more numbers and formulas
Surface area (SA) =
Volume (V) =
Surface area (SA) = 4 π r2
Volume (V) = 4/3 π r3
sound travels how much faster?
sound travels 4.6X faster in water than air
What is Comparitive physiology
It is a branch of science that seeks to understand how animals function within the constraints of their environment
Changeable environments select for?
versatility and tolerance
does partial pressure of oxygen increase or decrease with increasing altitude?
decreases with increasing altitude
SA vs. V has a slope of
SA/V vs. V has a slope of
SA vs. V has a slope of 0.67
SA/V vs. V has a slope of -0.33
water is how much denser than air?
820X
environmental stress
environments create abiotic and biotic stress on animals that drives natural selection and
adaptation.
Energy restricted habitats and high energy habitats are?
Energy restricted habitats (e.g., deserts) have
simple communities with short food-chains. High energy habitats (e.g., rain forests) have complex, diverse communities with complex
food webs.
what is stenothermic? what is eurythermic?
narrow range of temps
wide range of temps
Four possible relationships
between a physiological variable
and animal size
1. does not scale- variable independent of size
2. A linear or isometric relationship:
variable is directly proportional to size
(e.g., blood or lung volume)
3. A linear or isometric relationship that
does not pass through the origin:
variable is shifted higher or lower (e.g.,
eutherian vs. metatherian metabolism)
4. A curvilinear relationship: variable is
proportional to size raised to a power <
or > 1 (e.g., metabolic rate)
thermal conductivity of water to air?
23X
environmental fluctuations
environmental factors may fluctuate on
variable time scales from thousands of years to
annual lunar or daily cycles and finally to hours and minutes
what is an adaptation?
A process by which natural selection adjusts the
frequency of genes that code for traits affecting fitness
what is thermal conductance?
Thermal conductance refers to heat flow per unit time per unit area per degree temperature difference (watts/ m2/ oC)
Allometry for species may differ depending on:
1.
2.
3.
Allometry for species may differ depending on:
1. Age or developmental stage (young vs. old animals)
2. Season (hormonal influences)
3. Metabolic state (e.g., fed vs. fasting)
what is the attenuation of light in water vs air?
333X greater
Energy/ recource availability
energy availability in a habitat affects
community structure
Environmental characteristics that effect whole oranism?
Environmental characteristics affecting the whole organism
1. Gravity (buoyancy), friction, inertia, drag: influences body size,
locomotion and the vestibular system (balance)
2. Oxygen concentration or partial pressure of oxygen: influences
oxidative metabolism
3. Pressure, temperature and salinity: influence cellular protein (e.g.,
enzyme) structure and function
4. Thermal conductivity: influences thermoregulation and metabolism
5. Humidity and aridity: influences body hydration
what is illuminance?
Illuminance or light level: the total luminous flux on a surface per unit
area (measured in lux)
Osmoconformers
Osmoregulators
Osmoconformers match their body osmolarity to their environment actively or passively.
Osmoregulators tightly regulate their body osmolarity, which always stays constant, and are more common in the animal kingdom.
Three parameters can be changed as the size of an
organism increases:
dimensions, materials and design
gravity, friction, inertia, drag
Gravity is the force that gives weight to objects with mass and has
a major influence on size, locomotion and flight
• Friction is the force resisting the relative motion of solid surfaces,
fluid layers, and material elements sliding against each other and
affects all forms of locomotion
• Inertia is the resistance of a physical object to any change in its
motion and affects all forms of locomotion
• Drag (i.e., air resistance or fluid resistance) refers to forces that act
on an object in the direction of flow and increase exponentially with
velocity in water (includes friction drag and profile drag)
Environmental characteristics affecting sensory systems
Environmental characteristics affecting sensory systems
6. Illuminance or light level: influences visual systems
7. Frequency, attenuation and speed of vibrations (sound) through air,
water or solid material: influences mechanosenstive systems (i.e.,
lateral line, hearing)
8. Chemical diffusion in air and water: influences olfaction and
gustation
9. Electrical field: influences electroreception (bioelectric stimuli)
10. Geomagnetic field: influences magnetoception
Observations that fall outside of allometric predictions may indicate
adaptations within species