User:Eshika Sehgal

=WEATHER CLIMATE AND ADAPTATIONS OF ANIMALS TO CLIMATE=



WEATHER
It also predicts the weather for the day. Humidity,is a measure of the moisture in air.The weather is such a complex phenomenon that it can vary over very short periods of time. It can happen sometimes that it is sunny in the morning, but suddenly clouds appear from nowhere and it starts raining heavily. The day-to-day condition of the atmosphere at a place with respect to the temperature, humidity, rainfall, windspeed,etc., is called the weather at that place. Rainfall is measured by an instrument called the rain gauge.

CLIMATE
The records of the weather have been preserved for the past several decades. These help us to determine the weather pattern at a place. The average weather pattern taken over a long time, say 25 years, is called the climate of the place.It is measured by assessing the patterns of variation in temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, precipitation, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological variables in a given region over long periods of time. Climate differs from weather, in that weather only describes the short-term conditions of these variables in a given region.

ADAPTATION
Animals are adapted to survive in the conditions in which they live. Animals living in very cold and hot climate must possess special features to protect themselves against the extreme cold or heat. As examples of adaptation of animals to climatic conditions, only animals living in polar regions and tropical rain forests. The polar regions are situated near the poles, i.e., north pole and south pole.Some well-known countries that belong to the polar regions are Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Alaska in U.S.A. Examples of some countries where the tropical rain forests are found are India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brazil,Republic of Congo, Kenya and Uganda.

POLAR REGIONS
These regions are covered with snow and it is very cold for most part of the year. For six months the sun does not set at the poles while for the other six months the sun does not rise. In winters, the temperature can be as low as –37°C. Animals living there have adapted to these severe conditions.Polar bears have white fur so that they are not easily visible in the snowy white background. It protects them from their predators. It also helps them in catching their prey. To protect them from extreme cold, they have two thick layers of fur.

Another well-known animal living in the polar regions is the penguin. It is also white and merges well with the white background. It also has a thick skin and a lot of fat to protect it from cold.Like polar bears, penguins are also good swimmers. Their bodies are streamlined and their feet have webs, making them good swimmers.Other animals living in the polar regions are many types of fishes, rein deers, foxes, seals, whales, and birds.

TROPICAL RAIN FORESTS
The tropical region has generally a hot climate because of its location around the equator. Even in the coldest month the temperature is generally higher than about 15°C. During hot summers, the temperature may cross 40°C. Days and nights are almost equal in length throughout the year. These regions get plenty of rainfall. An important feature of this region is the tropical rain forests. Tropical rain forests are found in Western Ghats and Assam in India, Southeast Asia, Central America and Central Africa.Another well-known animal of Indian tropical rain forest is the elephant. It has adapted to the conditions of rain forests in many remarkable ways.The trunk is also used by it for picking up food. its tusks are modified teeth. These can tear the bark of trees that elephant loves to eat. So, the elephant is able to handle the competition for food rather well. Large ears of the elephant help it to hear even very soft sounds.

DID YOU KNOW
Some migratory birds travel as much as 15000 km to escape the extreme climatic conditions at home. Generally they fly high where the wind flow is helpful and the cold conditions allow them to disperse the heat generated by their flight muscles. But how these birds travel to the same place year after year is still a mystery. It seems that these birds have a built–in sense of direction and know in which direction to travel. Some birds probably use landmarks to guide them. Many birds may be guided by the sun during the day and stars at night. There is some evidence that birds may use the magnetic field of the earth to find direction. And it is not only birds that migrate; mammals, many types of fish and insects are also known to migrate seasonally in search of more hospitable climate.