As Cold as Ice: Effects of Environmental Temperature on Metabolic Rates of Gromphadorhina portentosa

Abstract

This experiment investigated the influence and correlation of temperature with the metabolic rates of Gromphadorhina portentosa, an ectothermic organism more commonly known as Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches. When dealing with the metabolic rates of ectotherms the results will vary depending on the surrounding temperature because ectothermic species’ metabolic rates change with environmental temperature. We hypothesized that there would be a positive correlation between environmental temperature and metabolic rate. The hypothesis was tested by collating the data on the CO₂ output levels of multiple trials of three varying temperatures: room temperature (24.25°C), elevated temperature (28.86°C), and lowered temperature (14.36°C). This data was then averaged and inserted into a formula to calculate an average metabolic rate for each experimental temperature and the control temperature. The hypothesis was not supported and there was not a positive correlation between the environmental temperature and metabolic rates (ppm/s/g) of Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches. The documented results allow us to further our understanding on the effect of variable environmental temperatures on the metabolic rates and thermoregulation of ectotherms.