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1.8 compare responses of named Australian ectothermic and endothermic organisms to changes in the ambient temperature and explain how these responses assist temperature regulation
compare responses of named Australian ectothermic and endothermic organisms to changes in the ambient temperature and explain how these responses assist temperature regulation
Endotherms
- In hot conditions, the red kangaroo licks the inside of its paws, where skin is thinner, and blood supply is closer to surface, so that heat can be easily dumped to the outside. Evaporation from saliva promotes the loss of heat from the blood.
- The large ears of the rabbit-eared bandicoot provide a large surface area to pass excess heat when it is burrowing during the heat of day and when it is active at dusk.
Ectotherms
- Magnetic termites (Amitermes meridionalis) pack the walls of their mounds with insulating wood pulp and align their mounds north-south to maximize exposure to the sun in the mornings and evenings when the air is cooler and to minimize exposure during heat of day.
- Bogong moths are able to avoid their bodies freezing by supercooling their tissues. This process involves reducing the temperature of body fluids below their usual point of freezing and as a result, ice crystals do not form and destroy the cells.
- Insects in alpine areas, as a rule, tend to be smaller, darker and use basking behaviours to absorb what heat is available.
- Antarctic ice fish produce antifreeze (glycoproteins) that prevent ice formation.