Objectives: Animals often maintain internal homeostasis, or at a minimum withstand changes in their physiological set points, in order to cope with the rigors of their external environment. The adaptive responses underlying either ability are sometimes brought into play on a daily basis but some environmental stresses are encountered on a periodic basis (e.g. season transitions). Specialized activities (e.g. diving) or specific biological states (e.g. body size) may offer additional complications for physiological processes in animals. Correspondingly, many species have evolved highly specific adaptations that allow them to maintain behavioral routines and internal homeostasis under a wide range of conditions and biological states. Other species have evolved the means to endure hostile conditions that greatly disrupt normal homeostasis for extended periods of time. Because natural selection works within the framework of existing genetic variation within a species, different species sometimes manifest alternative adaptive responses when dealing with a similar environmental stress (e.g. freeze tolerance vs. freeze avoidance). Thus, we will encounter a wide range of adaptations in animals that simultaneously reveal common operational themes and an amazing array of diversity. One section of this course is offered in the spring semester of odd years.

Prerequisites: Principles of Biology (Biol 104), General Zoology (Biol 212), General Chemistry I (Chem 107), and General Chemistry II (Chem 108).

Credit Value: 4

Contact Time: Three 50 minute lectures and one 2 hour laboratory per week.

Outcomes: Upon successful completion of the course a student should:

• recognize the nature of environmental stresses acting on the immense variety of animals in the world, including specialized lifestyles such as found in deep sea environments, tidal zones deserts, boreal/polar regions, and caves
• be familiar with the effects of environmental stresses on animals, especially widely acting factors like temperature, water availability, oxygen availability, salinity, etc.
• have an understanding of specific adaptations in animals to the aforementioned conditions, especially the biochemical, cellular, and systemic mechanisms supporting those adaptations
• have an appreciation of the role of natural selection and phylogeny in the origin of specific adaptations

Assessment:

• Individual mastery of the aformentioned outcomes is assessed through examinations and paper assignments
• Quizzes
• Term tests
• Final lecture examination: Questions will be comprehensive.
• Article summaries: Six article summaries are required during the semester. A summary presents a critical synopsis of a basic research article pertaing to a course topic. The article's relevance to the field of physiological ecology should be discussed along with the direction of future investigations.

Lecture Schedule:

• Introduction to physiological ecology
• Climates and microclimates
• Temperature and life: Effects on living systems
• Acclimation and hardening
• Living in the cold: Subfreezing conditions
• Term test one
• Body temperature homeostasis
• Water balance and life: Effects on living systems
• Living in the ocean and other hypersaline environments
• Desert life
• Term test two
• Deep sea life/diving physiology
• Fueling the fire of life with limited oxygen
• Size and body functions
• Living in caves and burrows
• Flight
• Final examination

Laboratory Schedule:

• Data analysis and representation, Measuring temperature
• Microclimate study: Terrestrial environments
• Microclimate study: Aquatic environments
• Effects of tempreature on animals
• Acclimation and hardening
• Term test one
• Cryobiology: Life at a low temperature
• Cryobiology: Life at a low temperature
• Temperature regulation
• Principles of water balance
• Term test two
• Diving
• Coping with limited oxygen availability
• Scaling
• Scaling