Angiosperms (flowering plants)
Ferns
Grizzly Bear
Geese
German Shepard
Pill bugs
Clostridium tetani
Part 1: Adaptation Stations
An adaptation is a trait that increases an organism’s biology fitness in their specific environment. There are a wide variety of adaptations throughout all living organisms. Here, we will look at a sample of adaptations in 7 different organisms.
Directions: Each member of your group will be assigned a number. This number will stay the same as your circulate through each station. At each station, find the reading for your assigned number. Then, read the text and write a summary of the adaptations the organism possesses in the table below. After all 4 group members have filled in their column, share the information with your entire group. Do NOT move on to the next station until every group member has filled in the entire row for that organism. BE SURE the summary you write in the table is in your OWN words. You will receive a 0 if you copy straight from the text.
Example Organism / Reproductive Adaptations / Behavioral Adaptations / Structural Adaptations / Immune AdaptationsAngiosperms
Ferns
Isopods
German Shepard
Geese
Clostridium tetani
Grizzly Bear
Part 2: Essay Response
Now, you will select ONE organism from above. Construct a two-paragraph response that answers the following questions:
How is your organisms adapted to its environment? (include structural, behavioral, immune, and reproductive adapatations)
______
Station Readings
Angiosperms
Reproductive:
Angiosperms produce seeds as theirprimary means of reproduction and dispersal. Seeds allow the genetic material to be protected and containts nutrients that allow a new organism to grow. Seeds can be dispersed by wind, pollinators, or water to ensure proper dispersal in the environment. Angiosperms also contain flowers. The flower lures insects, birds, bats to itself, and in the process has dramatically increased the diversity of flowering plants. Co-evolution (mutual adaptation) with insects. Insures cross-pollination with members of the same species by utilizing only a relatively small amount of pollen compared to the large amounts of pollen necessary in random wing pollination. As a result, angiosperm flowers, derived from leaves modified into sepals, petals, and relatedstructures,are amongst the most intricate and attractive organs that veer appeared in plants. Angiosperms also have closed carpels whichallow seeds to develop enclosed within a fruit protecting seeds from desiccation as they grow and mature, and aids in the dispersal of seeds. Finally, double fertilization occurs in angiosperms, which results in the production of endosperm, a nutritive tissue that feeds the developing embryo. Angiosperms do sexual reproduction which allows for greater variation in their offspring.
Behavioral:
Phototropismis the growth of an organism which responds to a light stimulus. It is most often observed inplants, but can also occur in other organisms such asfungi. The cells on the plant that are farthest from the light have a chemical calledauxinthat reacts when phototropism occurs. This causes the plant to have elongated cells on the farthest side from the light. Phototropism is one of the many planttropismsor movements which respond to external stimuli. Most plant shoots exhibit phototropism, and rearrange their chloroplasts in the leaves to maximize photosynthetic energy and promote growth. Phototropism allows plants to demonstrate movement to get maximum exposure to sunlight.
Structural:
Angiosperms have specialized structures for reproduction. Their flowers attract pollinators, which allow for easier dispersal of genetic material and ensures successful reproduction. Additionally, angiosperms have vascular tissues that allow for water and glucose to be transported throughout the plant. This allows the plant to grow taller, and ensure proper nutrients get to all tissues in the plant. Their stem holds the flowers up high, so pollinators can see. Also, they have specialized reproductive organs that produce egg and sperm to ensure healthy reproduction.
Immune:
Angiosperms posses an innate immune system, which creates a non-specific response to a pathogen. Angiosperms have cell walls and waxy layers on their leafs to prevent pathogens from entering the system. Angiosperms can also detect pathogens inside their cells, and kill off any infected tissue before the disease can spread. Some angiosperms can produce toxins that prevent pathogens and herbivores from damaging them. An example of this is the tobacco plant producing nicotine.
Ferns
Reproductive:
Unlike angiosperms, ferns do not produce flowers or detect pollinators. Instead, they produce spores, which contain genetic material. These spores can be spread via water or wind and produce more ferns. An egg inside a fern is fertilized by flagellated sperm, so more ferns need a consistent water source so fertilization can occur. Sexual reproduction occurs in ferns, which allows for a greater genetic variation in their offspring.
Behavioral:
As with many plants, ferns are also involved with a form of beneficial fungi called Mychorrhizae. Mychorrhizae is a type of fungi that has a mutualistic symbiosis with the root system of the ferns and many land plants for that matter.The host plant provides the fungus with a steady supply of sugar, and in return, the fungus increases the surface area allowing for greater water uptake by the plant. In addition to this perk, themychorrhizae grants the plant phosphate and other minerals absorbed from the soil. The fungi also secretes certain growth factors that lead to root stimulation roots as well as act like antibiotics that aid in the protection of the plant from pathogens in the soil
Structural:
Ferns are seedless, vascular plants. They contain two types of vascular tissue that are needed to move substances throughout the plant. Evolutionarily, this addition of vascular tissue to plants is what allowed ferns to grow up and out rather than just spreading along the ground. The more primitive mosses rely on osmosis and diffusion for material movement and need to stay in close contact with the ground. With the addition of vascular tissue, water, nutrients and food could now be transported throughout a taller plant. The first type of vascular tissue, xylem, is responsible for moving water and nutrients throughout the plant. As the xylem cells reach maturity they die, losing their cellular contents. The external cell walls remain intact. These cell walls are stacked end to end forming long tubes from the roots, through the stems, up to the leaves. As water vapor exits the leaves through the stomata, a process known as transpiration, a vacuum is created, pulling more water from the roots up the xylem tube. This vacuum/suction moves water throughout the entire plant. The stiff cell walls of the xylem also provide support for the fern plant as it grows taller. The other vascular tissue, phloem, is responsible for moving glucose throughout the plant.
Immune:
Ferns also have an innate immune system which creates a non-specific response to a pathogen. Things like their leaves, cell wall, and epidermis can help keep pathogens out of the plant. They can detect when a pathogen has invaded their tissues and kill off the damage tissue before the infection spreads.
Isopods
Reproductive:
Isopods go through sexual reproduction which allows for greater genetic diversity in their offspring. Males climb on the backs of females to mate. The males curl the abdomen around so that the underside comes into contact with hers. Males use their pleopods to transfer the sperm to the genital openings of the females. After mating the female releases a dozen to several hundred eggs into the marsupium. They will remain there from eight to twelve weeks. The eggs allow for the embryos to be protected to give them time to develop properly.
Behavioral:
Isopods, like pill bugs, demonstrate taxis. Taxis is the turning of the body toward a specific stimulus. If the isopods detect a food source, they can turn their body in that direction. They also show kinesis, which is the random movement in response to a stimulus. For example, isopods will scatter is a light is shown directly on them. Taxis allows the isopods to effectively get nutrients and food, while kinesis allows the isopods to move away from dangerous things, like predators. Isopods also show estivation, which is a prolonged period of inactivity during a time of day. Isopods prefer to move around at nighttime, and are often seen as still or inactive during the day time. This helps them avoid predators. These are innate (instinct) behaviors in isopods.
Structural:
Some isopods, like pill bugs have flexible structures that allow them to roll up into a ball. This allows the pill bugs to blend (camouflage) in really well with the dirt, to avoid being eaten by predators. Isopods also have strong exoskeletons to protect them from harm. They go through aerobic cellular respiration to obtain their energy. They obtain nutrients from dead and decaying organic matter on the forest floor.
Immune:
Isopods have an innate immune system that allows them to prevent infection by pathogens. They contain barrier defenses, like their exoskeleton, but also have cells that can go through phagocytosis, which is where a cell eats a harmful pathogen and destroys it. However, their immune system can only produce a non-specific response to pathogens, which isn’t as effective as the immune system in humans.
Grizzly Bear
Reproductive:
Grizzly bears go through sexual reproduction, which ensures a great variety of offspring. Grizzly bears put a lot of parental care into their offspring, which is in contrast to smaller organisms, like plants and bacteria, which put no parental care into their offspring. Cubs that survive will stay with the mother for 2-3 years. During that time, the mother will not mate, but focuses on the care of her cubs. The cub develops in a placenta, which ensures it has proper nutrients during development.
Behavioral:
The most iconic behavioral adaptations of grizzly bear’s is the ability to hibernate. Often associated with low temperatures, the function of hibernation is to conserve energy when sufficient food is unavailable. To achieve this energy saving, an endotherm decreases its metabolic rate, which then decreases body temperature.Hibernation may last several days, weeks, or months depending on the species, ambient temperature, time of year, and individual's body condition.Hibernatingbearsare able to recycle their proteins and urine, allowing them both to stop urinating for months and to avoid muscle atrophy (death of muscle cells).
Structural:
Bears have a circulatory system to transport oxygen and nutrients around their body. They go through aerobic cellular respiration to produce energy. They also have long, sharp claws that can be used for hunting, or digging their dens. Even though they are big, they body is adapted to running after prey to consume food. Their ability to move helps them hunt for food and avoid predators.
Immune:
Grizzly bears have an innate immune system with things like fur helping trap pathogens before they enter the body. They also have phagocytic cells that can engulf and destroy pathogens. Grizzly bears posses a more sophisticated immune system that other smaller organisms, like plants or isopods. They have an adaptive immune system, which can produce cells and antibodies specific to a single pathogen, and remember that pathogen forever. This means grizzly bears won’t get infected with the same pathogen twice. This is an example of an active immunity-when the exposure to a pathogen produced an immune response. Grizzly bears can also pass their antibodies to their nursing cubs. This is an example of a passive immunity- receiving preformed immune system cells to fight off infections.
Clostridium tetani
Reproductive:
C. tetani is a type of bacteria, so it reproduced asexually. Asexually reproduction happens much faster than sexual reproduction. This allows for the population size of C. tetanito increase very quickly, often exponentially.
Behavioral:
C. tetani produce a toxin once they infect a living host. This toxin damages the host cells, so the host is less likely to kill the C. tetani. This allows C. tetani to reproduce more within the host, and find food sources and places to live. C. tetani is the pathogen that causes tetanus in humans. Some symptoms of C. tetani are lockjaw, muscular dysfunction, and neurological damage. Luckily for humans, there is a vaccine for tetanus. The vaccine gives a small, inactive dose of the toxin to humans, to allow human immune cells to be formed against the tetanus bacteria. This is an example of an active immune response in humans.
Structural:
C. tetani have a cell wall for protection, but also contain an extra layer of protection called a spore. This bacteria can form spores in the environment. Spores are a protective coat that allow the bacteria to survive extreme temperatures, acidity, or salinity. For this reason, spores of c. tetanican be found in the environment and on rusty metal surfaces.
Immune:
Bacteria also possess innate immune systems that can prevent pathogens from entering its system. Things like the spore, or cell wall prevents entry of pathogens like other bacteria or viruses.
Geese
Reproductive:
Geese go through sexual reproduction, which ensures greater genetic variation in their offspring. Instead of the young developing in a placenta, geese lay eggs, and then the embryo will develop within an egg. This allows the developing embryo to be safe and protected within the egg.
Behavioral:
Ducklings demonstrate a phenomena called imprinting. Imprinting in geese occurs when the ducklings respond to a moving stimulus (often the mother walking) and will follow that stimulus. They will then follow their mother around (like a row of ducks!) Some of the characteristics of imprinting could be explained by the tendency that the baby bird has to search for and responding selectively to particular stimulus patterns, such as the profile of an adult bird. Before imprinting takes place, the brain of the young bird has a capacity to recognize the types of stimuli which will subsequently be associatively learned, and this is one of the innate components of imprinting . The brain also commands a number of wired-in motor actions that facilitate the learning process and maintain proximity to the object of its attachment. This is another innate, or species-specific, component.
Another fun behavioral adaptation in geese is their migration patterns. Geese migrate from an area of low resources (food, shelter) to an area of high resources. Migration can be triggered by a combination of changes in day length, lower temperatures, changes in food supplies, and genetic predisposition. For centuries, people who have kept cage birds have noticed that the migratory species go through a period of restlessness each spring and fall, repeatedlyfluttering toward one side of their cage.
Structural:
Geese have webbed feet, which allows them to swim more efficiently. Some geese also have oil-coated feathers that keep the water from sticking to its feathers after it has swam. More obviously, they have wings, which allow some species to migrate to a better environment.
Immune:
Geese have an innate and adaptive immune system. This means, they have barriers to prevent pathogens from entering their system as well as specific antibodies and cells that can be made to ‘remember’ pathogen exposure.
German Shepard
Reproductive:
Dogs go through sexual reproduction, which ensures greater genetic variation in their offspring. Dog embryos develop in a placenta within the mother, which ensures the developing pups will get proper nutrients as they develop.
Behavioral:
Dogs can exhibit classical conditioning. Classical conditioning is associating an unrelated response with a stimulus. An example of this is Pavlov's dogs. Pavlov associated a ringing bell (unrelated) with presenting meat powder to his dogs. The meat powder caused the dogs to salivate. Eventually Pavlov could ring the bell and the dog would salivate without the stimulus of the meat powder.Another example is a dog getting exciting if you touch his leash. The dog has associate you touching the leash, with going on a walk. This is called classical condition.
Dogs can also show trial and error learning. For example, a German Shepard can be trained to detect living humans or cadavers. This is useful in disaster situations, like and earthquake. A German Shepard will try one location, and if nothing is found, the dog will learn that nothing was in that location, and try another location.
Dogs can also go through habituation. Habituation is when a stimulus no longer causes a response. Let’s take the example from the leash from above. If you touch the leash 100 times, without taking the dog on a walk, the dog will begin to no longer respond to the leash stimulus. It learns that it isn’t a stimulus that requires a response, and will conserve its energy for something more important.