Xerophyte
Xerophyte (Cacti)
Xerophytes are plants that have learned to adapt to dry habitats and water loss. Some of these adaptations include the capacity to store water, waxy and hairy leaf coatings, or even reposition leaves to reduce sunlight absorption. Common examples of xerophytes are the Cactaceae family. Succulents in particular are known to store water in their stems or leaves. Others store the water in bulbs below ground level.
Vestigial Structure
Vestigial Structure (Darwin-tubercle)
Vestigial structures refer to the body structures our ancestors acquired that have lost some or all of their functions with evolution. These structures are assessed as vestigial by comparing them with homologous features in related species. Some vestigial structures grew unfunctional due to a changing environment, others because they became too harmful. They can be behavior patterns, anatomical structures, or even biochemical processes. A human example is the ear structure called the "Darwin's tubercle".
Unicellular Organism
Unicellular Organism (Bacteria)
A unicellular organism is any organism that has only one cell. The main groups of these organisms are bacteria, archaea, protozoa, and unicellular algae and fungi. There are both prokaryotes and eukaryotes that are single-celled. They are also believed to be the oldest form of life, existing since about 4 billion years ago.
Fun fact! There is more bacteria in bottled water than tap water.
Fun fact! There is more bacteria in bottled water than tap water.
Stem
Stem
Stems are the parts of the plant that bear buds, shoots with leaves, and roots. It is one of the two main base structures of every plant. In trees, it is the main trunk. In general, it tends to grow erect, but in some plants it can also lie prostrate, climb on rocks, or twist around another supporting plants. Its job is to conduct water and nutrients to the plant as well as to store and produce food.
Sexual Dimorphism
Sexual Dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is the term for when a male and a female of the same species have differences in physical appearances. Some of these differences can be in color, shape, size, and structure. This condition is present in many animals, insects, birds, and some plants. An example are the mallard ducks. Females have brown feathers all over their bodies, while males are distinguishable green heads.
Semelparity
Semelparity (Cuttlefish)
Semelparity, or the "big bang" reproduction, is a type of reproductive strategy living organisms use. Semelparous species are characterized by having a single reproductive episode before death. Animal examples include some butterflies and molluscs, cicadas, mayflies, and arachnids. The parallel plant term for semelparity is "polycarpy", and some plant examples are grain crops and most domestic vegetables.
Scale From An Animal With A Two Chambered Heart
Scale From An Animal With
A Two Chambered Heart
(Clark's anemonefish)
Fish hearts have two types of chambers: atria and ventricles. The "atria are where blood enters the heart and ventricles pump the blood out of the heart". In fish hearts, the atrium draws in deoxygenated blood and pumps it out the ventricle. The blood then travels through the gills and pumped out to the body in what is called a "single circulation".
Rhizome
Rhizome (Roots)
Rhizome is the underground stem of plants. They store starches and proteins and root new plant systems to survive harsh seasons underground. Rhizomes are also a plant's main system for storing nutrients and water, along with roots and tubers. Some plants, like poplars and bamboos, rely on rhizomes to propagate vegetatively, in other words, to reproduce asexually. Some plants' rhizomes are edible too; like ginger, turmeric, and lotus.
Radial Symmetry
Radial Symmetry (Starfish)
"Symmetry, in biology, is the repetition of the parts in an animal or plant in an orderly fashion". More specifically, it's the way those repetitions correspond to each other on opposite sides of a dividing line. In radial symmetry, those corresponding parts radiate from a central axis and are arranged in regular fashion. The main axis is called the "oral-aboral", because the anterior side bears the mouth and the posterior end may bear the anus. The starfish can be labeled as a five-rayed animal because of its five symmetrical parts.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)