Natural Environments:

Environmen Tropical Desert Tropical Polar Region

t Rainforest Grassland

Climate Hot and wet Dry and hot Rainy and dry Cold

Animals & wide variety long eyelashes to meat/grass fish / other

plants ➛ good eyesight prevent sandstorms eating animals animals

Polar Region:

Polar Bear:
- Thick fur ➛ keep warm
- Small ears ➛ reduce heat loss
- Thick layer of fat under the skin ➛ can survive without food for
few days

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Emperor Penguin:
- Short and thick feathers ➛ keep warm
- Thick layer of fat under the skin ➛ can survive without food for
few days
- Webbed feet
- Young Penguins: gray feathers

𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊 Outer layer: withstand the wind

𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊 Inner layer: waterproof

Desert:

Camel:
- Lose less water than other animals
- Has fat stored in its humps
Snail:
- Dry environment: stays inactive in its shell and seals shell mouth
with mucus (can survive without food)

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African Tortoise: reduces water loss
- Fats, minerals and water stored in hard shell
- Thick scales to prevent the loss of body moisture

Characteristics related the environment:

Arctic Hare Desert Cottontail

Thin and short ears Long and thick ears
White fur Gray fur

Hibernating: saves energy and lowers metabolism

Fish ✗
Squirrel ✓
Bear: no food needed ✓
Snake: can’t control their body heat ✓

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Ways to scare predators away or defend themselves ‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾
Protective Coloration: blends into environment so predators can’t spot
- Young Harp Seal (white): snow
- Lion (yellow & brown): wheat and grass
- Grasshopper (green): plants

Mimicry: pretends to be a plant or a part of the environment

- Leafy Sea Dragon: seaweed
- Stick Insect: tree branch
- Flatfish: changes color (sand/corals)

Warning: scares predators (with bright colors/ special patterns)

- Porcupine: has spikes
- Common Five-ring: scares predators
- Poison Dart Frog: blue skin releases a poison

Living in Groups: looks like a big creature to confuse / distract predators

- Sardines
- Spotted Deer

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Features of animals which helps them to get food:
Hummingbird:
- Has a long and narrow beak
- Flaps wings quickly to stay in front of the flower

Giraffe:
- Long tongue and flexible lips
- Obtains sap from trees

Lion:
- sharp teeth and claws (eats meat)
- Good eyesight, hearing and sense of smell

Mantis:
- Long and powerful forelegs (spikes)
- Good eyesight

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Hawk:
- Strong feet
- Sharp beaks and claws
- Good eyesight

Pelican:
- Long and large beak
- Throat pouch ➛ drain water
- Good at swimming and flying
- Spots fish underwater

Sawfish:
- saw-like structure & sharp teeth to hunt prey

Summary:
Animals’ survival depends on climate, water and food supply to adapt to
the environment

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Food Chain: feeding relationships among living things

Sunlight ➛ Plant ➛ Zebra ➛ Lion

Plant ➛ Caterpillar ➛ Bird ➛ Hawk

ੈ✩‧₊:˚ Fewer hawks ➛ more birds ➛ fewer caterpillars ➛ more

plants

✿ Negative impacts on biodiversity:

Increase of kangaroos causes less grass in grasslands and affects the
other animals living in that area

Nutrients for plants:

- Dead animals
- Animal waste

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 Carbon Dioxide

Breathe out Taken in

Animals (Respiration) Plants (Photosynthesis)

Breathe in Give off

Oxygen

Summary:
Through the respiration of animals and photosynthesis of plants, the
levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide are kept in balance

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Urban Development:

1. How has this place changed?

It was a forest and has become a city with many factories and buildings.

2. How do the changes affect the society, economy and environment?

Society: improves living standards
Economy: increases industrial and business activities along with income
Environment: causes air & water pollution

3. How do the changes affect animals and plants?

- Loss of habitats
- The decrease of food
- Pollution
ੈ✩‧₊:˚ Water pollution: sewage system (dirty water from the
residential area)

ੈ✩‧₊:˚ Air pollution: burning of fossil fuel (affects greenhouse gasses

and traps heat)

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Reasons of animal extinction:
Loss of habitat: economic & agriculture development

Black-faced spoonbill, Chinese Dolphins and Sharks:

- Cannot adapt to polluted water (chemicals affecting breathing and
food source)
- Overfishing
- Injured by ships

Green Sea Turtle:

- Damaged nestling grounds
- Edible meat
- Body fat: high-grade soap and cosmetics
- Shell: chinese medicine

Rhinoceros: illegal hunting for chinese medicine

Panda: deforestation (unable to move to other bamboo forests)

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Illegal Trades of wild animals and plants:
Ivory sculpture (large, hard and rare): the tusk of an elephant to carve
into art

Rosewood Furniture (hard with fine grains and doesn’t break easily): to
make luxury furniture and handicrafts

Summary:
The overuse of animal and plant resources causes species to become
endangered and upsets the balance of nature.

Ways to protect the ecosystems:

- Keep the environment clean
- Not eating endangered species
- Not damaging wild animals/ plants
- Reduce waste
- Government: preserve places with high ecological value (building a
wildlife crossing)

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Housing to protect the environment:
- Skyrise greening
- Roof window: natural light
- Ventilation system: more wind (not needed to turn on AC)
- Renewable energy: solar and wind power
- Eco-friendly walls: reduce using raw materials

Summary:
Measures should be taken to balance social development, economic
development and environmental protection.
To maintain the balance of nature, we should treasure animal and
plant resources and protect the ecosystem.

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