| Table of contents |
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| What Makes Living Beings Special? |
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| Essential Conditions for Germination of a Seed |
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| Life Cycle of Plants |
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| Life Cycle of Animals |
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| Key Points |
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Living beings have key traits like the ability to move, eat, grow, breathe, excrete, respond to stimuli, reproduce, and die. If any of these traits are missing, the entity is not considered alive.
One sunny morning, Arjun was playing near a pond when he saw a small plant pushing through the soil, a butterfly flying, and fish swimming. He wondered, "Why do these things move and grow, but rocks and water don’t?"
His grandmother explained, "Living beings have special qualities that make them alive, like moving, eating, growing, and breathing. Fish, for example, take in oxygen from the water."
Excited to learn more, Arjun set out to discover what makes life so special. Are you ready to join him? Let's explore the world of living creatures!
Do plants move from one place to another like animals?
No, plants do not move from one place to another like animals. However, they do exhibit certain movements, such as flowers opening and climbing plants wrapping around objects.
We can observe how a tiny plant develops into a big tree, as well as how animals grow and mature from young to adult. Every living organism goes through various stages in its life, and these growth processes are unique to each species. These changes are crucial for both plants and animals to survive and ensure the continuation of their species.
Growth
All living beings experience growth, which involves an increase in size, complexity, and development over time. For example, a small plant can become a large tree, and animals transform from juvenile to adult stages. We see transformations such as pupae turning into insects and tadpoles becoming frogs.
Nutrition
Living beings require food (nutrition) for their growth and development. Food supplies the energy needed for growth, repair, and the maintenance of bodily functions.
The key characteristics of living beings include movement, eating, growth, breathing, excretion, responding to stimuli, reproduction, and death. If any of these features are absent, it indicates that the organism is not alive.
1. Excretion in Animals
2. Excretion in Plants
A stimulus is anything that causes a living being to react. For example, if you touch something hot, you will quickly pull your hand away. This is your body’s way of responding to the heat. All living things react to stimuli, but the way they react and how fast they do it can be different for each one.
All living beings respond to changes around them, called stimuli. For example, the touch-me-not plant folds its leaves when touched. Some plants, like the amla tree, fold their leaves after sunset. You can try observing more such plants nearby that fold their leaves at night.
Response to Stimuli in Living Beings
A living being is deemed dead when it can no longer show signs of life, such as movement, growth, or the need for food, even with access to resources like food, air, and water.
Why is water important for seed germination?
Water is essential for germination as it activates the enzymes that initiate the growth process within the seed. It softens the seed coat and allows the tiny embryo to develop into a plant.
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Chapter Notes: Living Creatures: Exploring their Characteristics
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Do you know?
Some seeds of flowering plants, like Coleus and Petunia, require light to begin growing. If these seeds are covered with soil, it prevents them from sprouting. Conversely, seeds such as Calendula and Zinnia need darkness to germinate, so they should be buried with enough soil to block light.
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Do all animals have the same life cycle?
No, different animals have different life cycles. Some animals undergo metamorphosis, like butterflies, while others, like humans, have a more direct development.
Mosquitoes experience four stages in their life cycle: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. This cycle starts with a newborn and includes various stages of growth and development, leading to the adult stage and ultimately death.
Stages:
Do you Know
- The silk moth goes through four stages in its life cycle: egg, larva, pupa, and adult.
- Eggs hatch into larvae, which grow in size. As they grow, larvae produce a thread-like material that they wrap around themselves. This process leads to the formation of pupae.
- The thread-like material secreted by the larvae is used to make silk fabric.
- In India, the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has established several centers to support silk production.
Frogs go through a unique life cycle that includes several stages: the egg stage, embryo stage, tadpole stage, froglet stage, and adult frog stage. Each stage involves major transformations in their shape and living environment as they shift from water to land.
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100 videos|261 docs|49 tests
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| 1. What are the essential conditions required for seed germination? |  |
| 2. How do plants exhibit growth and movement? | |
| 3. What is the life cycle of a plant? | |
| 4. How does the life cycle of animals differ from that of plants? | |
| 5. What are the key characteristics of living creatures? | |
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