Respiration Rates per Gram Related to the Environmental Temperature in Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches

Abstract

Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches (Gromphadorhina Portentosa) have been used to better understand cellular respiration in ectotherms. In other trials, it has been discovered that the respiration rate in ectotherms can vary drastically (Contreras and T.J. 2009). In this experiment, we examined whether the temperature of the environment affects the metabolic rate per gram of Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches. This will allow for better understanding of metabolic rates in relation to the mass and environmental temperature in other ectotherms. We found that the higher the temperature was, the higher the CO₂ output was. Likewise, we found that the lower the temperature was, the lower the CO₂ output was. This means that the metabolic rate in this organism increases as the environmental temperature increases, and vice versa. Therefore, the metabolic rate is directly proportional to the environmental temperature.