ECTOTHERMS METABOLIC RESPONSE TO A CHANGING TEMPERATURE

Abstract

The effects of changing temperature on a chameleon’s metabolic rate by allowing the organism to interact with changing temperatures form 5oC to 40oC. In the laboratory, the animal was placed in a closed chamber, were the flow of gases was recorded, and the change in Oxygen intake was recorded using a gas sensor. Indirect calorimetry was employed. The data outcome shows a linear relationship between the animal’s body temperature and the ambient temperature, while also showing a small exponential relationship with steady increments of both the O2 consumption and body temperature, as the ambient temperature increased. Thus leading to a supported hypothesis.
Introduction
An ectotherm's metabolic rate is largely dependent on the temperature of its environment because, they are organisms that allow their internal temperature to mimic that of the environment they are inhabiting (Wyse, Hill & Anderson, 2009). Ectotherms control their body temperatures primarily through behavior. Contreras & Bradley (2011), found that as the temperature increased the metabolic rate of insects, which are ectotherms, increased; thus showing an expected linear relationship between temperature and mass-specific metabolic rate. The metabolic rate of an ectotherm can be measured by analyzing the oxygen intake per unit time per unit mass, using a respirometry system.
In this lab the metabolic rate change of an ectotherm, a chameleon, was measured through indirect calorimetry. Indirect calorimetry refers to a set of known conditions to which an organism is exposed (Buffenstein, Lemons, Levitt & Hanks, 2015) in a closed chamber. These conditions include the animal diet, the animal’s diet is known, no anaerobic metabolism, the change in body oxygen stores over the measurement period is minimal, the animal is at