10 deg rise in temp = double metabolic activity Homeothermic = warm blooded = enzymes kept constant temp = optimum activity level despite outside environment Most animals less active in winter cold - slower chemical reactions - slow down photsynthesis and respiration Birds and mamals affected because lower temp = increased efforts to stay warm = increased food intake needed Dormancy = plants and animnal eggs - state of greatly reduced activity - needs stimuli to start and finish e.g. Daphnia overwinter as eggs - hatch as females - males only form when temperature drops Hibernation - metabolic rate and body temperature very low e.g. hedgehogs - animal stores layers of fat before hibernation Aestavation - response to dry - secrete thick layer of mucus e.g. snails - reduces water loss Diapause - arthropods - development temporari;y stops - occurs at any stage in life history - prevents young emerging in unfavourable conditions Migration - regular seasonal journeys to warmer latitudes - breeding sites or food supply - stimulus = day length
Ultimate source of energy Indicates food source, predators, mates Day length - seasonal changes - make adaptive changes in advance (hibernation, migration) Low humidity = drynes, animals requiring moisture avoid light
Osmosis - water loss due to high ion conc. Snails need calcium for shells - rare in soil with low calcium
Higher water temp = less oxygen available Turbulance increases amount oxygen present - active animals can survive
All factors interact - 1 influences another e.g. inc temp = lower humidity Abiotic factors rhythmic -daily, seasonal - change behaviour to suit e.g. nocturnal, migration
Food - wolves after a kill Mates - deer, seals - males compete for females Territories - nest sites Space - sessile animals (sponge, mussels) plants Light - plants growing close together Minerals - plants when other conditions favourable
Dimorphism - males differ markedly from females
Males don’t complete for females but for area to mate All year - food source Nest - build and raise young Mating - very short term
Spores and seeds - little or no control over destination also larvae of marine animals - can swim and have some control but still high mortality Caterpillars eat leaves, butterfly sucks nectar
Niche = profession Habitat = address Niches change- diet can change with stage of development - especially organisms that undergo metamorphosis and life cycle changes e.g. butterfly, amphibians Fundamental
Black rat - britain - confined to cities, NZ forest and grassland + cities House mouse - britatin - woods and fields, NZ through out
Selective pressure
Not killed but weakened Every orgtanism host to several kinds of parasites Feral goat - 30 types parasites (not bacteria, viruses) Parasites also have parasites Endo parasites attached by hooks/suckers - spend less energy looking for food - c.f. mosquitoe nmust fly around c.f. taprworm inside gut - food already digested for it Parasitoids - predators cause kill hosts e.g. wasp lays eggs inside white butterfly caterpillar- eggs hatch - start to eat unessential organs so caterpillar grows normally - then move to essential organs - caterpillar dies
Lichens - fungus with single celled alga - fungus - moistur, algae food Legumes - gorse, peas, lupin, clover - swellings in roots contain bacteria - Rhizobium - fix nitrogen, plant fixes CO2 - bacteria - nitrogen to ammonia for amino acids Michoriza - fungus root - between fungu and roots of plant - fungal hyphae absorb minerals, root supplies sugar - stops plant producing root hairs Gut mutualists - microorganisms in gut produce cellulase enzyme to break down cellulose in e.g. caesum (rabbits), rumin (sheep) - organisms obtain food, warmth, anaerobic environment, herbivore - carbohydrate from cellulose, essential aminl acids, vit. B
Remora attached to sharks - collect food scraps Bacteria on skin, in colon
Fungi - anitbiotics inhibit bacteria growth Plants - allelopathy - chemicals inhibit growth of other plants - even own species
Rhizomes - hold sand dune together - allows colonisation by other plants Home for insects, birds Food supplu for birds
Flax bushes will often support a large community of animals, providing shelter and an extensive food resource. Tui, bellbirds, saddlebacks, short tailed bats, geckos and several types of insects enjoy nectar from the flax flower. Flax snails, a rare land snail living only in the Far North, often shelter under flax bushes. These snails don ﾕ t eat anypart of the flax, instead they munch on fallen leaves from native broadleaf trees. Many fascinating insects will go through their complete lifecycle on a flax plant without causing any harm to this plant.
t's a curious bird, the kiwi: It cannot fly, has loose, hair-like feathers and long whiskers. Largely nocturnal, it burrows in the ground, is the only bird known to have nostrils at the end of its bill and literally sniffs out food. It also has one of the largest egg-to-body weight ratios of any bird - the egg averages 15per cent of the female's body weight (compared to two per cent for the ostrich).The kiwi is related to the ostrich of Africa, the emu of Australia and the now-extinct moa of New Zealand. Females are larger than males and with brown kiwi, the male does most of the egg incubating. Kiwis live in pairs and mate for life, sometimes as long as 30 years
Tui are unique (endemic) to New Zealand and belong to the honeyeater family, which means they feed mainly on nectar from flowers of native plants such as kowhai, puriri, rewarewa, kahikatea, pohutukawa, rata and flax. Occasionally they will eat insects too. Tui are important pollinators of many native trees and will fly large distances, especially during winter for their favourite foods.Tui will live where there is a balance of ground cover, shrubs and trees and live in harmony with lizards, butterflies and insects as well as native birds like the bellbird, silvereye and even the kereru.
There are five broad groups of weta: ･ Tree weta ･ Ground weta ･ Cave weta ･ Giant weta ･ Tusked wetaDiet: Weta are mainly herbivorous in the wild, but are also known to eat insects.Habitat: They are nocturnal and live in a variety of habitats including grassland, shrub land, forests, and caves. They excavate holes under stones, rotting logs, or in trees, or occupy pre-formed burrows.
･ Giant snails may live to 20 years or more. Snails marked as adults in 1979 at Surville Cliffs were found alive in 1991. ･ Mating appears to be triggered by climatic conditions, such as rainfall, and can last for 10 hours or more. ･ Snail hatchlings spend an unknown period living in trees and shrubs up to 6 metres above the ground. ･ The kauri snail is carnivorous and cannibalistic. Its diet consists of earthworms, insects, insect larvae, and snails. ･ Kauri snails are also highly mobile, and have been known to move 10 metres in 2 weeks. Habitat Flax snails usually live in broadleaf forest and scrub. They reside in pockets of broadleaf litter, or under ground cover vegetation on steep slopes.Kauri snails inhabit moist areas of forest and native scrub. They live in areas of high soil fertility and abundant earthworms.
ats are New Zealand's only endemic land mammals The long-tailed bat has a membrane attached to the full length of its tail (which is used to scoop up insects on-the-wing), while the short-tailed species has a short, free tail, hence the descriptive names. ･ Unlike most bats, which catch their prey in the air, the short-tailed bat has adapted to ground hunting and is one of the few bats in the world which spends large amounts of time on the forest floor, using its folded wings as `front limbs' for scrambling around. ･ Short-tailed bats are found in indigenous forests where they roost, singly or communally, in hollow trees. The bats go into a 'torpor' in cold weather and stay in their roosts. They wake up as soon as the weather becomes warmer. ･ Thought to be a lek breeder, i.e. males compete for traditional `singing' posts and `sing' for a female. ･ Its diet consists of insects, fruit, nectar and pollen and it is thought to be an important pollinator of the Dactylanthus or woodrose, a threatened parasitic plant which grows on the roots of trees on the forest floor.
Hector's dolphin, one of the smallest and rarest in the world. This 1.4 metre dolphin is also known as the "downunder dolphin" because it is found only in New Zealand waters.
The tororaro is a highly unusual plant, and is easily recognized by its interlaced, zigzag branches and lime-green heart-shaped leaves. Ecology The shrub produces delicate white flowers during summer and autumn. Male and female flowers occur on separate plants though a few male plants occasionally set seed. Fruits are small and white, possibly making up part of lizards' diet. The plant may grow to 4 metres in height, and lives for up to 80 years. Habitat The tororaro has a deep root system that allows it to survive in very dry conditions.The shrub is commonly found on free-draining, highly fertile areas such as coastal land and river flats. Favoured spots include coastal and alluvial terraces, rocky bluffs and hill slopes.
