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  • Essay / The effects of humidity and light on the behavior of isopods

    The study of animal behavior is called ethology. Responding to sensory stimuli is essentially animal behavior. Animal behavior is divided into three categories: orientation, agonism and mating. Orientation behavior involves the animal moving towards the most desired and most suitable environment. When an animal moves toward or away from a stimulus, this is defined as a taxi. Taxis occur when a stimulus is changed, for example changing heat or light. When an animal interacts with each other in hostile or docile movements, it is called agonistic behavior. Finally, mating behavior essentially occurs when a member of the same species finds another member and mates. Terrestrial Isopods are also known as Pill Bugs. They are crustaceans that live on land. They are related to lobsters, crab and shrimp. Pill bug growth involves shedding an exoskeleton while shedding its cuticles in waves. Pillbug eats a diet consisting primarily of decomposed vegetables, herbs, weeds, fruits, and plants. Pillbugs are found in humid environments, especially under logs or leaves for example. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay As the experiment progressed, there was something worth pointing out. First, the bugs experienced kinesis and taxis as they moved toward a dark, moist environment. This stimulus is at the origin of animal behavior. As reported at 6:45 p.m., during the experiment, pillbugs continued to move around, but they seemed hesitant because they were unfamiliar with the area, especially brightly lit dishes (taxis). Some woodlice were not affectionate toward light as they moved to shaded areas or returned to dark petri dishes. No agonistic behavior was observed during the experiment since the woodlice were relatively friendly and not hostile. In fact, woodlice were actually passive and the only time they touched each other was during mating. Signs of mating behavior were only observed once during the entire experiment. In some cases, the larger pill bugs were superimposed on the smaller ones as they moved, which could suggest that communication was indeed taking place at certain times. This form of behavior does not help the bedbug defend itself against natural predators, unlike the natural defense mechanism. When a pillbug senses danger, it curls into a ball, as observed when it was picked up. Pill bugs are really small and therefore cannot be seen by many. Pill bugs are excellent at hiding because of their ability to bury themselves with their colors. One way I could have improved this experiment was to not place any bedding material in the middle petri dish so that the woodlice could have a better chance of going to other petri dishes. Any errors that might have been present in the experiment could be due to such a small test size. This could have been improved by adding more pillbugs, as the larger the sample size, the more accurate the data is likely to be. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a personalized test based on the results of the experiments,..