What is an adaptation and how does it help an animal live in its home?
Nature's Toolbox
What is an adaptation and how does it help an animal live in its home?
Every animal has a few tricks built right into its body — a special tool it was practically born wearing. We call those tricks adaptations. An adaptation is any feature that helps an animal survive in the exact place it lives. And here's the fun part: the world is full of them, hiding in plain sight.
Adaptations don't appear because an animal wishes for them. They build up slowly, over thousands of generations. The animals whose bodies happened to fit their home a little better tended to survive and have babies. Those babies inherited the helpful feature. Repeat that for a very long time, and you get a creature beautifully matched to its world.
