How Animals Adapt Themselves To Survive In Desert Climate?

By Author: Ann Philip
Total Articles: 91
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Animals living in desert regions have to face many challenges for their survival. At a first glance we can’t find many wild animals in the desert. But the fact is that desert contains large and diverse animal population. Each species have developed their own special mechanisms to endure the harsh conditions.
Some of the adaptive features of desert dwelling species are as follows-

To avoid heat:-

Nocturnal species - To avoid heat animals have developed their own ways adaptations, including nocturnal habits. Bats, snakes, rodents, some varieties of fox and skunks are nocturnal species. Nocturnal species will be active in the night time and inactive in the day time. During the day time they spend hours in their burrows by sleeping and taking care of young ones. They come out of the burrow in the night time and start hunting for their food. One of the reasons that fox prefer to hunt at night is to conserve water. They will have highly developed senses of hearing and smell, and specially adapted eyesight. Nocturnal adaptation enhances the osmoregulation.

Seasonal migration or relocating to higher areas ...
... - Some animals migrate from one region to other, when they find better living conditions. Most of the animals migrate when there is a scarcity of food or have to give birth to their young ones. In the desert regions, heat can be another cause for relocation.

Crepuscular activity – Certain desert animals follow crepuscular activity. Rattlesnakes and Gila Monsters are known for following crepuscular pattern. These animals will be active in the morning and evening. Early morning and late evening can be cool and windy in desert regions. Some nocturnal species also comes under the crepuscular category.

Use of shadows and burrows during the sunny day - Some animals go for hunting in the day time, by being in the shade of trees or burrows.

Prolonged dormancy during heat and dry periods – There are animals that enter into hibernation period during heat and dry periods. These animals enter into sleep when there is severe heat and dryness.

Dissipating heat: -

Open-mouthed gaping to exhaust body heat – In order to tackle with heat, some animals adopt open-mouthed gaping technique. By opening their mouth for some time, the excess heat accumulated in the body will be drained away. Owls, poorwills and nighthawks use this technique to dissipate heat.

Long appendages and enormous ears – Animals with long appendages and enormous ears can withstand heat for a certain extent. In most animals, long appendages and enormous ears act as a radiator to dissipate body heat into their environment. For example, the enormous ears of jackrabbits release heat when the animal is resting in a cool and shady location.

Light body coloration – Some birds like Turkey and Black Vultures are dark in color and they absorb considerable amount of heat. So body color is also a key factor in dissipating heat.

Urohydrosis- Some animals excrete urine on their legs and this when evaporates cools the body of the animal. Some birds like vulture and storks follows urohydrosis phenomenon.

Retaining water:-

Burrowing into moist soil- To absorb heat some animals burrow into moist soil and absorb water through skin.

Excreting metabolic waste in the form of uric acid – In order to retain water in the body some animals excrete metabolic waste in the form of uric acid. Most of the desert reptiles and birds are excreting their metabolic waste in the form of insoluble white compound, uric acid.

In animal planet we can watch programs related desert animals and plants. Many other television channels with connection from providers like Time Warner Cable also air interesting life science programs.

As a freelancer, Ann likes to scribble about desert fauna and flora. She is a regular viewer of animal planet on her home television powered by Time Warner Cable.