Sunday, April 13, 2014

Animal Behavior Lab


Pillbugs’ Reaction to Different Environments
Abstract
            During the animal behavior lab, pillbugs’ orientation behaviors towards humidity, temperature and smell were tested. One can conclude according to the results that, during the lab, the pillbugs preferred dry environment with lower temperature and no smell.
Introduction
            The study of animal behavior is called Ethology. It studies an animal’s response to sensory input. In the study of animal behavior, one can study proximate questions or ultimate questions. A proximate question focuses on the environmental stimuli that trigger the behavior. For example, how does a bird know when to sing? An ultimate question addresses the evolutionary significance of a behavior. For instance, why does a bird sing (Emilyleck)? Before the lab, there are a few terms need to be clarified. A fixed action pattern is an instinctive behavioral sequence that is indivisible and runs to completion (Campbell). For example, a Graylag Goose will roll a displaced egg near its nest back to the others with its beak. The sight of the displaced egg triggers this behavior. If the egg is taken away, the animal continues with the behavior, pulling its head back as if an imaginary egg is still being maneuvered by the underside of its beak (Rogers). Imprinting is a process whereby a young animal follows the characteristics of his/her mother after hatching. It can be filial imprinting or following a future mating partner. For example, a young goose would follow its mother after hatching. The proximate cause may be it is hungry and need to follow its mother to find food. The ultimate cause is that all geese follow their mother after hatching because of evolutionary reasons (Biology Online). There are two types of learning: classical conditioning and operant conditioning. Classical condition occurs when a stimulus is associated with a particular response. For example, if a dog hears a bell before receiving its food all the time, then the dog will associate the bell with the arrival food. Operant conditioning is a learning process that involves shaping behaviors by using reinforcement or punishment. For example, a child will continue to eat his vegetables if it is reinforced with a treat afterwards (Brewer). Animal behavior falls into three basic categories: orientation behaviors, agonistic behaviors and mating behaviors. The purpose of this lab is to study pillbugs’ orientation behaviors. Orientation behaviors place the animal in its most favorable environment. There are two types of orientation behaviors – taxis and kinesis. In taxis, the animal intentionally moves towards or away from a stimulus, which can be humidity, smell temperature, etc. For example, a pillbug move to a place with higher humidity because it prefers humid environment. In kinesis, the animal moves randomly without reacting to a stimulus. For instance, a pillbug moves randomly between a humid environment and a dry environment.
 Hypothesis
            If a humid and a dry environment are provided for pillbugs, they will move to the humid environment. If an environment with strong smell and an environment without smell are provided for pillbugs, they will prefer the environment without smell. If an environment of lower temperature and an environment of higher temperature are provided, pillbugs prefer lower temperature.
Materials
10 pillbugs
Box with two chambers
Filter paper
Water
Ammonia
Ice pack
Stopwatch
Procedure
1.     Place a piece of filter paper in one of the chambers in the box and soak it with water. Place 10 pillbugs in the dry chamber and cover the box. Observe the pillbugs every 30s and count the numbers of pillbugs in each chamber for 7min.
2.      Clean the chambers. Place a piece of filter paper in each chamber. Soak one side with water and the other side with ammonia. Place 10 pillbugs in the chamber soaked by water and cover the box. Observe the pillbugs every 30s and count the numbers of pillbugs in each chamber for 6min.
3.     Clean the chambers. Place ice pack under one chamber and place 10 pillbugs in the chamber without ice pack. Observe the pillbugs every 30s and count the numbers of pillbugs in each chamber for 6min.
Results
Time/Mins
Number in Dry Chamber
Number in Wet Chamber
0
10
1
0.5
8
2
1.0
8
2
1.5
8
2
2.0
9
1
2.5
9
1
3.0
9
1
3.5
9
1
4.0
9
1
4.5
9
1
5.0
9
1
5.5
9
1
6.0
9
1
6.5
9
1
7.0
9
1


Time/Mins
Number in Ammonia Chamber
Number in Water Chamber
0
0
10
0.5
0
10
1.0
0
10
1.5
0
10
2.0
1
9
2.5
1
9
3.0
0
10
3.5
1
9
4.0
1
9
4.5
1
9
5.0
2
8
5.5
2
8
6.0
3
7


Time/Mins
Number in Room Temperature Chamber
Number in Cooler Temperature
0
7
3
0.5
5
5
1.0
4
6
1.5
3
7
2.0
3
7
2.5
2
8
3.0
2
8
3.5
2
8
4.0
2
8
4.5
1
9
5.0
2
8
5.5
2
8
6.0
3
7


Conclusion
            Throughout the experiments, factors like humidity, temperature and smell are independent variables. The number of bugs is a dependent variable. In the first lab, temperature and brightness are constants when humidity is changing. During the experiment, there were always more bugs in the dry chamber. As a result, it proves that the more humid the environments is, the less the pillbugs like it, and it failed to prove my hypothesis of pillbugs like humid environment. In the second lab, temperature, brightness and humidity are constants while one chamber smells (because of ammonia) and the other does not. There were more bugs in the chamber that does not smell throughout the entire experiment. Thus, it proves my hypothesis. In the third lab, brightness and humidity are constants while temperature changed. There were more bugs in the chamber with lower temperature throughout the whole experiment. Therefore, it proves my hypothesis that pillbugs prefer lower temperature. Two potential errors in this lab can be: First, seven and six minutes were not enough time for the pillbugs to react to its surroundings, so the pillbugs did not have enough time to move to the chamber they prefer. Secondly, after the second lab, the smell of ammonia might not have been completely cleaned up. As a result, the pillbugs can still smell ammonia and stayed in one chamber for that reason

Work Cited List
Biology Online. “Imprinting.” Web.
Brewer. “Classical and Operant Conditioning.” University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2011. Web.
Campbell, N. A. Biology (4th edition), Chapter 50. New York: Benjamin Cummings, 1996. Web.
Emilyleck, “Chapter 51: Study Questions ~ Behavioral Ecology.” Quizlet.com. Web.
Rogers, Philip. “Fixed Action Pattern” video. Sep. 14th, 2009. Web.

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