All plants have features (adaptations)

which help them to survive and reproduce

in the places where they live (their habitat)

Trees lose water through

their leaves.

In winter it can be very cold and

its more difficult for trees to get
water from the soil.

To save water trees like this

Beech shed their leaves and
rest during the winter.

Plants need light to make

their food.

In summer the beech

tree arranges its leaves
so that they receive as
much light as possible.

In summer Beech trees with all their leaves make the woodland very dark.
The Bluebell gets plenty of
light by growing and flowering
in early summer before the
Beech leaves are fully formed.

Food stored
in its
underground
bulb helps it
to grow
quickly in the
spring.

Plants which live amongst

tall plants often climb up
to reach the light.

Honeysuckle
climbs by twining
its stems around
the twigs and
branches of other
plants.

Scent and colour help to

attract pollinating insects.

The creamy coloured flowers and strong scent of the Honeysuckle attract
dusk-flying moths which pollinate the flowers.

This Wild Clematis

is scrambling over
other plants in the
hedgerow using its
leaf stalks to cling
to them.

The fruits of the Wild Clematis have feathery tails.

These parachutes help the tiny fruits to float through the air
spreading the seeds away from the parent plant.

Ivy uses special roots on its

stems to cling to the tree as
it climbs.

Developing roots on an
Ivy stem.

Ivy fruits ripen in mid winter when food for birds is scarce. This makes it
more likely that its fruits will be eaten and its seeds dispersed.

Growing along hedgerows and amongst tall grasses, Bush Vetch climbs up
to the light using leaf tendrils.

Bramble uses its

backward-pointing
prickles to scramble over
other plants.

Being prickly also helps to

protect a plant from being
eaten by animals.

Hawthorn has long sharp

thorns which help to
protect it from being
eaten by animals such as
cows and deer.

Bright red is a colour

which birds see really
well.
Hawthorn berries are
bright red, which
helps to make sure
that birds find them
and disperse the
seeds in their
droppings.

A Blackbird eating
Hawthorn berries.

Leaves at the bottom of the

tree are more likely to be eaten
and are often more prickly.

Holly leaves have prickles which help

to protect them.

The bright red Holly

berries are easily found
by birds which eat
them and help to
disperse the seeds.

Sharp spines
on the leaves
help to
protect this
Dwarf Thistle
plant from
grazing
animals.

The flowers are also protected because they have very

short stems and sit amongst the prickly leaves.

Hairs, strong smells and an unpleasant taste can put off grazing animals.

Ground Ivy has lots of hairs and a strong smelling oil in its leaves.
Rabbits dont like it.

Plants need mineral salts.

Peat bogs have

soils low in
mineral
nutrients.
Carnivorous
plants can get
extra mineral
nutrients by
catching small
animals

This Sundew has caught a damselfly in its sticky leaves.

Butterwort traps small

insects on its very sticky
leaves.

Carnivorous plants often

have flowers with long
stalks. This helps to
protect pollinating insects
from being trapped.

The pitchers on this

Trumpet Pitcher Plant
are formed by the
leaves.

This is another
carnivorous plant

Insects are attracted to the

pitcher by nectar and are
trapped when they fall in.

The large round leaves of White Water Lily have their stalk
attached to the middle. This helps to keep the leaf floating flat
on the water surface.

The stalk is
long enough to
keep the leaf
on the surface
when water
currents move
the leaf around.

Underwater, finely divided leaves are more efficient for photosynthesis

and respiration.

This Watercrowfoot has both

floating leaves
and finely divided
underwater
leaves.

The whole Frogbit plant floats on

the water surface.
Here, it is growing amongst the
small floating plants of Duckweed.

Frogbit survives the cold

winter months by
producing special winter
buds which sink to the
bottom of the pond and
grow again the following
spring.

Winter buds of Frogbit

In the natural world there is a

struggle for life as plants and
animals compete with each other.

Those best adapted to the habitat

are most likely to survive.

Understanding this (natural

selection) was important to Darwin
in forming his theory of Evolution