could not survive in the freezing Arctic Ocean.[1]
Woodlice lose water quickly in dry air, so they are usually found in damp, dark places. They move more when it is dry and slow down when it is damp, so they end up gathering in damp areas.[5]
When people cut down forests, birds lose their nests and monkeys lose their food. Animals can also lose space when we build homes and businesses.[1][2]
Try it: Do woodlice prefer damp or dry?
You need
- A shallow tray or large dish with a lid or cover (at least 20 cm across)
- Paper towels and a little water
- Dry paper towel
- 5 to 10 woodlice, collected gently from under a log
- A soft paintbrush or a spoon for moving them
- A timer
Safety
Handle woodlice gently with a soft brush or spoon, keep them out of sunlight and only for the lesson, then return them where they were found. Use a few animals, not a crowded tray. Wash hands afterwards. Check with the teacher's risk assessment.
What to do
- Cover one half of the tray with damp paper towel and the other half with dry paper towel. Cover the whole tray the same way, so both sides are equally dark.
- Plan the fair test: what are you changing? What must stay the same on both sides?
- Gently put the woodlice in the middle of the tray using the paintbrush or spoon.
- Every 2 minutes, count how many woodlice are on the damp side and how many on the dry side. Record for 10 minutes.
- Work out the percentage on the damp side at the end.
- Return the woodlice to exactly where you found them, under the same log.
What happens, and why?
Most woodlice usually end up on the damp side. Woodlice lose water quickly in dry air, and they move about more when it is dry and slow down when it is damp, so they gather where it is damp. Only one thing (damp or dry) was changed; light, temperature and the tray were the same on both sides, which makes it a fair test.[5]
Play: Cold or desert adaptation?
Does this adaptation help an animal to survive the cold, or the hot dry desert?
Your best score is kept only on this device. Nothing is sent anywhere.
Quiz
Other ages: Ages 6–7 · Ages 15–16