In your assigned readings, you learned how size limits the distribution of gases, water and nutrients in animals.
Question 1: Chose a simple/small animal and a complex/large animal
For this assignment the simple animal will chose is amoeba and the complex animal I chose is Elephant.
Question 2: compare the use of organ systems to meet a metabolic or reproductive need. You will focus on a single function; e.g., respiration, circulation, digestion, excretion, or reproduction.
Also for this very assignment, I will compare the Respiration in amoeba and Respiration in Elephants
Respiration in Amoeba and Elephant
• Analyze the limitations size puts on function.
Amoeba: Because of the size limitation, amoeba has no special …show more content…
The pleura help mammals in respiration not to put negative pressure on the lungs. In elephants, there is no pleural cavity. Their big lungs are attached directly to the chest cavity wall and diaphragm that makes them to breathe out, “average of 310 litres of air every minute,” (Meyer, 2015, P.1).
Describe an organ system needed for a small animal. …show more content…
This is made up of the bronchi, bronchioles, alveolar duct, alveolar sac in lung.
• Compare and contrast the system in small and larger animal.
There is a huge difference in the respiratory systems of these two different in size animals. In the amoeba, there are no specialized organs for respiration. Oxygen on diffuse through the membrane into the body of the animal. But, Elephants has very specialized organs for respiration. Which includes the conducting portion and the respiratory portions with specific adaptations to suit the size of the elephant.
Question2: In your opinion, does increased size provide an adaptation for this function? Explain your position.
Yes, because of the size of the elephant, elephants lack the pleura cavity that is found in other mammals, rather adapted to the use of chest and diaphragm muscles for respiration. This increase in size provided this adaptation for this function. Without this huge size of the elephant, I do not thing that the conducting and respiratory organs will be needed. In addition, the small size of the amoeba led to no specialized organ system for respiration. Rather opting to diffusion as a process of