Structural Adaptations:
- The Mountain pygmy-possum hibernates during the winter months (April-May to September-October), as they live on a mountain it generally snows during the winter period, so the pygmy-possum puts on a lot of fat before hand and curls into a ball under the snow the be sure it stays warm and survives the hibernation period.
-The pygmy-possum has a very long tail, up to 16 centimeters it is larger then the pygmy-possums body. It is prehensile, meaning it can grip objects such as trees. This increases the chance of survival by climbing tress to escape predators or hot climates.
- The Mountain pygmy-possum hibernates during the winter months (April-May to September-October), as they live on a mountain it generally snows during the winter period, so the pygmy-possum puts on a lot of fat before hand and curls into a ball under the snow the be sure it stays warm and survives the hibernation period.
-The pygmy-possum has a very long tail, up to 16 centimeters it is larger then the pygmy-possums body. It is prehensile, meaning it can grip objects such as trees. This increases the chance of survival by climbing tress to escape predators or hot climates.
Physiological Adaptations:
- The pygmy-possum is nocturnal so it has do adapt to sleeping during the day, it has more developed senses of hearing, smell and sight. The eye of a pygmy-possum is capable of seeing well in the dark and can go without light, meaning the circadian clock is opposite to our clock.
- The mountain pygmy-possum is able to withstand bellow freezing conditions and during hibernation the pygmy-possum's temperature drops to approximately 2 degrees Celsius. The pygmy-possum undergo's torpor where the normal functions of the body are reduced such as temperature and metabolism. These adaptions means that the pygmy-possum is able to survive during hibernation and winter, otherwise it will get to cold and possibly die.
- The pygmy-possum is nocturnal so it has do adapt to sleeping during the day, it has more developed senses of hearing, smell and sight. The eye of a pygmy-possum is capable of seeing well in the dark and can go without light, meaning the circadian clock is opposite to our clock.
- The mountain pygmy-possum is able to withstand bellow freezing conditions and during hibernation the pygmy-possum's temperature drops to approximately 2 degrees Celsius. The pygmy-possum undergo's torpor where the normal functions of the body are reduced such as temperature and metabolism. These adaptions means that the pygmy-possum is able to survive during hibernation and winter, otherwise it will get to cold and possibly die.
Behavioural Adaptations:
- Mountain Pygmy-Possum has re-located to higher grounds in the mountains due to hotter temperatures caused by global warming.
- Burrows under snow during hibernation to stay clear of any predators and to stay warm.
- Mountain Pygmy-Possum has re-located to higher grounds in the mountains due to hotter temperatures caused by global warming.
- Burrows under snow during hibernation to stay clear of any predators and to stay warm.