How do animals survive in the desert?
Quick Answer
Surviving in the desert involves overcoming two main obstacles, extreme heat and lack of water, so the primary means that desert animals use to survive in the desert include avoiding heat, dissipating heat, retaining water and acquiring water. Animals that live in the desert have adapted these means over years of evolution to survive in desert conditions.
Continue Reading
Full Answer
In order to avoid heat, many desert animals restrict their activity to the cooler mornings and evenings. They also burrow underground or into cacti to avoid daytime heat. Some animals also migrate during the hottest parts of the year. Desert animals dissipate heat through lighter coloring, large ears and long appendages and through gaping mouth-breathing.
In order to retain water, desert animals burrow into moist earth to absorb water into their bodies, or they obtain moisture through the food they eat. Desert animals obtain water from water-retaining plants such as cactus and succulents. They also live in moisture-sealed burrows where they can recycle the moisture from their own breath. Some desert animals have organs that have evolved to extract water from their urine and recycle water from other uses. Another evolved attribute is to excrete waste in the form of uric acid, where very little water is lost.
Learn more about BiologyRelated Questions
-
Q:
Why are many desert animals nocturnal?
A: Most desert animals are nocturnal because it allows them to avoid extreme heat during the day. Some predators are nocturnal because their prey is active at... Full Answer >Filed Under: -
Q:
What are the waste products of respiration?
A: In animals, such as humans, the waste products of aerobic respiration are water and carbon dioxide, and the waste product of anaerobic respiration is lacti... Full Answer >Filed Under: -
Q:
How do fish breathe?
A: Fish require oxygen for survival just like other animals, but they filter it from water using specialized organs called gills. A fish draws in oxygen-rich ... Full Answer >Filed Under: -
Q:
What organisms would exist in a fresh water biome food chain?
A: A fresh water biome food chain is likely to be made up of micro-organisms, decaying substances, detritus, animals without backbones, small fish, large fish... Full Answer >Filed Under:
You May Also Like
-
Q:
What is alcoholic fermentation?
-
Q:
What can you eat in the desert?
-
Q:
What is the dry desert land close to the banks of the Nile River called?
-
Q:
How many animals are adopted each year?
-
Q:
What characteristics distinguish an annelid from other worms?
-
Q:
Is there a place where you can find photographs of mushrooms?
