Chapter 2: Diversity in the Living World
Look around and you'll find an amazing variety of plants and animals. In this chapter we observe that variety closely, learn to group living things by their features, and discover how plants and animals are suited to the places where they live.
In this chapter you will
- observe the variety of plants and animals around you
- group plants by stems, leaves and roots
- group animals by their features
- understand habitats, adaptations and biodiversity
Topics
- Diversity in Plants and Animals Around Us NCERT 2.1
Herbs: soft green stems. Shrubs: bushy, woody stems. Trees: one thick trunk.
- How to Group Plants and Animals NCERT 2.2
We group living things by features they share.
- Plants and Animals in Different Surroundings NCERT 2.3
A habitat is where a living thing naturally lives. Features that help it survive there are adaptations.
Key words
- Diversity
- variety
- Herb, shrub, tree
- plants grouped by their stems
- Venation
- the pattern of veins in a leaf
- Taproot / fibrous roots
- one main root / a bunch of similar thin roots
- Habitat
- the place where a living thing naturally lives
- Adaptation
- a feature that helps a living thing survive in its habitat
- Biodiversity
- the variety of all living things in a place
Summary
- There is a huge diversity of plants and animals around us.
- Plants can be grouped as herbs, shrubs and trees; leaves have parallel or net-like veins; roots are tap or fibrous.
- Living things are grouped by shared features; the feature chosen decides the groups.
- Adaptations help plants and animals survive in their habitats; protecting habitats protects biodiversity.