Galapagos Animal Adaptations

Eco-cruise in the Galapagos. Web. 29 Oct 2010.

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The Blue-footed Booby Bird

The Blue-footed Booby, or Sula nebouxii, is a marine bird that lives in the Galapagos Islands. The Booby only goes on land to nest at night. It is a carnivore, and it can gather with thousands of other Boobies, one, or none to eat. It will swoop down into the water for fish, and if with a flock the Boobies will dive in unison. They can go as far as three feet deep. The Blue-footed Booby has a life span of seventeen years, and it can weigh up to 3.25 pounds. The Booby uses its bright blue feet to attract a mate. It has an intricate mating ritual that consists of an ostentatious dance* of its feet. The bluer the Booby's feet, the better chance it has of mating. The Boobies are opportunistic breeders meaning they only breed when the conditions are right. They do not breed year-round. A femal Booby can lay 2-3 eggs at once. Both the male and female Booby incubate the egg. Switching off between the roles of watching out, or warming the egg. Since they do not have brooding patches, the boobies use their webbed feet to cover their eggs and to keep their young warm.

The female Booby will only mate with a Booby that has blue feet, so when it does the gene of blue feet is passed down into their young so that they can mate, and so on.

The name Booby comes from the Spanish word Bobo meaning clumsy or stupid. This is because the Boobies are quite clumsy on land.

*Click on this link to see the Blue-footed Booby Mating Dance

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYmzdvMoUUA

Guppy Simulation

Introduction:

1. If being flashy and colorful attracts predators, why do you think guppies are so colorful?

Guppies are very colorful so they can attract female guppies and mate.

2. After viewing the guppy gallery, pick the fish you find most interesting. What is the fish’s scientific name, origin and average size? Describe the coloration of the fish you chose.

Common Name: Guppy or Millions Fish

Scientific: Poecilia reticulata

Origin: Brazil

Ave. Size: 1.4" or 3.5 cm

Coloration: Navy blue base, mottled pink, orange, and green. It has a green fin and bright fanned out tail.

3. After viewing the predator gallery, pick the fish you find most interesting. What is the fish’s common name, scientific name, and origin?

Common Name: Pike cichild

Scientific: Crenicichla alta

Origin: Trinidad and Latin America

4. View the guppy’s habitats, what habitat conditions would affect the predator populations?

If the habitat is a deep stream, then the predator populations will be very high. In a small dam habitat, predator populations would be little to none because there would be no room for predator movement. In a medium-small dam there would be a bearable predator population because there would be more room for predators to move around. Only small predators such as the rivulus could prosper in a shallow stream habitat.

Endler’s Discovery and Variations of Guppy’s in Pools

5. Who is John Endler? What did he study and where did he study it?

John Endler is an evolutionary biologist who studied Trinidad's wild guppies, probably in Trinidad. He studied guppie distribution, size, color, and spot sizes.

6. For each of the three stream areas, describe the guppy coloration:

Pool 1: The average male coloration would be very bright with lots of colors and large spots. There were very few predators, so guppies are able to have as flamboyant colors as they want.

Pool 2: In this pool there is a moderate predator population, so the average color is medium on the body and tail with medium spots.

Pool 3: There is very dull coloration in the guppies here because there is a high predator population. This means the guppies need to keep the colors and vibrancy to a bare minimum.


7. Develop your own hypothesis about guppy coloration. The hypothesis should answer the questions: Why do guppies in different areas of the stream have difference in coloration? (You can choose from the list on the simulation, or make up your own)

If there is a higher predator population in one area, then the guppies need to have a drabber/duller coloration because they will be eaten if they stand out too much.

If there is a lower predator population in another area, then the guppies can have very bright colors because they won't be eaten as frequently.

If the predator population is medium then so is the guppy coloration because they may be eaten or they may not.

Guppy Simulation Summary

	% of Brightest Guppies (10 generations)	% of Bright Guppies (10 generations)	% of Drab Guppies (10 generations)	% of DrabbestGuppies (10 generations)
Trial 1 Guppy: Even Mix Predators: 30 Rivulus	50%	25%	12%	14%
Trial 2 Guppy: Even Mix Predators: 30 Rivulus, 30 Acara	24%	48%	17%	11%
Trial 3 Guppy: Even Mix Predators: 30 Rivulus, 30 Acara, 30 Cichlid	23%	13%	16%	48%
Trial 4 Guppy: Mostly Bright Predators: 30 Rivulus	64%	26%	5%	4%
Trial 5 Guppy: Mostly Drab Predators: 30 Rivulus, 30 Acara, 30 Cichlid	3%	8%	27%	63%

8. Describe how predators influence guppy coloration.

Predators influence the guppy coloration by making it brighter or drabber. If the predator population is high, then the guppy coloration is dull. If the predator population is low, then the guppy coloration is vibrant.

9. Was your hypothesis correct, use your data to justify your answer.

Yes it was correct because the data showed exactly what we had predicted. The coloration of the guppies was brighter with a smaller predator population. The coloration was also duller with a higher predator population. Lastly, when there was an even predator/guppy population there was medium coloration.

10. What does it mean that “male guppies live in a crossfire between their enemies and their would be mates”?

It means that male guppies live in situations where certain things are conflicting. For example they can either have a good fitness by being very bright and mating. Or they can be very dull and be able to camouflage from their predators. They can have one or the other, not both. So to be able to mate they are in danger of being spotted and becoming prey. By being dull they are in danger of not attracting a mate.


11. Why do you think guppies in different areas of the stream have different coloration?

The higher predator population in one area, the guppies need to have a drabber/duller coloration because they will be eaten if they stand out too much. The lower predator population in another area, the guppies can have very bright colors because they won't be eaten as frequently. The predator population is medium then so is the guppy coloration because they may be eaten or they may not.

12. What would happen to mostly drab guppies that were placed in a stream with very few predators?

They probably would be overpopulated because they would not have a high chance of being eaten by a predator anyways since they are so drab, but now that there are so few predators there would be an abundance of drab guppies.

13. What would happen to brightly colored guppies that were placed in a stream with many predators?

Their population might diminish because their flamboyancy would attract predators, and since there are a lot of predators, there will be very few guppies. Since they will all be eaten.

Biodiversity

1. By preserving biodiversity locally, places like Bangladesh and India can have less deadly floods. Less deaths will occur all over because trees and forests can provide protection during natural disasters, so if they are preserved they can save lives. We can keep the impact and force of natural disasters down to a bare minimum or a normal level at the least. Also, the economy will not be drained from costs of a drained ecosystem.

2. Habitat destruction and loss of species affect more than just one area because when we destroy a habitat where an important organism lives we lose any possible medicinal value from them. Also, in an extreme case if we lose all the trees there will be no oxygen and humans can't survive without oxygen. Also if one species/habitat depends on another and it is destroyed, then all of them will eventually be destructed, therefore affecting more than one place.

3. Preserving biodiversity enhances the life of people because we can keep organisms such as the Tropical Cone Snail and receive medicinal benefits from them. We can save the lives of people who have diseases that are yet to find a cure. Also, human lives can be enhanced by not feeling pain if scientists are able to properly execute Prialt, which uses ingredients from organisms, which will be a lot more effective then morphine.

Sites Used:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/10/031017073822.htm

http://www.globalissues.org/article/171/loss-of-biodiversity-and-extinctions#LongTermCosts