Animal adaptations to hot and cold

climates
The temperature of our natural surroundings
change:

can

Minute-to-minute due to short-term weather changes (e.g.

clouds
block sunlight, a cool wind starts to blow)
On a daily cycle (night time is cooler because the sun
is
below the horizon)
On an annual cycle of seasons (most parts of the world
show some seasonal variation with cooler winters and
warmer summers)
Long-term global changes in the past there have been periods of very low
temperatures (ice ages) and there is currently a lot of concern about humaninfluenced climate change (e.g. global warming)

Different places in the world have different

temperatures.
This is partly to do with location on the planets surface:

Nearer the poles there is less heat energy arriving from the
sun, so its cooler. Nearer the equator there is more heat energy from the sun
so its warmer
Higher altitudes (e.g. mountains) tend to be cooler than lower altitudes (e.g.
valleys)
In aquatic biomes, temperatures are generally cooler at lower depths and
warmer nearer the surface

Like all organisms, animals need to be not-too-hot and not-too-cold.

If we look at animals living in the hottest and in the coldest habitats, we can
see some ways in which they are adapted to survive there:

Hot habitats:
Physical adaptations

Burrowing to avoid the heat.

Being active only in the cool hours of the night and early morning.
Periods of dormancy or inactiveness during hotter times of year.

Behavioural adaptations

Cooling off at a faster rate, such as by sweating or by having a higher surface area to
lose heat (Fennec foxes have longer ears).
Timing life-cycles to avoid hottest periods. By remaining as an egg until suitable
conditions exist. (fairy shrimp)

Cold habitats:
Physical adaptations

Having a dark skin to absorb light (polar bears).

Insulation to retain warmth (feathers and fur).
Biochemical production of heat (bumblebees, brown fat cells in mammals)

Behavioural adaptations

Hibernation to reduce activity.(many mammals)

Huddling together to keep warm and conserve heat (European honey bee)
Reduced activity to conserve energy.(honey bees)
Staying in burrows or staying underneath the ice to reduce exposure to wind.(many
small mammals, insects and polar bears)
Shivering to produce more warmth.(mammals, but not birds)
Timing the life cycle to avoid the cold (many insects overwinter as eggs or as aquatic
larvae).