Controlling Domesticated Nature

http://www.pinterest.com/chrisj1182/the-manipulation-of-species/

SourceS:
Google Images. (Last Accessed 4/30/14). http://images.google.com/
Pollan, Michael. The Botany of Desire. (New York: Random House, 2002). Introduction.

Follow the white rabbit

So there was a lab today on predation, and the relation between predator and prey. We did a game-like activity to find trends between number of predators (wolves) and number of prey (rabbits). The lab required paper, lots of paper.

The results indicate that when the number of wolves is low, the number of rabbits increases, which in turn increases the number of wolves, decreasing the number of rabbits, and then decreases the number of wolves. This is a predator-prey cycle, which looks like two cosine curves, with one slightly to the right. 

We set up a paper ecosystem and placed paper rabbits onto it. The WOLFMASTER throws a wolf paper onto the ecosystem, and attempts to "eat" the rabbits by touching the papers. When the wolf is thrown, if it is touching three or more rabbits it can reproduce, meaning the MASTER gets to throw two the next round. If it doesn't it starves to death. Every rabbit that is not eaten gets to reproduce as well at the beginning of the next round, increasing the population by double. 

Data below: (Each number is the starting individuals at each round.)

Round (Number)	White Rabbits (Start)	Yellow Rabbits (Start)	Green Rabbits (Start)	Wolves (Start)
1	1	1	1	1
2	2	2	2	1
3	4	4	4	1
4	8	8	8	1
5	12	14	14	2
6	18	22	28	4
7	26	30	42	8
8	30	38	48	14
9	32	38	48	25
10	2	4	12	60
11	0	2	4	1
12	0	4	8	1
13	0	6	16	1
14	0	12	32	1
15	0	22	56	2

 

The Environment -- This is the color of our paper background. The color makes it easier for rabbits of darker green colors to camouflage into the background. Wolves can best see light green and white rabbits here, allowing a food source for their survival. This is a good area for nomad wolves, as the population is replaced every round.


The White Rabbit -- This species has a fur of white, which contrasts with the surrounding environment. This means that it is the most likely candidate to go extinct, due to overhunting of its stand-out colors.

 
The Green -- This species is the best suited, as its green color is the closest to that of the environment. Based on this fact, it is selected to survive.



The Light Green -- This species better blends into the environment, due to its similar green color. It is less likely to be eaten, and only by very attentive wolves. This variation is more suited to survive in our chosen environment.


Based on the color, the rabbit variation with darker green fur is more likely to survive. This will cause the whites to die out first, as seen by our data. The wolf population will increase slightly behind the rabbit population, due to the abundance of food in the area. When the predator species then increases enough to dominate the prey population, the rabbits decrease to near-extinction levels. With the lack of food, the predators then die off as well. And when there are no more predators, the remaining prey species individuals reproduce to the high levels, and the cycle starts again.

Another!

Then in the Savanna, there was a massive meteor strike that KILLED EVERYTHING!
Or so one would think...

https://sites.google.com/site/savannatraveljournal/emg_meteor-strikes-zambia

Savanna Journal -- So we went on this trip...

https://sites.google.com/site/savannatraveljournal/

Week 5 -- We're Back, Baby.

Break has come to and end, and now begins the final quarter of Honors Bio!

Below is my awesome Lab Report for the Isopod Lab that we did before break. 

DOWNLOAD - Easy download in *.doc format. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chris Jung

Mr. Quick

April 15, 2014

Behavior of Isopods in Changes in Environment Temperature, Color, and Moisture

Abstract:

Pillbugs react either according to the stimuli (taxis behavior) or disregarding them (kinesis behavior). This lab placed the pillbugs in different temperatures, colors, and moisture, and determined their type of reaction to the environment. Based on the random movement in the different moisture amounts, it was discovered that their moving behavior disregarded moisture. On the other hand, it was discovered that there was movement towards a greener color and a colder environment, showing that these two factors are influential stimuli in the behavioral patterns of pillbugs.

Introduction:

Armadillidiidium vulgare, or land-dwelling isopods that are commonly known as “pillbugs, are the only member of the woodlouse family with the ability to roll into a defensive ball. They average a length of 10mm long in adulthood, but may reach up to 18mm at the largest. They are crustaceans from the order Isopoda and suborder Oniscidea that, like other crustaceans, breathe using gills.

Requiring the moisture for respiration, they often live in darker and colder environments, such as under rocks and leaves. As this environment is native to the armadillidiidae, should it be changed, the animals may respond with two types of behaviors: taxis and kinesis. When the pillbugs are placed in a dual environment, with sides of light and darkness, a response of taxis would indicate movement away from the light side. On the other hand, a response of kinesis would indicate random movement, and no response to the light.

(For more information, see “Questions” below.)

This lab will deal with ethology, or the study of animal behavior, via the determination of the type of behavior from the pillbugs with environmental changes. We will organize their reaction based on environmental changes in moisture, temperature, and color. Our question: when the environment in which pillbugs are placed offers a choice between moistures, colors, and temperatures, will the pillbugs respond with behavior of taxis or kinesis?

Hypotheses:

Moisture – If the pillbugs are exposed to the wet and dry environment choice, then their movement will appear random, but will ultimately result in more movement towards the wetter side. (Taxis)

Color – Due to the lack of adequate lighting in their native environment, if the pillbugs are exposed to environments of differing colors, then they will move randomly, and not favor one side. (Kinesis)

Temperature – Because their natural environment involves cold, damp areas, if the pillbugs are exposed to colder and normal environments, then they will move towards the colder side of the environment. (Taxis)

Procedure:

Basic Setup

1. Obtain ten pillbugs from the surrounding environment. (They are commonly found under rocks or piles of leaves.)
2. Obtain a double petri dish, one with two sides that the pillbugs may move between.
3. Place some “bedding material” (cloth, etc.) on both sides of the dish, and add moisture.

Moisture Test

1. (Follow steps 1-2 under “Basic Setup”.)
2. Place the bedding material on both sides of the dish.
3. Add moisture to one side of the dish, leaving the other as is.
4. Observe the movements of the pillbugs. Write down the amount of pillbugs on each side every thirty seconds. Determine whether they follow a behavioral pattern of taxis or kinesis.

Temperature Test

1. (Follow the steps under “Basic Setup”.)
2. Cover both sides of the double petri dish using a non-transparent object, to simulate a dark environment.
3. Place ice packs on the top and bottom of one side of the dish, making one environment colder than the other.
4. Observe the movement of the pillbugs. Write down the amount of pillbugs on each side every thirty seconds, quickly removing the cold packs and cover to do so. Determine their behavioral pattern based on the results.

Color Test

1. (Follow the steps under “Basic Setup”.)
2. Cover the bottom surface of one side of the dish with green beads. Do the same with clear beads on the other side.
3. Cover both sides with a non-transparent object to simulate darkness.
4. Observe the movement of the pillbugs. Write down the amount of pillbugs on each side every thirty seconds. Determine their behavioral pattern based on the results. (Note that it may be difficult to count the pillbugs on the green side. Instead, count those on the clear side and subtract the result from ten.)

Results:

Time (Min)	Number in Dry Chamber	Number in Wet Chamber	Number in Green Chamber	Number in Clear Chamber	Number in Cold Chamber	Number in Room Temp Chamber
0	5	5	0	10	4	6
0.5	3	7	2	8	5	5
1	3	7	2	8	5	5
1.5	4	6	2	8	5	5
2	5	5	2	8	6	4
2.5	6	4	2	8	6	4
3	5	5	2	8	6	4
3.5	5	5	2	8	6	4
4	7	3	2	8	6	4
4.5	6	4	2	8	6	4
5	6	4	3	7	6	4
5.5	6	4			6	4
6	6	4			6	4
6.5	6	4			6	4
7	6	4			6	4

Observations:

Dry/Wet – With five starting out in each chamber, the pillbugs seemed to initially move towards the wet chamber. However, there seemed to be random movement later on, as the number fluctuated. At the end, the number of pillbugs in the dry chamber was greater.

Green/Clear – We started ten in the clear chamber to see if the pillbugs preferred to move to the green chamber. By the end of the observation window, three had moved to the green chamber. However, there was no mass movement from the clear side.

Cold/Room – There were four in the cold chamber and six in the room temperature chamber to start. At the end, two had moved to the cold environment.

Questions and Definitions:

Behavior – The way in which animals react with the surrounding environment and other organisms. It may relate to the methods obtaining of food, fleeing or fighting of predators, and mating. Related to this lab, it is the taxis or kinesis response to environmental changes.

A proximate cause is the immediate trigger for a behavior, while the ultimate cause is the true reason for that behavior. While the proximate questions ask about the mechanics of an action, the ultimate questions ask the evolutionary advantages of the action.

How does the bird's air sacs, along with the flow of air through its system, produce the distinct sound each bird makes? (Proximate)

How does a bird's unique song attract a mate? (Ultimate)

A fixed action pattern (FAP) is a behavior that is instinctive for a certain animal. They are the actions that are “hard-wired” into the brain, and are produced by the innate releasing mechanism. An example would be the mating dances carried out by birds, which are not passed down, but still carried out through instinct.

Imprinting involves the learning of a behavioral pattern, usually from a young age. It includes a “critical period”, in which the animal is susceptible to have a behavior “imprinted”. When a young goose is imprinted to recognize another goose as its mother, the proximate cause would be her pattern of calling and movement. However, the ultimate cause would be that they have a better chance from following their mother, and have been imprinted with that recognition due to feeding and care from her.

Kinesis, as explained above, is random movement disregarding any stimuli. This can be seen in the dry/wet experiment with the pillbugs, as the moisture was disregarded and movement was random. Taxis is movement towards or away a stimulus, regarding it entirely. This can be seen with the phototaxis of the pillbugs, as they respond positively to darkness and negatively to light environments.

Classical conditioning involves the creation of an association between any previous stimuli and a neutral stimulus. This can be seen in dogs, when the sound of a bell is associated with food, and causes a salivary response when rung.

Operant conditioning involves punishments to create associations between behaviors and those punishments. This kind of conditioning can be seen with captive orca whales, with their food being taken away as a result of rebellious behavior. They learn to associate the behavior with a lack of food.

Conclusion:

In this lab, we observed the behavior of pillbugs in different environmental options. To do this, we placed ten pillbugs in environments of moisture and dryness, cold and normal, and differing colors, and observed their reactions. When placed in the moist and dry environments, the pillbugs initially moved towards the wet side, but then moved randomly. We determined this reaction to be a kinesis behavior, one disregarding the stimuli, as pillbugs did not show favor of either side. When placed in the green and clear environments, there was a slow movement to the green side, possibly showing taxis behavior. Finally, when placed in the environment containing cold and room temperatures, there was a movement towards the cold side, also revealing taxis behavior. When considering that the initial environment of the pillbugs is a moist, dark, and cold area, taxis behavior is expected towards a cold environment. However, the hypothesis was incorrect with the moisture, as there was no correlation with either side. Also, the green environment seemed to be favored, although our data may be the result of random movement.

Some sources of error may include the lack of proper cooling on the cold dish side. Also, the number of beads on each side was not kept constant, adding another variable. Thirdly, there wet dish may not have been thoroughly moisturized, or may have dried up during waiting times.