Why Living Organisms Respond To Their Environment

The structural features of the pill bug allows it to have advantages over other organisms. The pillbugs multi-segmented body allows it to roll into a ball if it feels threatened or in danger in order to protect its self. Another advantage of have a multi-segmented body is it allows the pillbug to semi curl to flip its self back over if it is knocked down. The antennae is used to sense the environment around it, even if it is in ball shape form. The advantages of this is the pillbug will know whether or not it is safe to come out of its ball shape form, if it had been threatened earlier. The antennae also allows the pillbugs to send signals to one another, it is a source of communication between them. The color of the pill

At the start of the semester we learned that one’s environment influences how they behave. Through the variety of dimensions listed in the multidimensional framework, we learned that “people confront biophysical, psychological and social demands that require effective human responses (Ashford & LeCroy, 2010, p.9)”. Through Erikson’s psychosocial theory we learned that there are several stages during one’s development must be completed in order to move on to the other stage. That is that each individual must master the first stage and all its tasks in order to proceed to the next stage. Failure to master the stage and its tasks determines how they will succeed in the next stage. For example, Raul Salazar, a case study listed in the text, entails a story of a boy in the fourth grade, who due to his chaotic environment is unable to thrive in his environment. An anxiety disorder that could have either been passed down from his mother or created directly from his social environment, has affected his social functioning. Due to his anxious nature Raul, was labeled as having a learning disability.

A two-part study was recently done to show what natural habitat a Pill bug, Armadillidium vulgare, naturally prefers: wet or dry environments along with a light or dark environment. It was hypothesized that a Pill bug would prefer and wet and dark environment based on its natural habitat of soil. For the wet and dry experiment, a coffee filter and soil were placed in each chamber of a double petri dish with one being dampened before being placed in. For the light and dry experiment a light was hung above one chamber of another double-chambered petri dish while the other chamber was covered with aluminum foil, after placing soil in both chambers. An equal number of Pill bugs was placed in each chamber and a study was taken for

Pill bugs live in an outside environment where they are able to get the necessary amount of energy from organic matter. This environment is where water and organic matter is plentiful. In there natural habitat, pill bugs are found in dark, damp places. Living in moist places is important for pill bugs so they can take in enough water, and if water is not available, they group together to prevent water loss. Pill bugs most often live in dark places because they have a negative photo taxis. Darker places also tend to be cooler and damper. Each experiment connected to how the pill bugs would behave in a certain environment. We were able to test these experiments in a laboratory way to see if the natural environments were also true.

Daphnia magna, arthropods of the subphylum Crustacea, are widely used during laboratory experiments because they are very sensitive to many environmental parameters including temperature and chemical contaminants (Cornell, 2009). In this experiment, Daphnia magna were tested under different experimental factors, including temperature changes and exposure to different chemical, in order to observe the effect of environmental conditions on their heart rate.

The purpose of our experiment is to test animal behavior and reactions to a change in environment. Our guiding question is, “Why do living organisms respond to environmental factors?” This is basically a question that is asking why living things will react a certain way to environmental changes. The task to answer this question is to experiment with changing environmental factors with pill bugs.

In this experiment, we tested three different environments, soil, sand, and a leafy mixture to see which one a pill bug would prefer the most. Originally, we believed that the pill bug would find the leafy substance to be most favorable. Five pill bugs and then a single pill bug was placed in the center so that it could select one of the substrates. The data collected at the end of the experiment opposed our original hypothesis as we discovered that the most favored environment was the soil. This finding could correlate with the dark color of the soil closely matching the color of the pill bug or the moisture in the soil.

Pill bugs, Armadillidium vulgare, are terrestrial isopods [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. Thus, they are not very well adapted to land [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. Water loss is a reoccurring theme because terrestrial isopods lack “cuticular lipids and the elaborate spiracular apparatus of insects” [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. Most of the water loss is evaporation from the respiratory organs [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. The respiratory organs are called pleopods, and are gill-like organs “located on the ventral abdominal segments” [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. Interestingly, pill bugs are capable of conglobation, the ability to roll up in a ball [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008]. In addition to protection from predation, conglobation may also conserve water [Gibbs, Smigel, 2008].

The purpose of our experiment was to observe the behavior of the pill bugs. We were trying to find exactly whether the pill bugs would be attracted or repelled by the chemicals. The chemicals used were vinegar, water, salt solution and a sugar

The Pill Bug Lab created many various trends or patterns in the data. The data in figure 2 show that towards the beginning of the experiment, the pill bugs were very active in both the wet and dry environments. This is because the Pill Bugs were suddenly placed in an environment they had not been in before, so there first reaction was to find a place of comfort to settle in. Over time, which figure 1 shows, many pill bugs switched from one location to another and continued to move back and forth. As the experiment was coming to an end, the data shows that the pill bugs slowly started to settle into their final destination.

Isopods need water for them to stay alive. Other animals that they can be put in a category with are: crabs, lobsters, shrimp, crayfish, etc., they all use their gills to breathe. They were given the name “pill bug” because they are able to roll up in a tight ball when they feel threatened and it makes them look like a pill. They can be found in many places, these places are under rocks, logs, leaves, and moist areas. In this project he or she will be experimenting the type of environment an isopod likes more. The study of an animal’s behavior is called Ethology. An animal’s behavior is how they act when they are either alone or with other animals. When an animal reacts to an external stimulus is called Taxis. An animal can either move away or towards the thing that caused them to react. In this lab animal behavior will be experimented and observed, by isolating them in a controlled

This experiment was performed using the crustacean Armadillidium vulgare, also known as the pillbug. Pillbugs mate in the spring, and it takes several weeks for their fertilized eggs to hatch. After hatching the offspring spend an additional six weeks in a pouch under the female pillbug. Pillbugs eat dead and decaying organic matter, so they are often found in dark damp places. Another reason they like damp places is because they have gills that must be kept moist. The gills are located on the thorax, which is covered by large exoskeleton plates. The thorax is also where the pillbug’s seven pairs of legs are located. The pillbug also has the nickname “roly-poly,” this is because the pillbug has a defensive mechanism where it rolls into a tight ball, using the large exoskeleton plates of its thorax to protect its head and underside.

If a sow bug is placed in a choice tray, and has access to decaying leaves, potatoes, grapes, and sow bug food, the sow bug will choose the decaying leaves over its other options. This hypothesis was based on research stating that a sow bug's main food source is decaying vegetation. This is the food they are accustomed to and therefore will select over the other three options which they rarely if ever would have access to.

Referring to the experiment`s hypotheses that the A. franciscana prefers light, temperatures between 20-24 ̊ C, and a basic (pH 8) environment; the results regarding the first treatment, light, were initially vague. According to the experiment results, the A. franciscana did not show a clear preference towards light or dark because both sections contained high concentrations of them; the A. franciscana also strayed from the uncovered section. Several factors may shed light on the results such as the A. franciscanas physical appearance; they possess three light-sensitive eyes that can adjust to both low and high light intensities (Fox, 2001). This means that although they may prefer light they can survive in darker habitats as well; relating back to the experiment the A. franciscana may have been content with wherever they were, resulting in limited movement.

Purpose: The purpose of this lab is to observe the behavior of the Armadillium vulgare (roly- poly