Battle Between Roaches and Worms: How the Production of CO2 Levels Differ Between Two Ectotherms at the Same Temperature

Abstract

To measure metabolic rate, we are comparing CO₂ production at an average room temperature of 24.5 ℃ of three Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches and five Superworms by completing four five-minute trials each in the 250ml biochamber. The decision to evaluate two different ectotherms at the same room temperature of 24.5℃ was made in order to study whether or not the CO₂ production would’ve been affected between the Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches and Superworms even though the temperature was the same. Since the temperature is not being manipulated, the metabolic rate will most likely not be affected since the test subjects are ectotherms and their metabolic rate changes based on the temperature of their environment and the ability to maintain a constant body temperature (Zuo et al. 2011). The hypothesis states that the Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches will produce more CO₂ due to them being bigger in size. Based on the data the findings showed that Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches produced less CO₂ than the Superworms. Therefore, the conclusion states that the size of an ectotherm doesn’t affect the amount of CO₂ that will be produced at room temperature. Factors that can affect production are the time of day, how active the ectotherms are, and their stress levels during the experiment. This experiment adds to the scientific environment by enhancing our knowledge on metabolic rates along with how ectotherms function in their environment.