Introduction: Different regions in the world have various types of living creatures called organisms. An organism is simply defined as any living thing, ranging from microscopic bacteria to large elephants and everything in between.

1. THE LIVING ORGANISMS — CHARACTERISTICS AND
HABITATS
TERRESTRIAL HABITAT
CLASS-VI
CHAPTER-9 CBSE

2. Introduction: Different regions in the world have various types of
living creatures called organisms. An organism is simply defined as
any living thing, ranging from microscopic bacteria to large
elephants and everything in between.

3. Different types of plants and animals are found in different areas.
E.g. deserts have camel and cacti as plants.
Beaches show coconut trees and crabs.
Fishes and other marine animals inhabit the sea.

4. We see many things around us, which can be grouped into two
groups based on their characteristics- living things and non-living
things. for example men, dogs, goats, cats, ants, plants, trees, etc. are
some of the living things.

5. ADAPTATION
The presence of some specific features and certain habits which
allow an organism to live in its habitat is called adaptation.
Organisms show adaptation according to their habitat.

6. HABITATS
The surrounding in which a living being lives is called its habitat.
For example; the pond is the habitat for a frog. Our home is our
habitat. A tree is the habitat for a squirrel.

7. TYPES OF HABITAT
There are two main types of habitat, viz. terrestrial habitat and
aquatic habitat.

8. TERRESTRIAL HABITATS
The habitat on land is called as terrestrial habitat. The terrestrial
habitat can be further categorized as forests, grasslands, coastal,
mountain and desert habitats.

9. AQUATIC HABITATS
The habitat in water is called aquatic habitat. The aquatic habitat
can be further categorized as ocean, rivers, lakes, ponds and
swamps.

10. COMPONENTS OF HABITAT
There are two main components of a habitat, viz. biotic and abiotic.
Biotic Component: The living beings make the biotic component of a
habitat. Plants and animals are examples of biotic components.

11. ABIOTIC COMPONENT: The non-living things make the abiotic
component of a habitat. Soil, air, water, temperature are the abiotic
components. Abiotic components provide necessary raw materials
and conditions for the living beings to survive.

12. For example; most of the plants need soil for anchorage. Moreover,
soil also provides them with water and necessary minerals. Most of
the terrestrial animals live on soil. Similarly, water and air are
necessary for living beings to survive.

13. TERRESTRIAL HABITAT
It refers to land where all plants and animals survive. Animals and
plants which live on land are called as Terrestrial animals and
Terrestrial plants.

14. FOREST HABITAT
Forests and woodlands are places where there are mostly trees.
There are many different kinds of forests in different climates, but
trees are the one thing they have in common!

15. Forests provide everything that the creatures who live there need –
food, water and shelter. Forests can be hot or cold, with different
kinds of trees in different climates around the world. There are
deciduous forests, coniferous forests, and rainforests

16. RACCOONS
Raccoons live in forests, among other places. Raccoons often make
their dens in trees. They sleep during the day and move around at
night. They eat almost anything, including plants, bugs, and small
animals.

17. Babies are born in the spring. After a few months, they begin going
out at night with their mothers. She teaches them how to feed
themselves and stay safe. They remain with her for many months.
Raccoons are an important part of the forest habitat!

18. GRASSLANDS
Many animals live in the grasslands and in forests. The climate is
warm and food is available in good amount. But because of heavy
population, the competition for food and other resources is tough
in the grasslands and forests. Let us take the example of some
animals to understand adaptation for grasslands.

19. A lion is a ferocious hunter. It is strong because of muscular body.
The sharp claws of lions help them in killing a prey. These claws
retract inside when they are running and thus a lion can walk
without making a noise. The colour of lion is pale yellow which mixes
with the colour of dry grasses and rocks. Thus the body colour of
lion helps it in hiding from its prey.

20. A tiger is as good a hunter as a lion. The black stripes on the body of
tiger look like grasses to its prey.

21. A deer is a fast runner. It can sprint very fast to save its life from a
predator. A deer has very good hearing ability which helps it in
hearing the steps of an approaching predator.

22. The eyes of the deer are on the side of its head. The position of a
deer’s eyes helps it in seeing a predator coming from behind.

24. DESERTS
Adaptations in Camel:
Camels are synonymous with hot deserts. A camel shows many
adaptations which help it to live in the hot desert.

25. The padded feet of camels help it in easily walking on the sand.
A camel has long eyelashes which prevent the sand from getting into
its eyes. A camel can drink lots of water at one go and can go on for
many days without drinking water.

26. The camel produces dry dung and very little urine in order to
conserve water. Small creatures; living in deserts; have hard scales
on their body which help in preventing the loss of water due to heat.

27. Animals like rats and snakes stay in burrows deep in the sand to stay
away from the intense heat during the day. These creatures usually
hide in the shadow during daytime and come out during night.

28. DESERT PLANTS
Adaptations in Desert Plants:
Desert plants have very deep roots so that they can access water
from great depths. Leaves of some desert plants are modified into
spine-like structures. This helps in preventing water loss by way of
transpiration.

29. Stems of some desert plants are modified into leaf-like structures.
Such stems are spongy and have a coating of wax over them. The
wax coating prevents evaporation and spongy inside helps in storing
lot of water.

30. MOUNTAIN REGIONS
These habitats are normally very cold and windy. In some areas,
snowfall may take place in winters. There is a large variety of plants
and animals living in the mountain regions.

31. TREES
If you live in a mountain region or have visited one, you may have
seen a large number of such trees. These trees are normally cone
shaped and have sloping branches. The leaves of some of these trees
are needle-like. This helps the rainwater and snow to slide off easily.
There could be trees with shapes very different from these that are
also present on mountains.

32. ANIMALS
Animals living in the mountain regions are also adapted to the
conditions there. They have thick skin or fur to protect them from
cold. For example, yaks have long hair to keep them warm. Snow
leopard has thick fur on its body including feet and toes.
Snow leopard
Yaks

33. This protects its feet from the cold when it walks on the snow. The
mountain goat has strong hooves for running up the rocky slopes of
the mountains. As we go up in the mountainous regions, the
surroundings change and we see different kinds of adaptations at
different heights.

34. POLAR HABITAT
Polar habitats are located at the very top and very bottom of the
Earth. They are cold, windy and have a lot of snow and ice. It’s too
cold for trees to grow, but there are some plants such as moss and
lichen in tundra areas.

35. Most are carnivores due to the lack of plants and they tend to live in
snow caves or holes for shelter.
The animals are mostly carnivores and have thick fur to survive in
cold. Some blend in ice and some may hibernate in the coldest
months.
Examples of animals are polar bears, reindeers, penguins etc.

36. RAINFOREST
This habitat receives a lot of rain and hence it’s rich in animal life.
Mammals, Amphibians, Reptiles all sorts of animals are found here.
The climate is hot and humid and animals have to learn to adapt to
survive.

37. ACTIVITY ON BEAR HIBERNATION