unit 2 KA5 - metabolism and adverse conditions

Question 1

is it true that many environments vary beyond the tolerable limits for normal metabolic activity for any particular organism, and that some animals have adapted to survive these adverse conditions while others avoid them?

Answer 1

yes it is

Question 2

what is dormancy

Answer 2

dormancy is part of some organisms’ life cycle to allow survival during a period when the costs of continued normal metabolic activity would be too high. the metabolic rate can be reduced during dormancy to save energy. during dormacy there is a decrease in metabolic rate, heart rate, breathing rate and body temperature.

Question 3

what is predictive dormancy

Answer 3

dormancy that occurs before the onset of adverse conditions

Question 4

what is consequential dormancy

Answer 4

dormancy that occurs after the onset of adverse conditions

Question 5

what are the three forms of dormancy

Answer 5

• hibernating - how mammals survive during winter/low temperatures
• aestivation - allows survival in periods of high temperature or drought
• daily torpor - a period of reduced activity in some animals with high metabolic rates, which happens daily

Question 6

what is migration

Answer 6

migration avoids metabolic adversity by expending energy to relocate to a more suitable environment. migratory behaviour can be innate or learned.

Question 7

what is an advantage to migration

Answer 7

avoid metabolic adversity

Question 8

what is a disadvantage to migration

Answer 8

high energy expenditure

Question 9

what are two examples of specialised techniques that are used to study long-distance migration

Answer 9

marking and transmitters

Question 10

what kind of dormancy is aestivation

Answer 10

consequential dormancy

Question 11

what kind of dormancy is hibernation

Answer 11

both predictive and consequential dormancy