Purpose
The purpose of this lab is to investigate animal behaviors by diving into the world of ethology. There are two ways pill bugs will respond to environmental stimuli: Kinesis (non-directional response) and taxis (directional response). Kinesis occurs when organisms (randomly) move around quickly when they’re unhappy and slowly when they’re happy, which is best demonstrated when one lifts up a rock or other material that the pill bugs are under. In contrast to the simpler response that does not necessarily involve many neurons, taxis is often observed in response to changes in light, heat, moisture, sound, and/or chemicals (odor). This would be considered a directional response. A total of three trials will be conducted to observe the …show more content…
Place paper towels on both sides of the choice chamber.
2. Add DI water to side B until the towel is damp (Trial 1).
3. Split the pill bugs evenly between both sides of the chamber and record down observations of the crustaceans during the 10-minute period while also noting the number on each side of the chamber every 30 seconds. Take pictures as needed.
4. Add concentrated NaCl (aq) to side A until the towel is damp (Trial 2). Repeat step 3.
5. Transfer the pill bugs to another choice chamber filled with dry soil. Add DI water to side B until the soil becomes damp (Trial 3). Repeat step 3.
Predictions
If exposed to a wet paper towel and a dry paper towel, then the pill bugs will prefer the wet environment over the dry environment because they are used to living in moist conditions. If exposed to salty and neutral conditions, they will prefer the side with DI water because the soil pill bugs generally live in is closer to pure water.
Statistical Analysis
Ho: The pill bugs will be evenly distributed across the two different parts of the choice chamber. Ha: The pill bugs will not be evenly distributed across the two different parts of the choice chamber.
The appropriate test is a chi-square test for goodness-of-fit. The conditions for this test were satisfied …show more content…
By applying different environmental factors on the living conditions of the pill bugs, we were able to procure a directional response (taxis). In both trial 1 and 3, our hypothesis turned out to be incorrect. The isopods were not evenly distributed across the choice chamber; however, this could be the result of the lack of intensity of the stimuli because their normal habit is generally moist. Solely based on these two trials admittedly, we can conclude that the moisture (wetness) of the environment does not significantly impact the pill bugs’
The purpose of this lab is to investigate animal behaviors by diving into the world of ethology. There are two ways pill bugs will respond to environmental stimuli: Kinesis (non-directional response) and taxis (directional response). Kinesis occurs when organisms (randomly) move around quickly when they’re unhappy and slowly when they’re happy, which is best demonstrated when one lifts up a rock or other material that the pill bugs are under. In contrast to the simpler response that does not necessarily involve many neurons, taxis is often observed in response to changes in light, heat, moisture, sound, and/or chemicals (odor). This would be considered a directional response. A total of three trials will be conducted to observe the …show more content…
Place paper towels on both sides of the choice chamber.
2. Add DI water to side B until the towel is damp (Trial 1).
3. Split the pill bugs evenly between both sides of the chamber and record down observations of the crustaceans during the 10-minute period while also noting the number on each side of the chamber every 30 seconds. Take pictures as needed.
4. Add concentrated NaCl (aq) to side A until the towel is damp (Trial 2). Repeat step 3.
5. Transfer the pill bugs to another choice chamber filled with dry soil. Add DI water to side B until the soil becomes damp (Trial 3). Repeat step 3.
Predictions
If exposed to a wet paper towel and a dry paper towel, then the pill bugs will prefer the wet environment over the dry environment because they are used to living in moist conditions. If exposed to salty and neutral conditions, they will prefer the side with DI water because the soil pill bugs generally live in is closer to pure water.
Statistical Analysis
Ho: The pill bugs will be evenly distributed across the two different parts of the choice chamber. Ha: The pill bugs will not be evenly distributed across the two different parts of the choice chamber.
The appropriate test is a chi-square test for goodness-of-fit. The conditions for this test were satisfied …show more content…
By applying different environmental factors on the living conditions of the pill bugs, we were able to procure a directional response (taxis). In both trial 1 and 3, our hypothesis turned out to be incorrect. The isopods were not evenly distributed across the choice chamber; however, this could be the result of the lack of intensity of the stimuli because their normal habit is generally moist. Solely based on these two trials admittedly, we can conclude that the moisture (wetness) of the environment does not significantly impact the pill bugs’