Biology/Animals that live underground
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Question
I work in a school with 4 %26 5 year old children, one boy wants to know how do animals that live underground know when it is night time? Looking forward to your reply,
Cath
Dear Cath,
This is a great question! :)
Animals (and many other organisms, such as plants!) have internal "clocks" that regulate daily cycles called Circadian rhythms. As the day progresses, hormones change, activity levels modify, and the animal goes through a 24-hour cycle of activity whether or not it can see daylight changing.
You can learn more about this here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm
(I don't always trust Wikipedia, but this seems to be a good entry) so that you can explain it to all your little budding scientists. :) Even humans have distinct Circadian cycles, so this will probably be interesting to all of them.
Hope this helps.
Dana
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| Rating(1-10) | Knowledgeability = 10 | Clarity of Response = 10 | Politeness = 10 |
| Comment | Thanks for the quick response. It is always a worry that you could be outsmarted by a 5yr old. It's not only the children that come to school to learn! I'm almost certain that I'll be back with another questions, young minds.......... Thanks again. | ||
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Answers by Expert:
Dana Krempels, Ph.D.
Expertise
I can answer biology-related questions in the areas of evolution, zoology, botany, genetics, and ecology. But I don't answer homework questions or provide ideas for your science fair projects. So students please do your learning the right way by reading your text assignments and studying!
Experience
At the University of Miami, I teach Evolution and Biodiversity, Botany, Zoology, Genetics, Ecology, and a variety of seminars (e.g., the Biology and Evolution of Human Gender Roles).
Education/Credentials
I have a B.S. in Biology and an A.B. in English from the University of Southern California (1980).
I earned my Ph.D. in Biology in the area of evolutionary biology/visual physiology from the University of Miami in 1989.
Past/Present Clients
I am currently an "expert" in both the "Rabbits" and "Wild Animals" categories.
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