Plant & Animal Adaptations in Hot Deserts | AQA GCSE 9-1 Geography

How are plants and animals adapted to the conditions in hot deserts? What are xerophytes? What are the adaptations of cactuses/cacti? How are camels adapted to the desert?

This is the thirtieth video for the AQA GCSE 9-1 Geography course, and the tenth video of The Living World topic.

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Video Script:
Despite the hostile conditions of hot deserts, a variety of plant and animal species survive due to their specialised adaptations.

Plants that are adapted to survive in deserts are known as xerophytes. These adaptations include:
They have small leaves or spines, and the leaves have a thick, waxy skin. This reduces water lost by transpiration.
Some plants have long taproots, which are 7-10 metres deep, to reach water supplies in the ground. Roots often extend horizontally too.
Some plants store water in their leaves or stems, these are known as succulents.
Plants grow slowly to reduce energy usage - seeds can stay dormant for many years but can germinate rapidly when it rains.

The cactus is a good example of a well-adapted plant - it has spines instead of leaves, extensive roots, a waxy coating on the stem and is a succulent.

Animals are similarly well-adapted.
Many animals are nocturnal, such as rodents and reptiles, to avoid the high temperatures during the day.
Reptiles such as snakes and lizards have waterproof skin and produce minimal amounts of urine to conserve water.

Camels are a good example of a well-adapted animal, with the following features:
They can survive several days without drinking water, and can consume up to 100 litres when they do drink, storing it in their bloodstream, NOT their humps.
Long legs with large, flat feet which allow them to efficiently move through the sand.
Thick eyelashes and slit-like nostrils to protect themselves from sand.
A large surface-area to volume ratio to maximise heat loss.
Thick fur on the top of their body provides shade while thin-fur elsewhere allows heat loss.
Their hump doesn’t store water, but is full of fat which the camel can break down for energy when it is needed.

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GCSE Geography
05/05/2023
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