and Bonine Oh, Vertebrate Physiology, ECOL 437, Fall 2006
SAMPLE QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW (last portion of course) (FINAL EXAM: Tuesday 12 December 2006 from 8-10am in ILC 141) * This list of questions is not exhaustive, but should give you an idea as to the range of material and types of questions we are likely to present on the exam from the last portion of the course. Please refer to your syllabus, text, readings, and lecture and lab/discussion notes for information relevant to the last portion of the course. We may also ask you a general question based on the oral presentations presented in lab by you and your classmates. Final Exam format will be similar to the first three midterms. Content will cover the entire semester. The amount of detail will be less, except for the material since the 3rd exam. Questions/topics from each lecture/lab: Avian Adaptive Physiology (Kevin Oh): 21 November 1. Describe some avian responses to the unusual energetic demands these vertebrates face. 2. Are birds typically habitat specialists or generalists as compared to similar-sized mammals? Why? 3. What information can we learn from Archaeopteryx? 4. Why do biologists argue that respiratory turbinates are adaptive? 5. Do you think therapsids were endotherms or ectotherms? Why or why not? 6. How might endothermy and flight be related in evolution? Do insects play a role in your answer? 7. How is muscle fiber-type related to flight behavior in birds? Which species have lots of aerobic pectoralis muscle? 8. Explain how the BMR in songbirds is different than that of other birds. How does body size influence BMR? Is the relationship linear? Isometric? 9. What role does the thermal neutral zone play in the relationships among bird behavior, distribution, and body size? 10. Why don't birds have lots of brown fat to stay warm? Is your answer influenced by the fact that bats have brown fat? 11. How would you argue that hypothermia or torpor is adaptive in some hummingbird species? 12. Is counter-current exchange a useful tool in birds? When and how? 13. Why is bird ureteral urine not very concentrated? How do birds get rid of nitrogenous waste? 14. What does "facultative ammonotely" mean? Physiology of Migration (Dana Acevedo) 28 November 15. How does knowledge of bird physiology aid conservation efforts? 16. What are the three blood components? Which did Dana spend more time discussing? Why?
17. Would Dana agree with the following?: "Just because you can measure it doesn't mean you understand its role." Why or why not? 18. How much blood did Dana take from a 30g bird? 19. What do triglycerides and glycerol indicate about fat metabolism? 20. is What the biggest threat to persistence of migratory bird species? 21. How is bird `condition' measured or calculated? How can this measure be improved upon to provide information about recent metabolic/energetic changes as opposed to just a one-time snapshot of body condition? 22. What do stress proteins like corticosterone do to fat and protein metabolism? 23. Do the energetic needs of the birds differ between the northward and the southward legs of their migration?
Bonine and Oh, Vertebrate Physiology, ECOL 437, Fall 2006
Allometry, Metabolism, Thermal Physiology 30 November and 05 December 24. Define allometry. 25. Give examples of things that scale isometrically? That scale with a slope greater than 1? How about with a slope less than 1? (on log-log axes) 26. Use a graph to explain why a 4g shrew eats 2g of food per day but an elephant does not eat half its body mass in a day. 27. Give a generic power function that explains the relationship between body mass and some other variable. How is this function altered to provide a linear representation on a graph? 28. Is swimming a more expensive mode of transport than flying? What units are being measured? How do humans stack up? 29. Give two examples of interesting allometric relationships or physiological questions related to allometry. 30. What is the end result of most catabolism? How is this related to entropy, the 10% rule, and the 2nd law of thermodynamics? 31. Explain specific dynamic action. How does it affect a measure of BMR? 32. Give an example of an interesting lesson to be learned by thinking about ecology and metab...