Corina's Scavenger Hunt

Corina's Scavenger Hunt

 

Adaptation of Animal:  Adaptations are traits an organism has acquired through natural selection that help the organism to survive.  This dragonfly has obtained the adaptation of wings in order to fly.  Flying has helped this insect in transportation, avoiding predators, and finding nourishment.

Adaptation of Plant:   Adaptations are traits an organism has acquired through natural selection that help the organism to survive.   This plant’s thorns are adaptations that ward off predators.  The thorns protect the plant’s stem, allowing it to survive better than a plant without such protection.

 

Adhesion and Cohesion:  Adhesion is the tendency of water molecules to be attracted to other substances.  Cohesion is the tendency of water molecules to be attracted to other water molecules.  This bug can glide on the surface of water because of the hydrogen bonds holding the water molecules together, forming a “floor” on which the bug can walk.  Adhesion also helps in this feat by countering the force of gravity because water clings to the legs of bug.

Amniotic Egg:  Amniotic eggs are eggs that contain a water-proof amniotic membrane that surrounds the embryo and filled with amniotic fluid.  This structure prevents the embryo from drying out while developing.  Reptiles, birds, and mammals all have amniotic eggs, making this chicken egg a proper example.

 

Angiosperm:  Angiosperms, also called flowering plants, are plants that enclose ovules in an ovary.  This plant’s ovaries are in its flowers.  Pollen that travels into the ovary fertilizes the eggs inside the ovules.  Angiosperms usually have broad leaves that change color during the fall.  Angiosperms are also referred to as hardwoods.  This flowering tree is an angiosperm.

 

 

Animal with Segmented Body:  This insect, along with all insects and arachnids, has a segmented body.  The three parts of an insect’s body are the head, where the brain is located, the thorax, where legs and wings are present, and the abdomen, which contains most of the insect’s organ systems.  Wings cover the thorax and abdomen in this picture.

Asexual Reproduction:  Asexual reproduction is the type of reproduction that occurs when a single parent organism bears an offspring.  This is the main form of reproduction for most single-celled organisms, but many plants and fungi also asexually reproduce.  Binary fission, budding, vegetative propagation, and spore formation are all different types of asexual reproduction.  This mushroom can reproduce asexually.

Autotroph:  Autotrophs are producers that do not obtain nourishment from other organisms.  Plants and algae are autotrophs that obtain energy from the sun, water, and carbon dioxide, which they photosynthesize into sugar and oxygen.  Other autotrophs, called lithoautotrophs, use the energy from inorganic compounds.  This palm is an autotroph.

 

 

Bilateral Symmetry:  Bilateral symmetry is when an object or organism can be split into two identical halves.  Most animals are bilaterally symmetric.  This dog can be split from the nose the tail into two near matching halves.  Bilaterally symmetric animals have a distinct head that contains the central nervous system.  Bilateral symmetry allows for organisms to be streamlined, enabling them to move faster.

C3 Plant: Before the Calvin Cycle of photosynthesis, the CO2 in C3 plants is formed into molecules that contain 3 carbon atoms.  C3 plants exist in areas where carbon concentration is high, water is abundant, and temperature is moderate, which means they grow in most temperate areas.  C3 plants are mainly rice, fruit, vegetables, and grains.  This orange comes from a C3 plant.

 

Cellular Respiration:  Cellular respiration is the set of reactions that take place within a cell in order to convert nutrients into ATP, releasing waste products.  Different types of cellular respiration include aerobic respiration, glycolysis, and the Krebs cycle.  Aerobic respiration is the opposite equation of photosynthesis in which glucose and oxygen react to form carbon dioxide and water.  This palm tree uses cellular respiration to create the energy it needs to survive.

Cellulose:  Cellulose is a natural polymer, which is a long chain of linking molecules.  It is a sugar that gives structure and shape.  A major component of wood, cellulose fibers are bound with lignin, another complex polymer.  Cellulose is also found in plant cell walls, and cotton is the purest form of cellulose.  This downed tree shows the sliced trunk, where cellulose and lignin reside.

 

Ectotherm:  An ectotherm is an organism that cannot create enough of its own body heat and must rely on outside heat sources to maintain proper body temperature.  Another name for ectotherms is cold-blooded.  Amphibians, fish, and reptiles are all ectotherms.  Because not much energy is spent on creating internal body heat, cold-blooded organisms do not need to eat as much or as often as warm-blooded organisms.  This toad utilizes the heat from the sun to stay warm.

Endotherm:  An endotherm, also called a homeotherm, is an organism that generates its own body heat to maintain the same internal body temperature, which is typically above the atmospheric temperature. All mammals and birds are endotherms, warm-blooded animals, meaning they eat more than cold-blooded animals since most energy from food is turned into body heat.  This dog is an endotherm, and her body temperature is around 101 degrees Fahrenheit.

Eukaryote:  Eukaryotes are organisms, whether unicellular or multi-cellular, whose cells contain membrane-bound nuclei.  The organelles inside of eukaryotic cells are also membrane-bound.  Eukaryotic cells contain certain organelles not found in prokaryotic cells, such as mitochondria and Golgi apparatus.  Animals, plants, fungi, and protists are all eukaryotes.  This robin, an animal, is therefore a eukaryote also.

Exoskeleton:  An exoskeleton is tough covering on the outside of the body which acts as a protective barrier.  It is like the skeleton humans have, an endoskeleton, however it is outside the body and does not grow with the organism.  Organisms with exoskeletons must molt, shedding their exoskeletons and growing new, larger ones.  Arthropods, insects, and arachnids have exoskeletons.  This ant is a perfect example of an insect with an exoskeleton.

Flower Ovary:  In angiosperms, flowering plants, the ovary is the female reproductive part of the plant.  The ovary is the portion of the pistil which holds the ovules.  Other parts of the female reproductive body of plants include the stigma, style, and pistil.  When pollen from the anthers, the male reproductive part, gets transferred into the ovary at the base of the flower, the ovules are fertilized.  This picture shows the reproductive parts of a flower.

 

 

Gymnosperm:  Gymnosperms are plants that do not produce seeds in an ovary.  The name itself is Greek for “naked seed”.  They are woody plants, and their seeds are enclosed in many different structures.  However the most common structure is a cone.  All conifers are gymnosperms because they bear cones.  This pine tree will soon produce pine cones that carry seeds to grow new pine trees.

 

 

Heterotroph:  Heterotrophs are the opposite of autotrophs.  They gain energy from eating other organisms, not by creating it from non-living sources.  Heterotrophs include animals, fungi, and some bacteria, although some bacteria are autotrophs.  Heterotrophs consume oxygen because they cannot fix carbon.  They take in the carbohydrates, fats, and proteins from autotrophs for energy.  These birds eat seeds, berries, and other plant materials, making them heterotrophs.

 

Homeostasis:  Homeostasis is the ability of a system to maintain a stable internal environment.  It is in charge of keeping blood sugar, blood pH, and temperature of an organism.  Insulin and glucagon maintain blood sugar levels.  Homeostasis in humans keeps blood pH at 7.365, slightly basic.  The internal temperature of a human stays around 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit.  Although it has different numbers, this chipmunk relies on homeostasis to keep its own blood sugar, blood pH, and body temperature in check.

 

Hydrophobic:  Hydrophobes are substances that have little to no affinity for water.  These substances are made of non-polar molecules, which will not form hydrogen bonds with the super polar water molecules.  Hydrophobic molecules include oils, fats, alkanes, and other greasy substances.  This cup of water and vegetable oil shows how oil is hydrophobic because it sits on top of the water and will not mix.

 

Lichen:  This lichen is the composite organism of a symbiotic relationship between a fungus and a photosynthetic cohort, which is either a green alga or a cyanobacterium.  Lichens can thrive in even the harshest environments on earth; they grow anywhere from the arctic tundra to extremely hot deserts, growing on plants or rocks.  Lichens have been used in the production of dyes and perfumes, and they even can help scientists determine effects of air pollution since they are easily disturbed by environmental changes.

Long-Day Plant:  Long-day plants are plants that flower when the length of the day surpasses their critical photoperiod.  They generally will flower during late spring to early summer as the days become longer.  Long day plants are split into two categories, long-day obligates and long-day facultatives.  Lettuce, pictured here, is a long-day facultative plant.

 

Mycorrihizae:  Mycorrihizae is a symbiotic relationship between a fungus and the roots of a vascular plant.  The fungus or fungi will grow at the roots of a plant.  This relationship is mutualistic because both the species benefit.  Most plant families are micorrhizal, and fungi is a very important piece of soil life.  In this relationship, the fungus is given different carbohydrates which it needs to survive.  The plant is given phosphate ions by the fungi because they cannot retrieve the substance from soils with basic pHs.  This relationship is key in the survival of both fungi and most plant species.

Parasitism:  Parasitism is a symbiotic relationship in which only one of the two species benefits.  The parasite, the beneficiary, preys on the host, who is harmed by the parasite.  Examples of parasitism are vast and include head lice on humans, tape worms in dogs, and even cuckoo bird eggs in other bird species’ nests.  This is a picture of a tick that has not yet found a host on which to attach itself and drink the host’s blood.

 

Phloem:  Phloem is the tissue in vascular plants that transports nutrients, mainly sugar, to the different parts of the plant that require these nutrients.  The phloem is the innermost part of a tree’s bark.  The tissue consists of sieve elements, specialized companion cells, specialized albuminous cells, unspecialized cells, and supportive cells.  Unlike xylem, phloem is composed mainly of living cells.  This plant’s phloem is in the center of its stem and is busy transporting nutrients.

 

Predation: Predation is the interaction between two species during which the predator feeds on the prey.  Predators may not kill prey before feeding; however death of the prey usually occurs.  Predators are higher up on the food chain in ecosystems.  They have special adaptations which include claws and sharp teeth with which to kill and consume prey.  This ball python is about to prey on a mouse, biting and strangling it to death before consuming it whole.

Spore:  Spores are used in asexual reproduction by various species.  Ferns reproduce via spores and do not have seeds nor flowers.  The life cycle of a fern is as follows: a diploid sporophyte produces haploid spores, which then grow into haploid gametophytes.  Via mitosis, the gametophytes produce gametes, a sperm and an egg.  The sperm fertilizes the egg, and the egg develops into a fern plant.  This fern uses spores to reproduce.

 

Tropism:  Tropism is a response of movement or growth based on various stimuli.  Although there are many different types of tropism, the main ones are phototropism, geotropism, and thigmotropism.  Phototropism is a response to light and the color of the light.  Plants will bend towards light to capture more to increase photosynthesis.  Geotropism is a response to gravity, making roots grow downward into the ground and stems grow upward toward the sky and sun.  Thigmotropism is a response to touch or contact.  This pictures portrays thigomotropism; after this plant’s tendrils felt the leaves of another plant, they began to wrap and grow around the other plant.

Xylem:  Xylem is the other transport tissue found in plants, the other being phloem.  The most common xylem tissue is wood, which is a main component of man y plants.  Xylem is made primarily of dead cells, but it has the very important job of transporting water and other nutrients throughout the plant.  The plant pictured here does not contain wood.  Instead the xylem is found in vascular bundles, like phloem, in the stem of this plant.