AP LAB ELEVEN: Animal Behavior

AP LAB ELEVEN: Animal Behavior

OVERVIEW This Lab Exercise will be used to review the common skills and characteristics of all the laboratories. As you develop your experiment, gather and analyze data, and report this data, you will gain improve your familiarity with the components of any laboratory program and for this particular lab you will practice two important skills —The skills for this lab will be observing and recording data and modifying or designing a controlled experiment.

First, you will observe some aspects of animal behavior by observing live animals both in their natural habitat and in a controlled environment. Then you will design a controlled experiment to investigate animal response to different environmental factors:

OBJECTIVES

·  Observe and Record data

·  Design and implement a controlled experiment

·  Analyze data from a controlled experiment

·  Learn the difference between taxis and kinesis

·  Describe some aspects of animal behavior, such as orientation behavior, agnostic behavior etc.

References:

Campbell, N.A. and Reece, J. B., Biology, 7th Edition, Pearson Education, Inc. 2005 Chapter 51 Behavioral Ecology pg 1106-1113

Isopod, Pillbug, Sow Bug Information (http://insected.arizona.edu/isoinfo.htm)
Pillbugs (http://www.northern.edu/natsource/INVERT1/Pillbu1.htm)
Sow bugs and Pill bugs (http://crawford.tardigrade.net/bugs/BugofMonth17.html)

INTRODUCTION

Ethology is the study of animal behavior. Behavior is an animal’s response to sensory input and falls into two basic categories: Learned and innate (inherited) behavior. Specifically, animals exhibit a variety of behaviors both learned and innate, that promote their survival and reproductive success in a variety of ways. Orientation behaviors place the animal in its most favorable environment. In taxis the animal moves toward or away from a stimulus. Taxis is often exhibited when the stimulus is light, heat, moisture, sound, or chemicals. Kinesis is a movement that is random and does not result in orientation with respect to a stimulus. What kind of stimulus could produce Kinesis in pillbugs? If an organism responds to bright light by moving away, that is taxis. If an animal responds to bright light by randomly moving in all directions, that is kinesis. Scientists study behavior and other aspects of organisms through observation and controlled experiments. In science classes you have done many laboratory activities that someone has written for you. Now you will be asked to think like a scientist, recording your own observations and designing your own controlled experiment.

Exercise 11A.1 – General Observations of Behaviors- Artificial Environment

1.  Before you begin, look at the picture of the organism. In your notebook in a section titled Expected Behavior briefly describe the organism and the type of behavior you feel it may exhibit without the presence of a natural food source and then with the presence of food. Take a live organism using a paint brush and place it in an artificial habitat in Petri dish layered with Oat Meal (not a food source). Observe using a dissection microscope for 5 minutes (use illumination only if required and from a source that will not change the temp of the specimen). In your notebook: Describe what the organism looks like. In your description and investigation address the following:

a.  Where are the eyes?

b.  How many legs does it have?

c.  What happens when you touch it?

d.  Is it male or female?

2.  Make a sketch of the organism in detail* See Scientific Sketching below.

3.  Observe for an additional 5 minutes. Describe/Record your observations. Explain in your description if the behavior was expected or unexpected. In your description and investigation address the following:

a.  What happens when you touch it?

b.  Is it a roller or a hiker

c.  Explore what happens when the organism is place on a piece of paper a few inches above the table…What does the organism do when it gets to the edge? If it falls off place it back on for closer observation.

d.  Dunk a pill bug into water then place on a piece of paper and observe, contrast this with a ‘dry’ pill bug.

4.  Modify the artificial habitat for the organism by placing a small amount of food (potato slice) in the dish. Observe for an additional 5 minutes. Describe/Record your observations. Explain in your description if the behavior was expected or unexpected.

5.  Optional : Observe a number of pill bugs and select a pillbug that you think can move fairly quick. What do you base your decision on? What entices it to move? House your pill bug appropriately for the next day.

6.  Optional: Pill Bug Races

a.  We will have a double elimination tournament. Seeds will be based on qualifying times.

b.  Choices will be placed inside a 60 cm circle on paper. Each team will record the time it takes for the entrants to reach the perimeter – this will be their ‘qualifying time’. Any and all enhancements must be placed outside the circle.

c.  First bug to the edge wins.

WORLD RECORD IS 9.33 sec for 30 cm [~ 3 cm/sec !!!!]

Scientific Sketching

When you make a sketch of a meal worm, don't just draw an oval with a few squiggly legs — you are expected to do a scientific illustration similar to the sketch of an earthworm below.

You will need to draw your organism from various angles in order to record all the details.

Here are some tips for making an accurate sketch: This should be added to the sketch when possible as well as placed in a table like the one below.

1. / Determine the relative proportions:
a. / width : length;
b. / height : length;
c. / distance between eyes : width of body;
d. / length of antennae : length of body.
2. / Count the number of body segments, if any.
3. / Count the number of legs, if any.
4. / Locate the eyes.
5. / Label the body parts.

Exercise 11A.2 – General Observations of Behaviors- Natural Environment

Observing Behaviors: Pillbug Behavior

Have you ever turned over a rock or old board and discovered a small, hard-shelled creature resembling a miniature armadillo, and then upon picking it up had it roll-up into a near-perfect ball in your hand? If you have never spent time eye to eye with these small crustaceans, you'll be surprised at how much you can discover about them. Such armoured creatures are called wood-lice or sowbugs and those kinds that roll up are often called pillbugs. Technically, however, they are all known as isopods, which means "the legs are alike"--of which there are seven pairs (Figs. 1 and 2). Isopods are not insects but rather land-dwelling relatives of the crabs and lobsters.

There are nearly a dozen species. Two common ones are Cylisticus convexus (Fig. 1) and Tracheoniscus rathkei (Fig. 2). Cylisticus is one that can roll up into a ball while Tracheoniscus cannot.

First you will study the pillbugs' behavior in their natural environment. In the first part of this exercise, you observe pillbugs and record what you see. A) Find a source of pill bugs in your yard or local park etc. You will make TWO (2) recorded observations. In your Laboratory notebook, Journal your observations. Record the date, time and location as well as a brief description of the location (you may sketch or photograph the location and place in your notebook). B) IMPORTANT: Choose a time during the day that you will be able to repeat again at a later date. Observe pill bugs for 15-30 minutes C) Repeat the observation (same time and location within 4 days)

NEVER DISTURB THE PILL BUGS in ANY MANNER DURING THIS OBSERVATION. YOU ARE AN OBSERVER ONLY!!!

HINTS FOR SUCCESSFUL PILLBUG HUNTING:

·  Time of day is significant, when do you think these creatures will be out an about? Flash lights could be helpful.

·  What type of environment is likely to contain the most organisms?

Below are some questions to think about as you watch them and respond to in your notebook (make a table). Some of these questions you can answer through observation; others require you to read about pillbugs and crustaceans (yes a pillbug is a crustacean) or think about what you already know. Give as much detail as you can.

• / What type of environment do pillbugs prefer in nature?
• / When are pill bugs the most active? Least active?
• / What do pill bugs eat? How do they get their food? When do they eat?
• / How do the pillbugs seem to sense their environment?
• / Are they all the same species?
• / Can you tell differences in males and females?
• / How many eyes do they have?
• / How many legs?
• / Do they exhibit any dominance behaviors?
• / How do they respire? (hint gas exchange)
• / How do they grow?
• / What are some stimuli they seem to respond to? (IMPORTANT)

Exercise 11B – Kinesis in Pillbugs- Artificial Environment

Response to the Environment

You can now construct an experiment to observe how pill bugs respond to their environment.

Make a choice chamber from Petri dishes and wet and dry filter paper. Make a Prediction statement (hypothesis) about where the pill bugs will end up in time by describing how the chamber numbers may change, given equal distribution. Site evidence from your natural environmental observations

When it is time to do the experiment you will place your pill bugs in a choice chamber, half in the side lined with dry filter paper and the other half in the side lined with wet filter paper. Place lids on containers and seal with tape. As diagramed below.

Allow THE PILLBUGS to ‘ROAM’ FOR 10 MINUTES.

After the pillbugs have been in the choice chamber for 10 minutes, you might observe one of these situations:

Pillbugs are crustaceans, and they respire through gills. Because of this characteristic, which situation would you predict to occur — A, B, or C? Are there physiological reasons for a preference of wet or dry in this activity? Make another prediction statement.

Observations

Observe pill bugs for 10 minutes. Make notes on their general appearance, movements about the dish, and interactions with each other. Notice if they seem to prefer one area over another, if they keep moving, settle down, or move sporadically. Note any behaviors that involve 2 or more pill bugs. Try to make your observations without disturbing the animals in any way. Do not prod or poke or shake the dish, make loud sounds, or subject them to bright lights. You want to observe their behavior, not influence it or interfere with it.

Data

Count how many pill bugs are on each side of the choice chamber every 30 seconds for 10 minutes and then record your data in Table 11.1 (copied to your notebook) Continue to record even if they all move to one side or stop moving. Return you pill bugs to their environment. Graph both the number of pill bugs in the wet chamber and the number in the dry chamber (you will need to determine the independent variable (x-axis) and the dependent variable (y-axis) Be sure to title your graph, label axis and show units.

Table 11.1

Time (min) / # in
Wet
Chamber / # in
Dry Chamber / Observations

Make a diagram in your notebook of the experimental set up and what it looks like after 10 minutes. Or you may place a photograph.

To consider why the pillbugs behave as they do, scientist will do an Analysis of the Results.

Analysis of Results

1.  Are pill bugs’ response to moisture best classified as kinesis or taxis? Explain your response citing evidence from your experiment. Answer this Question in your conclusion.

This brings us to an important consideration: The pill bug exercise is not a controlled experiment. Could there be more light at one end of the choice chamber? More activity and vibration? A chemical residue on one side? Any of these conditions and more could possibly influence the organism's behavior. Without a control, it is very risky to state a conclusion.

You will continue this Animal Behavior lab, by executing a controlled experiment of your own design based on one of these factors:

o  Light versus dark

o  Solvents differences

o  Warm versus cold (by suspension chamber)

o  Moist versus dry (CaCl2 chamber suspension)

o  Colors of light

o  Can they see/respond to colors? (put different colored paper under the different chambers)

Before you can perform your experiment you must have ready for class in your Lab notebook:

1.  Hypothesis clearly stated in notebook (initials req) along with a brief basis for you hypothesis (why do you think this will happen)

2.  List of materials including quantities (prepped and ready to go)

3.  A diagram of your experimental set up

4.  Brief Outline/description on how to run experiment, including what the controls are and number or repetitions

5.  A data table or tables to collect your observations.

Some of the general criteria of good experimentation with animals which may come out of this exercise are given below.

1. In order to know if the animal is doing something different, one must first know its usual behavior.

2. An animal must be given a choice if it is to show a preference for one thing over something else.

3. What is done to an animal must be described in as much detail as necessary.

4. The description of what the animal does in the experiment must be as complete as possible.