Page 12 - ACTIVE SCIENCE 4 TOC

The place where an animal or a plant lives is called its habitat. The characteristics
which make an organism better suited for its environment is called adaptation.

A daptations in Plants

There are different kinds of plants which grow in different places. Each plant has
a unique set of characteristics that help it to survive in that particular area.

Plants can be categorised according to their habitat into – aquatic plants and

terrestrial plants.

Aquatic Plants
Plants that grow and live in water are called aquatic plants. Aquatic plants are

further divided into four sub-categories.

1. Floating Plants: These plants float in water as they are light and small in
size. They have air filled in their stems that helps them to float. Examples of

floating plants are duckweed, water lettuce and water hyacinth. The roots of
these plants directly absorb nutrients from water.

Duckweed Water Lettuce Water Hyacinth

2. Fixed Plants: Lotus and
water lily are some common

examples of fixed plants.
These aquatic plants are fixed

to the waterbed through their
strong roots but their flowers
are found floating on the water Lotus Water Lily

surface. These plants have long
and thin air-filled stalks, i.e., they are hollow from inside. They have stomata

on the upper side for breathing. They absorb nutrients from soil through their
roots. The waxy coating on their leaves prevent them from rotting. Their roots

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