CHAPTER - 9

THE LIVING ORGANISMS AND

THEIR SURROUNDINGS
CLASS :- VI
SUBJECT :- SCIENCE
1) Habitat :-
The surroundings where plants and animals live is called their
habitat.
2) Types of habitats :-
There are two main types of habitats. They are Terrestrial habitats and
Aquatic habitats.
i) Terrestrial habitats :- are habitats found on land. Eg :- forests,
grasslands, mountains and deserts etc.
ii) Aquatic habitats :- are habitats found in water. Eg :- ponds,
lakes, rivers, oceans etc.
3) Components of a habitat :-
Habitats have two main components. They are
Biotic components and Abiotic components.
i) Biotic components :- consists of living things like
plants and animals.
ii) Abiotic components :- consists of non living
things like air, water, soil, sunlight, heat etc.
4) Adaptations of desert plants and animals :-
a) Camels :-
Camels have long legs to keep their body away
from heat. They lose very little water from their
body. They can live for many days without water.
b) Rats and Snakes :-

Rats and snakes stay in deep burrows in the

sand to escape from the heat during the day. They
come out only during the night when it is cool.
c) Cactus :-
The leaves are modified into spines to reduce
loss of water. The stem prepares food. The stem
is covered with a waxy layer to reduce loss of
water. The roots are long to grow deep in the soil
to absorb water.
5) Adaptations of mountain trees and animals :-
a) Mountain trees :-
They are cone shaped having sloping branches
which helps rain water and snow to slide off
easily. They have long, thin, needle like leaves
which are not affected by wind.
b) Yaks :-
Yaks have thick skin and long hairs on their
bodies to protect them from cold and to keep their
body warm.
c) Snow leopard :-
Snow leopards have thick skin and their body,
feet, and toes are covered with fur to protect them
from snow and to keep their body warm.
d) Mountain goats :-
Mountain goats have strong hooves to climb up
the rocky mountains.
6) Adaptations of grassland animals :-
a) Lions :-
Lions have light brown coloured body to help
them to hide in the grassland. The front legs have
claws which help them to hunt and kill their prey.
They have eyes in the front to easily see their prey.
b) Deers :-
Deers have strong teeth for chewing the stems
of hard plants. They can run very fast to escape
from their predators. (Animals which kill and eat
them). They have long ears to hear the sounds of
their predators. They have eyes in the sides of
their head to see in all directions.
7) Adaptations of aquatic animals and plants :-
a) Fishes :-
Fishes have a streamlined body which helps
them to swim in water. They have fins which help
them to move in water. They have gills which help
them to use oxygen dissolved in water.
b) Squids and Octopus :-
Squids and octopus do not have a streamlined
body. They make their body streamlined when they
move in water.
c) Dolphins and Whales :-
Dolphins and whales do not have gills. They
breathe through nostrils or blow holes in their
head.
d) Frogs :-
Frogs live both on land and in water. They are
called amphibians. They have strong back legs
which help them to leap and catch their prey. They
have webbed feet which helps them to swim in
water.
e) Aquatic plants :-
i) Some aquatic plants have their roots fixed in
the soil. Their stems are long, hollow and light.
Their leaves float on water.
ii) Some aquatic plants are totally submerged in
water. Their leaves are thin or divided and are not
damaged by flowing water.
8) Characteristics of living things :-
i) Living things show movement. Animals can move from one place to
another. Plants cannot move from one place to another place
ii) Living things need food. Food gives energy to do work and helps in growth.
iii) Living things grow.
iv) Living things respire. Breathing is the process by which oxygen is taken
in and carbon dioxide is given out. Respiration is the process by which
food is burnt in the body to produce energy. Exchange of gases takes
place in humans through lungs, fishes through gills, earthworm through
skin, plants through stomata.
v) Living things respond to stimuli. Stimuli are the changes in the
surroundings to which living things respond. Eg:- Cockroach moves away
from light. The leaves of touch me not plant folds when we touch it. As a
plant grows, it bends towards light.
vi) Living things excrete waste products. Excretion is the process by which
waste products are removed from the body.
vii) Living things reproduce their own kind. Some living things reproduce by
giving birth (dog, cat, humans). Some living things reproduce by laying
eggs (birds, fishes, insects) . Many plants reproduce through seeds (rice
wheat, beans). Some plants reproduce through other parts like stem,
root or leaf (Eg:- stem - rose, root - dhalia, leaf - bryophyllum).
Characteristics of living organisms