The document discusses the adaptations of various animal species, including meerkats, bald eagles, black-tailed prairie dogs, and bottlenose dolphins, highlighting their physical traits and survival strategies. It explains how these animals adapt to their environments, such as meerkats using cooperative behavior in the Kalahari Desert and bald eagles developing their iconic features over years. Additionally, it touches on the ecological role of prairie dogs and the social behaviors of bottlenose dolphins, emphasizing the impact of habitat destruction and environmental challenges on these species.

1. PRESENTED BY: Nanda Nair A

2. Introduction:
Animals adapt to the environment. Therefore each
animal is different from each other.
Does African elephant look like the Asian elephants?
Does chimpanzees look like gorillas?
These are all of same kind but different species living
in different areas therefore they all look different from
one another.

4. Meerkats
Standing at only 30 cm (12 in.) tall, meerkats, also known as Suricats,
depend on group cooperation to survive in the Kalahari Desert.
Meerkats are specially adapted to living in the harsh desert
environment. Dark patches around their eyes help them be effective
lookouts by reducing the glare of the sun, much like a baseball player
who paints dark lines beneath his eyes. Their eyes also allow them to
take in a wide angle view of the scene. This helps prevent predators
from gaining an advantage by sneaking up.
Eating both plants and animals, meerkats are omnivores. Their diet
mostly consists of insects, which they sniff out using their enhanced
sense of smell. They also eat small rodents, fruit, birds, eggs, lizards,
and even poisonous scorpions. They can catch a scorpion and pull off
its deadly stinger in the blink of an eye. Because they have very little fat
to store energy, meerkats forage and hunt every day.

7. Bald Eagle……
Clearly recognized by its white head, brown body, and
hooked yellow beak, the bald eagle has been the national
emblem of the United States of America since 1782.
bald eagles feast on fish, ducks, snakes and turtles. They
will also eat rabbits, muskrats, and dead animals.
Bald eagles can reach great heights when flying.
Bald eagles are not born with their distinctive brown and
white look. When baby eaglets hatch, their entire bodies
are covered with light gray feathers. Around 3 weeks, their
plumage takes on a brown coloration. Finally, at 4-5 years
old, they acquire the distinctive brown and white color
pattern.

10. Black- tailed Prairie dog
Although they stand at only 30 cm high and weigh about 1 kg , black-tailed prairie
dogs make a substantial impact on the ecosystem of the North American plains.
 Their barks indicate the location of the predator. All members of the colony remain
outside the burrow to keep an eye on the threat. If they were to all retreat into the
burrow, the predator would simply attack when a prairie dog poked its head of out
the entrance to check if the coast was clear. In this way, their system of warning
barks has proven to be most successful.
 Prairie dogs also perform jump-yip calls, in which they stand on the mound, throw
their head back, and let out a high-pitched bark, sometimes evening toppling onto
their backs due to the exertion.
 Although they once numbered in the hundreds of millions, prairie dog populations are now
estimated at around 10-20 million. Their numbers have decreased as a result of habitat destruction
due to development and agriculture. Additionally, many farmers poison or shoot prairie dogs because
they believe the animals interfere with cattle grazing. Finally, prairie dog populations have been
largely affected by the sylvatic plague.

11. Black-tailed prairie dogs live in colonies
scattered throughout the plains of the
United States, Mexico, and Canada

13. Bottle – nose dolphin
Commonly seen in aquariums, sea parks, TV shows, and movies, the bottlenose
dolphin is a wildly recognizable cetacean (marine mammal). In the wild,
bottlenose dolphins inhabit the temperate and tropical oceans around the
world.
Like the name “bottlenose” suggests, this species of dolphin has a short, stubby
beak. Its sleek, conical body varies in color from a light to slate grey on the
upper body to a pale to pinkish grey on the bottom part.
Males are significantly larger than females.
Although they have little to no sense of smell, bottlenose dolphins have other
well-developed sensory organs. They also have an excellent sense of hearing.
Dolphins produce high-frequency clicks that humans can’t hear. They use these
clicks in a sonar system called echolocation. After 12 months in the womb, the
calf is ready to be born. The calf emerges tail first so that it doesn’t drown.
Once fully out, the baby dolphin swims to the surface to take its first breath of
air. The calf stays with its mother for 3-6 years, nursing for the first 12-18
months and learning to hunt once weaned.

14. In the wild, bottlenose dolphins inhabit the temperate and
tropical oceans around the world, with coastal populations
entering into bays, estuaries, and river mouths.