Key Area 5: Metabolism In Adverse Conditions

Question 1

What does adverse conditions mean?

Answer 1

When the environment varies beyond the tolerable limits

Question 2

Why is metabolic rate reduced in adverse conditions?

Answer 2

To conserve energy

Question 3

What are the four ways animals survive adverse conditions?

Answer 3

• dormancy
• hibernation
• aestivation
• daily torper

Question 4

What is dormancy?

Answer 4

A period of an organisms’ life where it’s growth, development or physical activity is reduced or temporarily stopped to reduce metabolic rate

Question 5

What are the two types of dormancy?

Answer 5

• predictive (in advance of adverse conditions)

- consequential (as a result of adverse conditions)

Question 6

What is hibernation?

Answer 6

A type of predictive dormancy where the organism reaches a sleep-like state to survive harsh winters (usually mammals)

Question 7

What happens to metabolic rate during hibernation?

Answer 7

Metabolic rate is reduced by decreasing body temperature, heart rate and breathing rate

Question 8

What is aestivation?

Answer 8

A consequential dormancy which allows organisms to survive harsh summer conditions (fish and invertebrates)

Question 9

Give an example of aestivation

Answer 9

Snails seal themselves in dried mucus and bury deep into the river bed to reduce their metabolic rate

Question 10

What is daily torper?

Answer 10

Type of dormancy that is cyclical within a 24 hour period to conserve energy for certain parts of the day

Question 11

What happens to the metabolic rate during daily torper?

Answer 11

Reduces breathing rate, heart rate and body temperature drops to that of the surroundings (common in small birds and mammals with a high metabolic rate)

Question 12

What is migration?

Answer 12

The regular movement of a species from one place to another to avoid adverse conditions
(Common in birds and mammals)

Question 13

What do long distance migratory studies show?

Answer 13

• time of migration
• location of overwintering
• how long they live for
• whether or not they return

Question 14

How can scientists mark organisms they are tracking?

Answer 14

• chipping
• tagging them
• coloured rings round their feet

Question 15

Describe innate and learned migratory behaviour

Answer 15

• innate behaviour is inherited and inflexible

- learned behaviour is gained after birth from experience

Question 16

Describe the displacement experiment and what it shows

Answer 16

During migration birds are captured Holland and taken to Switzerland where they are released again. Older birds redirected themselves by younger birds carried on to Spain
-shows innate in the young birds and learned in the older birds

Question 17

Describe the cross-fostering experiment and what it shows

Answer 17

Eggs from two gulls were swapped at birth. The migratory chicks with the non-migratory parents still migrated and the non-migratory chicks with the migratory parents migrated with them
-shows innate in the migratory hills and learned in the non-migratory

Question 18

Describe the investigating directional tendencies experiment and what it shows

Answer 18

Scientists hand reared gulls and put them in a funnel to see where they tried to go. The marks on the funnel were the same direction as they would normally migrate
-shows innate behaviour

Question 19

What is an extremophile?

Answer 19

Organisms that live in extreme conditions that would be lethal to other organisms

Question 20

Give an example of an extremophile

Answer 20

Thermophile

Question 21

What is a thermophile and give and example?

Answer 21

Thermophile can withstand extreme temperatures like surviving in hot springs or sea-bed vents at 50-80’

Question 22

How can scientists use thermophiles?

Answer 22

Heat resistant enzymes can be used in pcr

Question 23

How do extremophile make ATP?

Answer 23

Taking high energy electrons from inorganic material like sulphide