Extreme Heat

Question 1

What does excessive heat do to plants and animals?

Answer 1

Desiccation

Question 2

Two ways plants manage excessive heat.

Answer 2

1. Reduce surface area by curling their leaves

2. Close their stomata to keep water in (pores)

Question 3

Two ways animals manage excessive heat.

Answer 3

1. Seek cooler sites (behavioral heat avoidance)

2. Get rid of excess body heat through evaporative cooling

Question 4

What is shunting heat?

Answer 4

Moving heat to body parts with a greater surface area to lose the heat faster.

Question 5

What do Dragonflies do to reduce heat?

Answer 5

By pointing their tail in the obelisk position to reduce the area in contact with the sun.

Question 6

What do Tiger Beetles do on the hot sand?

Answer 6

Stilting to reduce area in contact with the hot sand.

Question 7

What happens to the Rete Mirabile?

Answer 7

It is bypassed and more blood is shunted to these extremities to lose heat.

Beavers = 90% more heat lost by bypassing the Rete Mirabile

Question 8

What is socail behavioral cooling? Give an example.

Answer 8

A behavioral social adaptation to cool down, Bees working together to to cool their hive in unison.

Question 9

How does panting help cool down animals?

Answer 9

Helps through evaporative cooling allowing for more air exchange between their blood vessels and air and more air passing over the respiratory surfaces.

Honeybees do this as well as birds.

Question 10

How do turkey vultures cool down.

Answer 10

Using evaporative cooling by pooping on their legs to cool them down.

Question 11

What to mourning doves do?

Answer 11

enter hyperthermia and allow their internal temperature to rise to 45 degrees so they lose heat as they are warmer than the environment temperature.