OverallDifferent Adaptations from the Duck Billed Platypus and Rainbow LorikeetThere are several factors of adaptations that differentiate between both a duck-billed platypus and a rainbow lorikeet. Whilst duck-billed platypuses reside on land or in water, rainbow lorikeets tend to stay up high in trees or spend majority of their time flying through rainforests or woodlands to search for food or a new home. Platypuses have adaptations that help assist them as they may be ‘restricted’ to doing something because of how their body has been built whilst rainbow lorikeets have adaptations that further aid them and are not necessary in order to efficiently survive. Duck-billed platypuses have their certain adaptations that are quite essential in order to survive as they substitute the platypuses’ disadvantages such as poor vision at night time. The rainbow lorikeet inherits adaptations that allow them to further enhance their efficiency of surviving. For example, rainbow lorikeets do not need the flexibility or their specialised tongue in order to live, but it is better that they inherit these factors for a better survival rate. On the other hand, platypuses inherit adaptations that are critical for its survival. Without its two layers of fur, or specialised duck-bill or ability to reduce blood flow to certain parts of the body, the platypus would have little survival rate as they would experience physiological stress because of extreme temperatures or inability to retrieve food.
Overall ConclusionThe class of organisms that would be expected to have a greater tolerance range would be plants. Although animals do have adaptations that allow it to survive, they do not have to ability to change their body in order to adapt to extreme temperatures and can easily suffer from physiological stress. On the other hand, plants have the ability to become dormant, or change their ‘configurations’ in order to adapt to the external environment. Plants have a better tolerance range temperature wise as they can adapt to extreme weather, whilst animals tend to have a narrower temperature range, and to an extent can adapt, but not for a long period over time. Plants are more responsive towards climate change than that of animals. Animals are more vulnerable in the fact that they are vulnerable to human impact, such as litter and getting caught in rubbish, or removal of habitats, which results in animals experiencing physiological stress and dying. Plants, although are also quite vulnerable towards human impact, can not change the external environment nor locate to a different area, which means that instead of it surviving a human impact such as deforestation, it has no choice but to die.
Interesting FactsDuck Billed PlatypusOne interesting fact about the duck-billed platypus is that they can eject a venomous poison when they feel threatened. This poison can easily kill small animals, as well as cause unbearable pain towards adult humans. This venomous spur is located right above the heel of each back leg and can be driven into flesh. This poison is produced by a gland in the thigh.
Picture: Venomous Spur on a Duck Billed Platypus
Source: http://www.platypus.asn.au/venomandspurs3.jpg Rainbow LorikeetOne interesting fact about rainbow lorikeets is that they are full of colours (as the name indicates). They have a red beak, a royal blue head and stomach, a yellow and orange chest and lastly a green tail and strikingly vivid green wings. The rainbow lorikeet is one of the many colourful birds that reside in Australia.
Picture: Striking colours of a Rainbow Lorikeet
Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/Rainbow_lorikeet.jpg Sydney Green WattleOne interesting fact about Sydney Green Wattles is that the word ‘Acacia’ is derived from a Greek botanist-physician when he named a medicine tree ‘ἀκακία’ (akakia). This Greek name was derived from the Greek word ‘ἀκίς’ (akis) which means thorns.
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Picture: Sydney Green Wattle
Source: https://geoffpark.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/green-wattle1.jpg
Source: https://geoffpark.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/green-wattle1.jpg