BIOLOGY

UNIT 2
ANIMALS
Amsalu Wakgari
ANIMALS
2.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF ANIMALS
Objectives
After the successful completion of this section, the student will be able to:
 List the characteristics of animals
 Explain the common characteristics of animals
 Amsalu wakgari 4

 Eukaryotic ,
 Multicellular ,
 Heterotrophic , and
 Sensitive to stimuli; and
 They reproduce,
 Protect themselves,
 Move ,
 Respire ,
 Excrete ,
 Growth , and Development
 Have different body symmetries.
 Animals can be categorized into two major groups based on the presence or
absence of a backbone:
 Vertebrates and Invertebrates
 Vertebrates are further classified into;
 homeothermic (warm-blooded) animals that include
o mammals and
o birds, and
 poikilothermic (coldblooded) animals that include
o fish,
o reptiles, and
o amphibians.
 CON’D
 Invertebrates are also classified into;
o porifera,
o platyhelminthes,
o cnidaria,
o arthropoda,
o Annelida,
o echinidermata, and
o mollusca.
 Arthropods are again classified into
o crustacea,
o spiders,
o insects, and
o many-legs.
We will focus on the general characteristics and reproductive
cycles of the two major groups, invertebrates and
vertebrates, using some examples from mammals, birds,
reptiles, amphibians and insects.
2.2. INVERTEBRATES AND VERTEBRATES
After the successful completion of this section, the student will
be able to:
 List the main characteristics of invertebrates and vertebrates.
 Compare invertebrates with vertebrates' characteristics.
 2.2.1 INVERTEBRATE ANIMALS
Invertebrates are animals that do not have a backbone or vertebral
column.
The most diverse group of animals in the world.
They are found almost everywhere, from the hottest deserts and the
deepest seabeds to the darkest caves and the highest mountains.
Lack a rigid internal skeletal system.
Are soft-bodied.
 CONT’D
 More than 99 percent of all living animal species are
invertebrates.
Some of them have an external skeleton called an exoskeleton, usually
made of chitin, which protects their soft inner bodies.
Invertebrates are cold-blooded.
 This group includes;
 earthworms,
 insects,
 spiders,
 snails,
 sponges,
 jellyfish,
 lobsters,
 crabs,
 sea stars, and
 squid.
 2.2.2 VERTEBRATE ANIMALS
Vertebrates are the most advanced.
They possess a well-defined internal skeleton system with cartilage
and a backbone or vertebral column separated into
 an axial skeleton (skull, vertebrae, ribs and sternum) and
 appendicular skeleton (girdles and appendages).
The skull and vertebrae protect the highly developed brain and the
nerve cord respectively.
 CONT’D
Vertebrates have more complex and specialized organ systems such as
the:
Circulatory systems,
Respiratory systems,
Nervous systems, and
Excretory systems.
 Circulatory system is a closed circulatory system with a ventral heart
having 2-4 chambers and a median dorsal artery.
 CONT’D
 The respiratory system consists of either gills or lungs.
 They have a centralized nervous system with a brain and sensory organs (eyes, ears,
nostrils).
 The excretory system of vertebrates consist of paired kidneys.
 They have bilaterally symmetrical.
 This group includes mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians.
 Vertebrates such as fish, reptiles, and amphibians are cold-blooded animals,
whereas birds and mammals are warm-blooded animals.
 All vertebrates are chordates, but not all chordates are vertebrates. Why?
What are chordates?
 Chordates are a phylum of animals that possess;
 a notochord,
 a dorsal nerve cord,
 pharyngeal slits or pouches, and
 a post-anal tail at some point
during their development.
 Vertebrates are a subphylum of
chordates that have a backbone or
vertebral column.
 Therefore, all vertebrates are chordates because they possess all the
characteristics of chordates, including a notochord and dorsal nerve
cord.
 However, not all chordates have a backbone or vertebral column, so
they are not considered vertebrates.
Examples of non-vertebrate chordates include tunicates and lancelets.
 Tunicates and lancelets are examples of invertebrate chordates since they have a
notochord, but it does not develop into a vertebral column.
 Pharyngeal slits are in the pharynx, the region of the digestive tract just behind
the mouth
2.3 REPRODUCTION IN ANIMALS
 CONT’D
 Reproduction is one of the common characteristics of animals that enable
them to ensure the continuity of their species.
 There are two types of reproduction in animals. These are;
 Asexual reproduction and
 Sexual reproduction.
 Although the majority of animals undergo sexual reproduction and have
similar forms of development, a few groups of animals also undergo
asexual reproduction.
2.3.1. Asexual reproduction in animals
 Asexual reproduction
 involves a single individual and
 does not require the fusion of gametes from two parents.
 is more common among invertebrates than in vertebrates.
 Budding and fragmentation are the most common forms of asexual
reproduction especially in aquatic animals.
 The other form of asexual reproduction in animals is parthenogenesis.
 In this type of reproduction, unfertilized eggs develop into new offspring as in
some insects and vertebrates
2.3.2 Sexual reproduction in animals
 Reproduction that involves two individual parents and requires the fusion
of gametes from two parents (male and female).
 It produces offspring that have genetic material from both parents.
 The parents are diploid organisms with a complete set of chromosomes
(2n).
 Involves different male and female reproductive structures with different
functions.
 One of the most important functions is the production of haploid cells called
gametes (n) for the transmission of genetic information from parents to offspring.
In sexual reproduction, males produce sperm and haploid cells (n) in
the testes where sperm cells are stored in the epididymis until
ejaculation.
On the other hand, females produce an ovum or egg haploid cell (n)
that matures in the ovary and the fusion of sperm cells with female
gametes produces a zygote through the process of fertilization.
There are two types of fertilization:
 External and
 Internal .
 In animals that use internal fertilization,
 the eggs are released from the ovary into the uterine tubes for
fertilization,
 but eggs are released into the aqueous environment in animals
that use external fertilization.
 The fertilization of an egg by sperm produces a single-celled diploid
fertilized egg called a zygote (2n), which develops into an embryo
and then into an individual organism.
 The general animal life cycle in sexual reproduction is shown below
 After fertilization, a series of developmental stages occur in embryonic
development.
 The first stage is cleavage, which involves a series of mitotic cell divisions of the
fertilized egg (zygote).
 This cell division results in an eight-celled structure.
 The second stage is another cell division and rearrangement of cells into hollow
structures called blastulae.
 Then, the blastula undergoes further cell division and rearrangement with the
process called gastrulation.
 The process of gastrulation produces a gastrula that has different cell layers called “germ
layers”.
 By the process of organogenesis, these germ layers later develop into different tissue types,
organs, and organ systems.
 Organogenesis is the formation of organs during embryonic development.
 The embryo eventually develops into an adult with all tissue types, organs, and organ
systems.
2.3.3 Reproduction in insects (complete and incomplete
metamorphosis)
 Insects that constitute the most diverse groups of animals are the largest class of the phylum
Arthropoda. They have
 Segmented bodies,
 Jointed legs, and
 Skeletons (exoskeletons).
 Insects include flies, grasshoppers, lice, butterflies, bees, and beetles, to mention some of
them.
 They undergo sexual reproduction and have their own life cycle.
During sexual reproduction, eggs are usually fertilized internally.
However, some insects undergo parthenogenesis, a process in which
an individual develops from unfertilized eggs.
In sexual reproduction, the male produces sperm and fertilizes the
egg produced by the female during mating.
After fertilization, the female insect lays eggs and hatches them after
completing their development.
 After hatching, insects undergo a series of major changes in body structure as
they develop.
 This series of changes is called metamorphosis.
 Chemical substances in the insects control the process of metamorphosis.
 There are two types of metamorphosis:
 Complete metamorphosis and
 Incomplete metamorphosis
 Complete metamorphosis has four stages whereas in complete metamorphosis has
three stages.
 For instance, in honeybees, the four stages of complete metamorphosis are
 egg,
 larva,
 pupa, and
 adult
 In Grasshoppers , the three stages of incomplete metamorphosis are
 egg,
 nymph, and
 adult
2.3.4 Reproduction in Frog
The common frog (Rana temoraria) is;
the most common in Europe.

 The grass frog genus Ptychadena goulenger is;

found throughout sub-Saharan Africa, including Ethiopia.

 Frogs such as Ptychadena harenna and Leptopelis ragazzi are found in the
Bale Mountains and Shoa forests, Ethiopia.
 Frogs undergo sexual reproduction and have male and female reproductive structures.
 The following figure shows the male and female reproductive structures in frogs
 Unlike birds, frogs do not produce amniotic eggs.
 Rather, they are usually covered in a jelly-like substance.
 What is the function of the jelly-like substance in frogs?
 They must lay their eggs in water to protect them from drying out.
 Frogs have external fertilization.
 However, internal fertilization also occurs in a few species of frogs.
 Unlike internal fertilization, in external fertilization, the female releases eggs
from her body into the water and the male releases his sperm to fertilize the eggs.
 Usually, frogs lay a large number of eggs in the same place at the same time.
 In a process called metamorphosis, after the fertilization of an egg by sperm, frogs
go through a larval stage that is very different from the adult form.
 The fertilized eggs develop into a larval stage called a tadpole that is different from
the adult frog.
2.3.5 Reproduction in Crocodiles
 Crocodilians are large semi-aquatic reptiles that live in different parts of the world.
 Crocodiles reproduce sexually involving both male and female parents.
 The male and female reproductive structures of crocodiles are shown in the figure
below (Figure 2.10).
 The mating season for crocodiles usually begins in July or August and mating
takes place under water.
 During mating, the sperm fertilizes the egg and develops in the female.
 They have internal fertilization.
 They lay their eggs and bury them in sand or deposit them in mound vegetation.
 The number of eggs a crocodile deposits varies from 10 to 100, which generally
depends on the type of species .
 Unlike frogs, crocodiles have hard, leathery eggs that enable them to protect
their young
 2.3.6REPRODUCTION IN BIRDS
Birds reproduce sexually and have internal fertilization.
Most bird species are monogamous but there are also polygamous
species.
Monogamous is usually a mating system between a single adult male
and a single adult female for entire breeding seasons, whereas
polygamous is a mating system with several partners during a single
breeding season.
 Unlike other animals, male birds do not have external genital organs whereas females have a
single ovary.
 Reproduction in birds starts by the joining of an egg or ovum with a sperm cell in the
oviduct.
 The ovum which is produced in the ovary and travels down through the oviduct for
fertilization to occur.
 The oviduct consists of;
 infundibulum,
 magnum,
 isthmus,
 uterus, and
 vagina
TABLE 2.1 PARTS OF OVIDUCT AND FUNCTIONS
 Both male and female birds have a structure called the cloaca.
 During mating,
 the male brings its sperm to the female cloaca, and
 the sperm from the male cloaca fertilizes the egg.
 The fertilized egg travels down to the uterus, forming a layer of albumen
around it, which is followed by the shell membranes in the uterus.
 Then, the hard-shelled egg develops within the female with a fluid-filled
amnion, a thin membrane forming a closed sac around the embryo.
 Birds lay eggs after the egg completes its development.
 The number of eggs a bird lays varies from a few to more than 10, depending
on its species.
 For example, penguins and albatrosses lay few eggs, but chickens and ducks
can lay more than 10 eggs.
 The egg of a bird has different parts.
 Incubation:
 incubation or brooding is the process of keeping eggs warm with body
heat while the embryos inside continue to develop after birds lay their
eggs
 In most cases, the female parent incubates the eggs, although males
sometimes participate.
 When a breeding season approaches, the female will develop a brood
patch to help transfer heat effectively.
This brood patch has an area of skin with densely packed blood
vessels that produces more heat and facilitates heat
transmission to the egg.
The brood patch will disappear at the end of the breeding
season.
Birds rotate their eggs periodically to ensure an even
distribution of warmth.
This helps the embryo to finish its development inside the egg .
 Hatching:
 After incubation, the embryo completes its development and hatching occurs.
 During hatching, the chick develops a tooth-like structure at the beak’s tip to
break the eggshell.
 Moreover, the chick also communicates with its parents a day or two before
hatching, with parents with some vocal sounds.
 The chick then starts to use the hard tip of its bill, a tooth-like structure called an
egg tooth, to break out of the egg, and the young lose the egg tooth after
hatching .
Parental Care in Birds:
 One of the methods bird use to protect their young is by building nests.
Birds make nests in areas that are hidden in order to avoid predators.
Some birds do not use nests.
They simply lay their eggs on bare cliffs.
Birds that make nests in an open area have camouflaged eggs.
While the parental care of offspring lies on one or both parents,
the length and type of parental care varies widely amongst
different species of birds .
In some species, parental care ends at hatching.
Accordingly, the newly hatched chick digs itself out of the nest
mound without any parental help and can take care of itself
right away.
Other species care for their young for an extended time.
2.3.7 REPRODUCTION IN RAT
Rat (genus Rattus) is the name generally applied to
numerous members of several rodent families.
The black rat (Rattus rattus) and the brown rat (Rattus
norvegicus) are among the most common types of rats
species.
They live virtually everywhere that human populations have settled;
 the black rats is predominantly live in warmer climates, and
 the brown rats are dominantly found in the temperate regions.
Giant Mole rat (Tachyoryctes macrocephalus), also known as
the giant root rat, is endemic to Ethiopia where it is confined to high
altitude shrub and grasslands in the Afro-alpine habitat such as the
Bale Mountains.
 Reproduction in rats is representative of mammalian sexual reproduction.
 The male reproductive structure of a rat consists;
 testes (singular testis),
 scrotum seminiferous tubules,
 epididymis,
 vasdeferens and penis with bacula .
 The female reproductive structure
 two ovaries,
 oviducts,
 uterine horns and
 vagina with vulva .
Like in other mammals, fertilization of the egg occurs inside the
female, and the fertilized zygotes develop in the mother during a
gestation period known as pregnancy.
Pregnancy and Development:
 The average pregnancy time or gestation period of a rat varies
depending on the species.
The gestation period for a brown rat is 22 to 24 days, whereas the
gestation period for black rats is usually 22 days and the gestation
period for giant mole rats is 37- 49 days.
After fertilization, each zygote divides and forms a hollow ball of
cells that further develops into a blastocyst called a blastula.
 The blastulas travel down the oviducts,
 implant in the uterine horns, and
 begin to differentiate into embryonic tissue and extra embryonic
tissue.
 The umbilical cord, a complex system of connecting blood vessels
nourishes the embryo from the mother.
 The embryo forms a neural plate, develops into:
 brain and spinal cord,
 the arm and leg buds become visible,
 the nervous system pathways develop and
 the rat gives birth to hairless, deaf with sealed eyelids offspring.
 Rats normally give birth from 7 to 12 offspring per litter
 The placenta
 transports oxygen from the mother to the embryo and
 removes waste from the embryo’s environment, and
 The amniotic sac protects the embryo during pregnancy.
on average (Figure 2.20), but the number is fewer than this for giant
mole rats.
The mother feeds milk and, after 45 days, the young rats are fully
weaned and are actively foraging and feeding.
The age of sexual maturity also vary depending on species. In brown-
black rats, the age of sexual maturity is 3–4 months old.
Giant mole rats become reproductively mature when they are 4-6
months old.
 Parental care in rats:

 Parental care in mammals is often critical.

 Rats build nests to rear their young, called pups or kittens.
 The pups stay in the nest built by their mother until they are weaned.
 The female rats care pups regardless of which their true mothers are.
 If a mother dies, the other females will take over nursing her pups.
 Male rats do not participate in the parental care.
2.4 THE ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF ANIMALS (INSECTS)
After the successful completion of this section, the student will be able to:
 Describe the economic importance of insects in agriculture and food production
 Explain the economic importance of insects to industry
 Explain the economic importance of insects in health and medicine
 Insects have plenty of economic importance in the world.
 Insects are useful or harmful?
 Insects are the most diverse animals in the world.
 They have both positive and negative impacts on:
 Our economy,
 Our lives, and
 The ecosystem.
 While there are many harmful pests, there are also beneficial insects.
 The following section provides some descriptions of the beneficial, or useful
and harmful aspects of insects:
 in agriculture,
 food,
 industry,
 health, and medicine
2.4.1 BENEFICIAL ASPECTS OF INSECTS
A. Agriculture
 Insects provide services to agriculture through
 Pollination and
 Regulation of pests.
Pollinators:
 insect pollinators are flower-visiting insects that forage on flowering plants to
obtain plant-provided food (nectar, pollen).
 They have the potential to transfer male gametes (contained in pollen) to the female gametes, resulting
in pollination.

 Pollination by insects is an essential activity for the reproduction of the majority of the
world’s flowering plants, including numerous cultivated plant species.
 Many plants depend on pollination for seed and fruit production.
 For instance, an estimated 35% of crop production yielded in the world is a result
of insect pollination.
 This has huge economic value in the world as well as in the country.
 Pest regulation:
 Insect predators and parasitoids that attack and feed on other insects, particularly on
insect pests of plants are used in pest control.
 This type pest regulation is known as a natural biological control, which destroys
harmful insects that infect both animals and plants.
 Important insects in pest regulation include:
 mantis,
 lady beetles,
 ground beetles,
 rove beetles,
 flower bugs,
 lacewings and hover flies.
 For example, Stagmomantis insects, species of mantis feed on grasshoppers
and caterpillars that damage crops.
 Chilomenes, a ladybird beetle, feed on aphids that damage cotton plants and
destroys scale worms that are pests of orange and lemon trees respectively.
 Epicauta, a blister beetle, eat up masses of the eggs of locusts
 Insects also play a great role in feeding on unwanted weeds,

 creating channels for smaller organisms water, air,

and roots to travel through to improve soil
aeration.
 Their activities can enhance the nutrient cycle and
physical properties of the soil, such as
 soil structure and tilt, and
 decomposers can help in the biochemical cycling
of nutrients.
B. Food
 Many species of insects are being used as a food for people in many countries.
 Evidence suggests that edible insects have potential to become a valuable protein source for
addressing the global food demand.
 They are widely recognized as a sustainable source of animal protein.
 There are over 1,462 recorded species of edible insects in the world.
 Most insects are consumed in Asia and Central America.
 Crickets ,
 Grasshoppers ,
 Beetle and moth larvae and
 Termites are eaten there.
 Insects are everywhere and they reproduce quickly, and they have high growth and feed
conversion rates and a low environmental footprint over their entire life cycle.
 They are nutritious with:
 high protein,
 fat and mineral contents and
 can be reared easily.
 Being rich source of protein, grasshoppers have been eaten in many parts of
the world.
 Moreover, insects are important sources of food for many vertebrates,
including birds, amphibians, reptiles, fish and mammals.
 One of the many ways to address food and feed security for the over
increasingly growing world population is through insect farming.
C. Industry
One of the benefits of insect related to industries is their role in commercial products.
Insects are being used to produce different materials at home and in industries.
The following are some of the examples.
 Production of Honey and Bee Wax:
 Honey and wax production are considered some of the commercial benefits of insects.

 For example, the honeybees (Apis meliffera L.) produce millions of tons of honey and wax
every year around the world.
Production of Silk:

 The other commercially beneficial insects are silk worms (Bombyx mori and other silk worms).
 Silkworms produce silk fibers, which are woven into the delicate, smooth material used for luxurious
textiles and for different purposes in the textile industry.
Production of shellac:
 shellac is a resin secreted by Lac insects.
 Among the many species of lac insects, Laccifer lacca, is the commercially
cultured lac insect.
 Shellac is still in use as dyes, inks, polishes, sealing waxes, and as stiffening
agents in the fabrication of felt hats.
 It is an animal originated commercial resin.
 Production of Cochineal:
 Cochineal pigment is extracted from scale insects such as Dacylopius coccus.
 The cochineal pigment was important for the intensity and permanency
of colors in painting.
 The cochineal pigment is still giving the colors in foods, beverages, cosmetics
(lipsticks) and art product.


PRODUCTION OF TANNIC ACID:
 Tannic acid is a chemical compound used in dyeing goods made of leather in leather
industries, for tanning and in manufacturing some inks.
 Tiny wasps in the family Cynipidae secrete some chemical and in response to this, the
tree produces gall tissues that contain tannic acid.
D. Health and medicine
 Some insects have medicinal value in treating different diseases.
 Since ancient times, insects and insect-derived products have been used as
medicinal agents in many parts of the world.
 For instance, honey is applied to treat burns, chronic and post- surgical wounds.
 Bee and ant venom are used to treat joints pain.
 Recent research confirms that bee products promote healthy immune systems,
improve circulation and decrease inflammation
 Blister beetles secrete cantharidan, which acts as a powerful protein blocker in
the human body and is effective in treating severe viral infections because it
prevents the reproduction of some viral cells.


 Researchers subsequently discovered that cantharidan reacts with genetic material of
hostile cells, and therefore may be useful in the treatment of cancerous tumors most
resistant to radiation and chemotherapy.
 Several African cultures use poultices made from ground grasshoppers as pain relievers,
especially for migraines.
2.4.2 HARMFUL ASPECTS OF INSECTS
 Although most insects are beneficial, they can also be harmful to humans and animals.
Some insects are:
 pests of plants,
 fruits, and
 grains in a store.
 They feed on several parts of green plants and crops, such as leaves, stems, buds,
flowers, fruits, and seeds on fields and in stores at home thereby damaging crops and
reducing production.
 These insects include locusts, caterpillars, bugs, hoppers, aphids etc.
 Locusts are among the most destructive of all insect pests.
 Countries have faced threats of swarms of desert locusts.
 Consequently, regional and international organizations have started to monitor
desert locust populations and launch control measures when
necessary.
 Locusts are particularly destructive in hot and dry regions when there is a
sudden increase in their numbers.
 The prevalence of food shortage has further forced them to migrate.
 They migrate in huge swarms, for several kilometers away devouring virtually
every green plant in their path.
 Some insects are also regarded as serious pests for stored cereal grains.
 The most common insect pests of stored cereal grains are:
 Rice Weevil (Sitophilus oryzae);
 Lesser Grain Borer (Rhyzopertha dominica);
 Rust Red Flour Beetle: (Tribolium spp.);
 Sawtooth Grain Beetle: (Oryzaephilus surinamensis);
 Flat Grain Beetle: (Cryptolestes spp.)
 Moreover, several insects serve as vectors for transmitting diseases from one
organism to another or serve as intermediate hosts for several pathogens and transfer
disease from one to another.
 For example, Anopheles mosquitoes transfer malarial parasites, “Plasmodium,” from
one person to another.
 Culex mosquitos spread filariasis and transmit filarial worms from infected to healthy
people.
 The tsetse fly, Trypanosoma gambiense, also spreads the African sleeping sickness to
the human population.
 The housefly (Musca domestica) spreads food and water-borne diseases to human
populations.
ANIMAL BEHAVIOR

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What is Behavior?
Anything an animal does in response to a stimulus
Stimulus: environmental change that directly
influences an organism
Example: change in day length, heat

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2.5 ANIMAL BEHAVIOR
After the successful completion of this section, the student will be able
to:
At the end of this section, the student will be able to:
Define animal behavior
Describe the differences between innate and learned animal behaviors.
Identify patterns of behavior in animals
WHAT IS BEHAVIOR?
Animals have different behaviors and behavioral patterns for survival
and reproduction.
Animal behavior means all the ways in which animals interact with;
 other organisms and
 the physical environment.
It includes the movements of animals, interaction of animals within
and with the environment and learning about their environment.
2.5.1 Types of Animal Behavior

 Animals have different behaviors and behavioral patterns.

 Animal behavior can be categorized into two main types:
 innate or inherent behavior and
 learned or acquired behavior
 Types of behaviors
Innate behaviors Learned behaviors
• Automatic, developmentally fixed • Modified by experience
• Despite different environments, • Variable
all individuals exhibit the
behavior

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Innate or inherent behavior
 is an inborn behavior that is:
 determined by genes
 independent of experience and
 specific to a species.

 There are three types of innate or inherent behavior, and these are:
 Instinctive ,

 Reflexive , and

 Orientative
The following examples are instinctive behaviours in animals
 Web making in spiders
 Nest-building in birds
 Swimming with dolphins and other aquatic species.
 Opening of mouth in chicks of many bird species when their mother
returns to the nest.
 Honeybees dance when they return to the hive after finding a source
of food.
Suckling: mammal babies instinctively know how to get
nourishment from their mother

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Reflexes: Automatic Responses
Simplest form of behavior
Simple automatic response to a stimulus that
involves no conscious control
Example: jerking hand from hot stove
Fight or flight response

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THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLES ARE REFLEX BEHAVIOURS IN ANIMALS.

 A simple reflex
 When you touch a hot object or when a pin pricks your finger, what is your
immediate reaction?
 Of course, you remove your hand away from the source of pain, either the hot
object or the pin.
 In situations like these, your reactions are always immediate, involuntary and
sudden.
 They happen without much of a thinking process.
 In scientific terms, this action is called the reflex action.
 During a reflex action, messages about pain do not travel all the way to and from the brain.
 Instead, they travel only as far as the spinal cord, and the spinal cord responds to the
messages by giving orders to the muscles.
 This allows you to respond to pain more quickly
REFLEX ARC:
is the nerve pathway involved in a reflex action,
including at its simplest a sensory nerve and
a motor nerve with a synapse between.
Reflex arc consist of
1)Receptor or sensory organ,
2)Sensory neurine,
3)Reflex centre(brain or spinal cord),
4)Motor neurone and
5)Effector(muscle or gland).
 A few examples of reflex action are:
 When light acts as a stimulus, the pupil of the eye changes in size.
 Sudden jerky withdrawal of hand or leg when pricked by a pin.
 Coughing or sneezing, because of irritants in the nasal passages.
 Knees jerk in response to a blow or someone stamping the leg.
 The sudden removal of the hand from a sharp object.
 Sudden blinking when an insect comes very near to the eyes.
 ORIENTATION BEHAVIORS IN ANIMALS
 Orientation is the position of the animal with reference to gravity or resource.
 This is the position the animal maintains in order to reach the resource.
 Positional orientation is to maintain upright posture against gravity for which
 vertebrate have membranous labyrinth and
 invertebrate statocyst.
THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLES ARE ORIENTATION BEHAVIOURS IN ANIMALS.

Taxis is directed in relation to a given stimulus.

It is the orientation of an animal in response to the source of stimulus.
 If the orientation is towards the stimulus, it is called as a positive taxis, and
 if it is away from the stimulus, it is known as a negative taxis.
Example: The movement of cockroaches away from the source of light.

 What is the difference between phototaxis, chemotaxis, thigmotaxis and geotaxis?

Explain with examples
 Kinesis is undirected, random movement.
 Kinesis is a type of locomotory behavior in relation to the source of stimulus.
 The animal responds to the variation in the intensity of the stimulus and not the
source or direction of the stimulus.
Example: The movement of woodlice in relation to the temperature around them.
TYPES OF ANIMAL MOVEMENT
1. kinesis- simplest type of animal movement - random movement in
response to a stimulus
2. taxis- another simple type
– A more or less automatic movement directed toward or away from some
stimulus
– Examples include rheotaxis (current) chemotaxis, and phototaxis
 LEARNED OR ACQUIRED BEHAVIOR
 Learned or acquired behavior is not inherited and not determined by genes.
 It is the type of animal behavior acquired during the lifetime of an
individual.
 Learned behavior allows an individual organism to adapt to changes in the
environment that are modified by previous experiences.
Examples of simple learned behaviors include;
Habituation ,
Classical conditioning,
Operant conditioning,
Sensitization ,
Latent and insight learning
Habituation
 Simple form of learning in which an animal stops responding to a stimulus, or
cue, after a period of repeated exposure.
 For example, you were reading a book when someone turned on the television in
the same room.
 At first, the sound of the television might have been annoying.
 After a while, you may no longer have it noticed.
 Accordingly, it mean that you have become accustomed to the sound.
Classical conditioning
 a result of associative learning in which a response already associated with one
stimulus is associated with a second stimulus to which it had no previous connection.
 Classical conditioning was discovered by Ivan P. Pavlov, a Russian physiologist.
 There are three stages of classical conditioning.
Stage 1: Before conditioning.
 This stage states that an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) produces an unconditioned
response (UCR) in an individual,
 which means that a stimulus in the environment has produced a behavior or response
which is unlearned (i.e., unconditioned), and
 therefore it is a natural response which has not been taught.
 In this case, no new behavior has been learned yet.
 Stage 2: During conditioning.
 During this stage, a stimulus that produces no response is associated with the
unconditioned stimulus due to what it is known as a conditioned stimulus (CS).
 For learning to take place, the UCS must be associated with CS on a number of
occasions, or trials at this stage.
Stage 3: After conditioning.
 This conditioning happens once the conditioned stimulus (CS) has been
associated with the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to create a new conditioned
response.
PAVLOV’S FAMOUS EXPERIMENT ON CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
OPERANT CONDITIONING

 is a result of associative learning in which a bit different from classical

conditioning because it does not rely on an existing stimulus-response pair.
 Instead, whenever an organism performs a behavior or an intermediate step on
the way to the complete behavior, the organism is given a reward or a
punishment.
 It was discovered by B.F. Skinner.
 Based on the theory of operant conditioning,
 behavior will likely be repeated when the organism is reinforced (rewarded), and
 behavior will occur less frequently when it is punished.
SKINNER IDENTIFIED THREE TYPES OF RESPONSES OR OPERANT BEHAVIOR.
Neutral operants
 are responses from the environment that neither increase nor decrease the probability of a
behavior being repeated.
Reinforcers
 are responses from the environment that increase the probability of a behavior being
repeated are called reinforcers.
 Reinforcers can be either positive or negative.
Punishers
 are responses from the environment that decrease the likelihood of a behavior being
repeated are called punishers.
 Punishment weakens behavior.
SENSITIZATION
 Also referred to as reverse tolerance,
 is a non-associative learning process in which repeated administration of a
stimulus results in the progressive amplification of a response.
 It occurs when a stimulus is presented above the tolerance threshold.
 For example, repetition of a painful stimulus may make one more sensitive to a
loud noise.
2.5.2 PATTERNS OF BEHAVIOR

There are different behavioral patterns in animals.

Although the behavioral patterns are different due to the diversity of
species,
There are also common patterns of behavior exhibited by many
species.
 Examples of behavioral patterns in animals include:
 Behavioral cycles,
 Reproductive behavior,
 Social behavior,
 Competition ,
 Territory and
 Communication .
BEHAVIORAL CYCLES

 Animals respond to periodic changes in the environment.

 It can be daily or seasonal cycles.
 For example:
 Seasonal migration (movement) and
 Circadian rhythms (sleep and wake).
 Seasonal migration :- the movement of various species of birds, insects, and
mammals from one habitat to another during different times of the year
because of seasonal fluctuations in factors such as the availability of food,
sunlight, temperature, and breeding difficulty.
 An example is the migration of various whale and bird species from their summer habitats
in the Arctic or Antarctic to the tropical waters near the equator and warmer latitudes,
respectively
 Circadian rhythms,
 also referred as biological clocks,
 are 24-hour cycles that are part of the body’s internal clock,
 running in the background to carry out
essential functions and processes.
 One of the most important and
well-known circadian rhythms is the sleep-wake cycle.
REPRODUCTIVE BEHAVIOR
 a behavioral pattern of animals to meet the needs of reproduction.
 It the coordination of the timing and patterning of reproductive activity.
 Reproductive behavior is vital for locating and selecting suitable mates, producing offspring,
and rearing them successfully to independence.
 For example, courtship that involves sounds visual displays or chemicals and paradise dance
 SOCIAL BEHAVIOR
 it is the behavioral pattern of animals commonly observed in that live in groups.
 Insects such as ants, termites, bees, exhibit some of the most well developed social behavior
and wasps are social behaviors.
 One benefit of social behavior for these insects is that different individuals perform better in
certain activities or division of labor as workers and soldiers.
 Other examples of social behavior are observed in
 elephants,
 penguins,
 human beings and
 other primates.
COMPETITION
 it is a behavioral pattern of animals observed during competition such as for
resources.
 Example of the competition includes the competition between animals for
space, territory, water, mates and food.
 Competition occurs naturally between living organisms that coexist in the same
environment.
 There are two basic types of competition: intraspecific and interspecific.
TERRITORIALITY
 It is abehavioral pattern that involves protecting spaces by an animal from
others.
 The territories of animals contain all of the resources and conditions they need to
survive.
 Many animals defend their area by using display behavior instead of fighting.
 The behavior gives signals for other animals to stay away.
 Displaying behavior is generally safer and uses less energy than fighting.
 For example, Male dogs and lions use pheromones in their urine to mark their
territory.
 It means that they are signaling other dogs or lions to stay out of their yard.
 Male gorillas use display behavior to defend their territory by pounding on their
chests and thumping the ground with their hands, robin by displays his red
breast to warn other robins to stay away.
COMMUNICATION BEHAVIOUR
 it is a behavioural patter vital for the interaction of animals.
 Animals can communicate with the aid of sight, sound, tactile (with body
touch), and chemical cues (they produce special chemicals called
pheromones).
 For example, birds sing and frogs croak to communicate with each other.
 Ants communicate with chemicals called pheromones to mark trails to
food sources so other ants can find them.
2.6 HOMEOSTASIS IN ANIMALS
After the successful completion of this section, the student will be able to:
Define homeostasis, homeotherms, poikilotherms, and thermoregulation.
Describe thermoregulation in homeothermic animals with examples.
Explain thermoregulation in poikilothermic animals with examples.
Explain osmoregulation and sugar regulation.
Discuss the mechanisms of controlling homeostasis.
Discuss the physiological methods of thermoregulation with examples.
Discuss the behavioral methods of thermoregulation with examples.
HOMEOSTASIS IN ANIMALS
 Animals are directly affected by the environmental situations.
 A change in these situations may negatively affect the physiological functions
of their bodies.
 Hence, they need to have a controlling mechanism for these factors in order to
maintain stability in their body.
 Despite environmental changes, most animals maintain almost constant internal
body conditions through homeostasis.
 Homeostasis
 Is self-regulatory process
 Maintain stable internal conditions
 Helps animals to maintain equilibrium
 Bodies or cells at normal conditions
 Animal body systems constantly adjust to internal and external changes in order to
maintain this normal condition.
 A change in the internal or external environment (stimulus) is detected by receptors in the
animals’ bodies.
 As a result, the body system responds to the stimulus and by returning the value back or
toward the set point.
 Homeostasis involves four component:
 Stimulus , Control center, Receptor , and Effector .

 Stimulus: is a change in the environment that forces the organism to response.

It can be a change in body condition, such as an increase or decrease in body
temperature, glucose, or water.
 Receptor: It detect the change in the environment or body condition and send
signal to control center to counteract it, returning the internal condition to the
normal.
 For example, thermoreceptors (the end of sensory neurons)
 Control center:
 This receives messages from receptors and sends commands to the effector to
counteract the change.
 The hypothalamus, a region of the brain, is a control center for homeostasis.
 Effector:
 It acts on the stimulus based on the command control center, counteracting the
change and returning the internal body condition to normal.
 Organs or tissues such as the kidney, liver, or heart are effectors.
 For example, if the animal’s body becomes too warm and the blood glucose rises,
adjustments are made to cool the animal and lower the blood glucose level,
respectively, by effector organs.
 This enables animals to function in the changing external and internal conditions that
surround them.
2.6.1 THERMOREGULATION
 Thermoregulation is the process of maintaining the internal body temperature constant.
 Many organisms use behavior, physiology, and morphology to keep their body temperatures
within optimal level.
 Based on temperature regulation, animals can be divided into two groups:
A. POIKILOTHERMIC ANIMALS
 also known as ectothermic animals,
 lack internal control over their body temperature.
 The body temperature of these organisms is similar to the temperature of the
environment.
 However, individual organisms may burrow themselves into the ground on a hot
day or
 rest in the sunlight on a cold day to keep their bodies temperature slightly below or
above the environmental temperature. .
 Some poikilothermic animals seek cooler areas during the hottest time of the day or may
climb onto rocks to capture heat during the coldest time of the day.
 Some animals swim in water to cool their body.
 Some also use burrows to keep their bodies warm and still others such as bees use group
activity or stay in a hive to survive in cold seasons
 In controlling the body temperature, there are four mechanism of heat exchange between an animal and its
environment. These are
 radiation,
 evaporation,
 convection and conduction.
B. HOMOEOTHERMIC ANIMALS= ECTOTHERMIC ANIMALS
 Can generate internal heat to maintain a constant internal body temperature.
 Their cellular processes operate optimally even when the environment is cold and loses heat when the
environment is hot.
They use
 morphological,
 physiological and
 behavioral methods of temperature regulation.
 Homeotherms can retain heat in a variety of ways when the environment is cold.
 Some of the ways of insulation used to conserve the body heat in these animals include
 Fur ,
 Fat and
 Feathers .
 For example, the arctic fox uses its fluffy tail as extra insulation when it curls
up to sleep in cold weather.
 Homeotherms also use vasoconstriction in response to the coldest environment.
 Vasoconstriction is the narrowing of blood vessels to the skin by the
contraction of their smooth muscles to reduce blood flow in the peripheral
blood vessels and retain heat.
 Shivering is another way of maintaining body temperature in cold.
 Shivering is caused by involuntary contractions of your muscles.
 Muscle contractions require energy from respiration that releases heat to warm
the body.
 Homeotherms can loss heat in a variety of ways when the environment is hot.
 Some of the ways of losing heat in response to the hottest environment include:
 Vasodilation which is the opening up of arterioles to the skin through the
relaxation of their smooth muscles and by bringing more blood and heat to the
body surface to loss heat and thereby cool their body through radiation and
evaporation.
 Vasodilation is the widening of blood vessels at the skin surface to increase heat
loss through the surface of the skin.
 Sweating is another way of maintaining body temperature during a hot season.
 Sweat, which is produced by the sweat glands travels up the sweat duct and out of the
sweat pore onto the skin surface.
 The processes of coordination occur in the part of the brain called hypothalamus.
 When the temperature of the environment changes (decreases or increases), signals are
sent to the brain to alert the hypothalamus.
 The hypothalamus then responds by activating the process of
 Vasodilation ,
 Vasoconstriction ,
 Shivering and
 Sweating to maintain the body temperature constant
 In controlling the body temperature, there are four mechanism of heat exchange between an
animal and its environment. These are
 Radiation ,
 Evaporation ,
 Convection and
 Conduction .
 The body structure of animals also helps to maintain their body temperature.
 For instance, large ears in hot areas help to lose heat and cool their body,
whereas small ears and fur in cold areas help to minimize heat loss and keep
their body warm.
 The size of the animals also affects regulation of body temperature.
 As animals grow in size, their inside volume increases and the outside surface
area decreases.
 This affects the surface-area-to-volume ratio or the surface-to-volume ratio
of animals, which consequently affects heat loss.
 For example, since the size of an elephant is high, the surface area to volume ratio
becomes smaller than the surface area to volume ratio of a rabbit.
 The greater the surface area-to-volume ratio an animal has, the more heat loss it
will have, and the smaller the surface area- to- volume ratio an animal has the less
heat loss it will have.
 The smaller the animal, the higher the surface area-to-volume ratio it will have,
so it will have the higher heat loss. Example: a rabbit.
 On the other hand, the larger the animal, the smaller the surface area-to-volume
ratio it will have, so it will have the lower the heat loss.
 Example an elephant.
 Animals also maintain their body temperature by searching out cold or hot
habitats that allow them to alter its rate of heat loss or gain,
 making nests or digging burrows,
 huddling with conspecifics, and
 in human like wearing clothes or turning on an air conditioner as human do.
2.6.2 OSMOREGULATION
 Osmoregulation is a process that regulates the osmotic pressure of fluids and
electrolytic balance in organisms to maintain homeostasis.
 About 60% of the human body is composed of fluids. Approximately 2/3 of our
body’s water content is in our intracellular fluids and the remaining 1/3 forms
our extracellular fluid.
 Extracellular fluid consists of the fluid between cells (interstitial fluid) and the
blood plasma.
 A disruption in the osmotic pressure can result in an imbalance in the movement
of water between them and hence alter the concentration of their electrolytes.
 Hence, osmoregulation is important to balance osmotic pressure of fluids and
electrolytes.
 In humans and other animals, this process is brought about by osmoreceptors,
which can detect changes in osmotic pressure.
 Humans and most other warm-blooded organisms have osmoreceptors in the
hypothalamus, part of the brain and in the kidneys.
THERE ARE TWO MAJOR TYPES OF OSMOREGULATION:
Osmoconformers:
organisms that try to match the osmolarity of their body with their surroundings are called
osmoconformers.
In other words, these organisms maintain the same osmotic pressure inside the body as outside
water.
Examples are invertebrates like starfish, jellyfish and lobsters.
Osmoregulators:
organisms that actively regulate their osmotic pressure, independent of the surrounding
environment are called osmoregulators.
Examples are many vertebrates, including humans.
 The kidney is the main organ responsible for osmoregulation in humans.
 When the water level in the body is high, the kidney releases a large amount
of hypotonic urine.
 When the water level is low, it retains water and produces a low amount of
hypertonic urine.
 Thus, the kidneys maintain the electrolytic balance of the body.
 The hypothalamus of the brain and Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) secreted
from pituitary gland controls osmoregulation.
 Why does your urine sometimes become yellow and sometime not?
 ADH regulated water conservation in kidneys

Less water in the blood Excess water in

the blood

Stimulates osmoreceptors in hypothalamus to

Stimulates osmoreceptors in hypothalamus to send signals to the pituitary gland
send signals to the pituitary gland

Pituitary glands secretes high Pituitary glands secretes low

levels of ADH levels of ADH

Less ADH makes the tubules less permeable and less

ADH makes the tubules more permeable and more water
water is reabsorbed back into the bloodstream (urine
is reabsorbed back into the bloodstream (urine is
is dilute).
concentrated).
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Osmoregulation in Human
2.6.3 BLOOD SUGAR REGULATION
 Glucose is the main source of energy for the normal functioning of our body
systems including the brain.
 The body requires volumes of glucose in order to generate energy during
respiration.
 Hence, the body regulates the availability of glucose in our body to maintain its
concentration at constant level in order to supply energy continuously.
 Two hormones, insulin and glucagon produced from pancreas are responsible
for controlling the concentration of glucose in the blood.
 When blood glucose level is high and the glucagon level is low, more insulin is
released by the pancreas into the liver.
 Insulin promotes the conversion of glucose into glycogen for storage and for a
later use in the liver.
 When blood glucose level is low and glucagon level is high, more glucagon is
released by pancreas into the liver.
 Glucagon promotes the conversion of glycogen into glucose.
 Glycogen is stored in the liver and converted in to glucose when the glucose
level decreases.
 2.6.4 CONTROL OF HOMEOSTASIS
 When there is any change in the environment, an animal must make an
adjustment to balance the situation.
 A feedback mechanism is a physiological regulation system to return the body to
its normal internal state.
 In the feedback mechanism, the receptor senses the change in the environment
(stimulus) and sends a signal to the control center (the brain) which in turn
generates a response that is signaled to an effector in muscles to contract or relax
or glands to secrete hormones.
NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE FEEDBACK MECHANISMS
 Negative feedback mechanism is a homeostatic process that reverses the
direction of the stimulus or any deviation from the normal.
 This means that if the level is too high from the normal, the body brings it down,
and if the level is too low from the normal, the body lifts it up.
 In contrast to negative feedback mechanism, positive feedback mechanism
accelerates a change in the body’s physiological condition rather than reversing it.
 The positive feedback takes you further away from homeostasis while the
negative feedback brings you back to it.
 A negative feedback system has three basic components.
 These are sensor (receptor), control center and effector.
 The sensor (receptor) monitors the physiological value not to deviate from the
normal (receives stimulus) and reports to the control center if there is any
deviation.
 The control center compares the value of the deviation from the normal and
activates the effector if there is any deviation.
 An effector causes a change to reverse the situation and returns the value to the
normal set point (Figure 2.38).
 There are numerous examples of negative feedback mechanisms that aid in
maintaining a constant internal body condition.
 One of the examples in humans is the feedback mechanism in temperature
regulation.
 This mechanism works by promoting either heat loss or heat gain.
 For instance,
when the sensor (receptor) receives a stimulus that indicates an increased body
temperature from the normal range,
it sends its message to the brain’s temperature regulation center,
where the control center stimulates a cluster of brain cells.
 Then, the control center causes vasodilatation so that the more blood flows to the
surface of the skin allowing the heat to radiate into the environment, activate
sweat glands to increase their output through diaphoresis (excessive sweating) to
remove heat through evaporation across the skin surface into the surrounding
environment.
 The reverse occurs when the body temperature drops from the normal range.
 It means that vasoconstriction and deactivation of sweat glands occurs.
 However, if heat loss is severe, the brain (control center) causes skeletal muscles
to contract and produce shivering to release heat while using up ATP for muscles
contraction.
Figure 2.38 Negative feedback mechanism of thermoregulation
In the above example, as soon as your body has cooled off, negative
feedback halts the signaling process to stop the process of sweating.
In the opposite process, a positive feedback loop would continue to
cause the body to sweat even though it was no longer hot.
 Positive Feedback
• A positive feedback loop occurs when the output of a system acts to
enhance the changes to the input of the system.

• One example of a biological positive feedback loop is the onset of

contractions in childbirth.

– When a contraction occurs, the hormone oxytocin is released into the

body, which stimulates further contractions.

– This results in contractions increasing in amplitude and frequency.

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 Positive Feedback
• Another example is blood clotting.
– The loop is initiated when injured tissue releases signal chemicals that
activate platelets in the blood.
– An activated platelet releases chemicals to activate more platelets, causing a
rapid cascade and the formation of a blood clot.

• Lactation involves positive feedback so that the more the baby suckles, the more
milk is produced.

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2.7 RENOWNED ZOOLOGISTS IN ETHIOPIA

 Zoology is the study of animals in relation to their evolution, anatomy, physiology, behavior,
habitats and health.
 Many zoologists from various Ethiopian universities have studied animals found though the
country.
 Some researchers have invested their time and energy in studying animals in Ethiopia
throughout their lives.
 This has a great contribution not only to the development of zoological science
but also for the economic development of the country.
 Such researchers are patriots for their country because, as indicated in the
general curriculum framework stipulates, “Patriotism is not only in showing love
to the country and defending it in times of difficulties but also in exhibiting the
diligence to successfully carry out a wide-range of duties and tasks which
epitomize hard work”
THANK YOU

THE END
Prepared by Amsalu wakgari