BIO 101 Organism Physiology

Organism physiology

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Organism physiology

North Carolina is a well- known country as the home of many organisms because of the climatic conditions which offer good and conducive environment for the animals. The general terrain of the landscape and the geology also favors the organisms’ survival. One of the animals favored in North Carolina include dwarf waterdog which lives in wet lands. Dwarf waterdogs are associated with slow-moving water. In addition, you can also find these waterdogs in muddy areas like deep irrigated ditches. These are the cool environments which favor the life of these organisms (Sheldom et al. 2007)

Dwarf waterdog has unique characteristics which enable them fit in their environment. They have gills between 4.5 to 7.5 centimeters long which enable them swim on the muddy areas. They also have a compressed tail which allows the waterdog to remain cool in slow moving water. This is a full aquatic frog which has their love in slow moving water. They are known to be active in times of winter and get their food in this environment. These organisms live in cool temperatures whereby the variations should be minimal and the temperatures range between 65 to 80 degrees. Too hot or cold conditions threaten the live of the waterdog making them unproductive (Brown, 2009).

Waterdogs are opportunistic salamanders which mostly feed on aquatic insects. They also feed on worms and take advantage of crustaceans. The lifespan of dwarf waterdog is about or more than 10 years. The throat of the dwarf waterdogs is whitish whereby one part of central belly is seen to be bluish white to make it adapt to feeding mechanism. They are mostly located in highlands where streams and rivers pass through because those are the favorable zones of waterdogs. The environment of the waterdogs extends all through the western side of North Carolina and touches the boundaries of the lowlands of Triassian.

Mating of the waterdogs normally occur during winter whereby their eggs are seen to be submerged on the riversides or along the muddy areas. In their environment, there is high competition of food due to other predator in the water. They feed on insects whereby it’s also prey for other aquatic animals. They play a very big role in the environment whereby they balance the feeding structure. They reduce the level of insects in the environment which may in turn lead to diseases. They also have the behavioral characteristic which attracts many individual. In addition, they contribute to the beauty of the environment whereby tourists visit to see them. This in turn earns the country foreign currency used for the development.

Dwarf waterdogs play a very big role in their ecosystem and should really be taken care of. There are also animals which feed on them like eagle whereby they are food to other animals. The interference with their ecosystem will automatically lead to loosing many animals. This threatens predation mechanism which may lead to death. They should therefore not be exposed to adverse conditions which may threaten their life. There are specific characteristic which enable these creatures to adapt to their environment. These characteristics make them different from other animals (Brown, 2009).

In the real world, no single organism will want to adapt to the environment but the changes of the environment make them adapt to that particular area. For instance, dwarf waterdogs live in muddy, wet environment whereby they are supposed to adapt to the food web of that environment for them to survive. They have adapted to muddy environment whereby they can survive for over 10 years. The adaptation is usually brought about by particular traits that enable the animal to compete for either space or food for their survival. It is important to balance the ecosystem through caring for every animal and creating cool environment for them.

Dwarf waterdog has gills and compressed tail which enable them to swim and escape the predators. They also have sharp eyes to see the prey and also the predators in case of attack. In addition, they have siphons which allow them to filter the collected food from the muddy environs. For their defense, they also produce a chemical during metabolism to keep their predators away from them. The physiological history of dwarf animal has evolved genetically from the past. This is due to mutation of the animal leading to new generation which also fit in the environment. Waterdog should be preserved in areas with low population and should be highly cared for to avoid loss of this species (Brown, 2009).

If the environment of the dwarf waterdog is change to dry environment it can lead to death because they have their life in wet environment. They have evolved in estuaries whereby they have survived in this environment. Salamanders are of different types, those whose life is spent on land and those spending life on water. They have adapted to these areas and if changed could cause harm or difficulties to them. They can also develop an adaptive feature like burrowing to make tem fit in the environment they have been changed to. In addition, when these animals are changed from their environment they can produce chemicals to make them adapt to where they have been taken to.

The waterdog have been seen to have approximate length of 150-220mm. it also has a flattened body for its flexibility towards the prey and free movement. The flattened body helps the organism to hide under rocks in protection from the predators. In addition, it has three gills which helps the waterdog dive in water. There is a compressed tail which also helps in movement. They feed on insects and other small animal in water whereby they balance the food web. They are very important species which should be cared for (Scott et al. 2002).

In conclusion, we should protect the environment of every species and not interrupting them. This can be done through proper waste disposal and proper waste treatment to avoid mismanagement of our water sources. We should also not interfere with the food eaten by every species. The government or other stake orders should take responsibility and develop programs for caring these animals. There should be an inclusion of legislation which should be abided on conservation and avoidance of pollution of environment. This will help us avoid the loss of biodiversity.

References

Meffe, G. K., & Sheldon, A. L. (2007). Habitat use by dwarf waterdogs (Necturus punctatus) in South Carolina streams, with life history notes. Herpetologica, 490-496.

Scott, D. E., Metts, B. S., & Gibbons, J. W. (2002). Seasonal wetlands and golf courses. USGA Turfgrass and Environmental Research Online, 1(4), 1-7.

Brown, E. E. (2009). Notes on amphibians and reptiles of the western Piedmont of North Carolina. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society, 108, 38-54.