2.5 metabolism and adverse conditions Flashcards
What are some animals reactions to non tolerable environmental conditions for normal metabolic activity?
- some have adapted to survive these adverse conditions
- while others avoid them
What is dormancy?
metabolic rate is reduced to save energy
When does dormancy occur?
when the cost of continued normal metabolic activity would be too high
What happens during dormancy?
decrease in:
- metabolic rate
- heart rate
- breathing rate
- body temperature
What are the two types of dormancy?
- predictive
- consequential
What is predictive dormancy?
occurs before the onset of adverse conditions and is usually genetically programmed. It is typical in predictable seasonal environments.
What is consequential dormancy?
occurs after the onset of adverse conditions. it is a typical response of organisms living in unpredictable environments.
What is hibernation?
commonly used survival strategy by mammals in response to the threat of a metabolic energy crisis brought about by winter, low temperatures and lack of food.
What is aestivation?
a form of dormancy that allows some animals to survive in periods of high temperature or drought in the summer.
- food supply issues and because conditions become too hot and dry for the animal to survive
- typically involves burying into the ground where the temperature is cool and reducing metabolic rate, similar to hibernation
What is daily torpor?
a period of reduced activity in organisms with high metabolic rates
What is migration
avoiding metabolic adversity (lack of food and low temperatures) by expending energy to relocate to a more suitable environment
What can migratory behaviour be?
innate (inherited) and learned
Give examples of specialised techniques used to study long distance migration
- satellite tracking
- leg rings
- transmitters
What are 3 examples of dormancy?
- hibernation
- aestivation
- daily torpor
describe the process of hibernation
- before hibernation, a mammal eats extra food and stores it as fat
- during hibernation metabolic rate is decreased resulting in a decrease in body temperature, heart rate and breathing rate
- reduces energy expenditure and allows mammals to survive the winter period
What happenes during daily torpor and why?
A decrease in: -body temperature -heat rate -breathing -metabolic rate increasing the organisms chance of survival
What makes migration true migration?
the movement of organisms should be an annual or seasonal occurrence
What is dormancy a part of?
some organisms lifecycle allowing survival during conditions when the energy costs of metabolic activity would be too high
Why is metabolic rate decreased during dormancy?
to save energy
Why does aestivation require less energy than hibernation?
to maintain minimum body temperature
What is daily torpor?
when some animals with high metabolic rates can temporarily reduce their metabolic rate
What is migration?
a regular pattern of behaviour ad involves relocating to an area with more suitable environmental conditions
Why is migration carried out by all of the individuals?
it is innate
What is innate behaviour triggered by?
external stimulus such as a photoperiod
Why does a flexible learned element of migration develop?
as a result of experience
state 2 ways of tracking migration
- satellite tracking
- leg rings
