Challenges and Adaptations

Focus in on one animal in the Intertidal Zone and explore the specific challenges it faces and the adaptations it has developed to survive. Animals in this harsh environment must deal with changing tides, strong waves, shifting temperatures, and predators. Learn about the different kinds of challenges, such as avoiding drying out in the sun or escaping hungry birds, and the clever adaptations that help them cope. From hard shells and camouflage to special ways of holding onto rocks, each species has unique strategies for thriving between land and sea.

Materials:

• intertidal animal to analyze
• paper
• pencil

​

Introduction:

As we know, the Intertidal Zone is the area of shoreline located between high and low tide. Over the course of a day, the area changes from being submerged underwater to fully exposed to the air. This creates many challenges for the organisms that live in this area. As a result, the organisms that live here have adapted various strategies to make this tricky spot a viable home. 

​

Let’s zoom in and think about the specific challenges for animals in the intertidal. Some examples of challenges include desiccation (drying out), sunlight, heat, exposure, predation, humans, tides, waves, and more! These challenges can be categorized as either BIOTIC or ABIOTIC. Biotic challenges relate to living organisms in an ecosystem, like predators. Abiotic challenges are related to non-living or physical conditions, like the weather. 

​

Just like there are two types of challenges, there are also two kinds of adaptations. Adaptations can be either BEHAVIORAL or MORPHOLOGICAL. Behavioral adaptations are changes in how a species acts or behaves, like hiding. Morphological adaptations are related to the body and appearance of an organism, like a shell or coloration.

​

In this activity, we are going to choose an intertidal organism and analyze the challenges it faces and understand adaptations it has that make it able to survive in the intertidal zone. 

​

Procedure:

1. To start, choose an intertidal animal to use for this activity. Some examples could be a crab, barnacle, periwinkle, seaweed, mussel, or a hermit crab!
2. On a piece of paper (or the SC Activity Sheet), start by sketching the animal, writing its name, and including any details you'd like.
3. After this, think about the challenges that this animal faces. Choose two challenges that come to mind and decide whether those challenges are BIOTIC (related to living things) or ABIOTIC (related to non-living things).
4. Next, brainstorm specific adaptations that this animal has developed to overcome these challenges. Decide whether these challenges are BEHAVIORAL (related to how it acts or behaves) or MORPHOLOGICAL (related to its form or appearance).

​

Accommodations:

This is a great exercise to do as a group!