Introduction

Metabolism is a process of energy capture, conversion, and transfer within cells or an

organism. All organisms must respond and adapt to the environmental changes around it. Some

organisms use photosynthesis or other enzyme-catalyzed reactions to gain energy. These

autotrophs are typically plants. Heterotrophs consume autotrophs or other heterotrophs to obtain

energy. Orconectes are freshwater crayfish that are used in this experiment. The purpose of this

experiment was to determine if there is a relationship between environmental temperature and

rate of metabolism in crayfish. The metabolic rate is the actual total amount of energy being

expended by an organism. No organism has a constant rate of metabolism. Processes such as

movement or reproduction require energy, but energy is also sometimes needed for external

environment changes. Unlike mammals, crayfish are ectotherms and don’t use internal metabolic

processes to maintain a constant body temperature. Thus, changing the external temperature may

affect the metabolic rate of the crayfish. Our hypothesis is that crayfish use more oxygen at a

higher temperature. This is because other cold-blooded animals such as reptiles, require less

energy to survive than warm-blooded animals, because much of the energy that drives their

metabolism comes from their surroundings, such as the sun. We predict that they use the same

amount per gram, the size difference shouldn’t affect the amount of oxygen being used.

Materials and Methods

The materials used for this experiment were waterbaths at different temperatures (22°C

and 32°C), crayfish of various sizes, water at different salinities (up to 0.65% NaCl), water at

different pHs, jar with no airflow for the crayfish, thermometers, DO meter, stopwatch.
 The first step is to prepare the test chamber, which should have a hole on the lid to allow

insertion of the probe. Fill jar will room temperature aerated water. Make sure water is filled to

the lid to limit oxygen mixing and reacting with the air. Remove a crayfish from the tank and

record its weight in grams. Hannah stared by grabbing one from the “small” tank. Place the

crayfish in the chamber and tighten the top, placing and sealing the probe to the DO meter. Turn

it on and wait for it to stabilize before you begin timing. Record “time zero” when stabilized and

begin timing. Record the dissolved oxygen concentration every 5,10,15, and 20 minutes.

Afterwards, measure the volume of water in a graduated cylinder by draining the test chamber

through a funnel. Before replacing your crayfish do the 32°C trial by repeating the same process

but with warmer water. When finished, replace the crayfish and grab a large one (or a small one

if you started with the opposite). Weigh the organism and place it in the jar with room

temperature aerated water and repeat the same process. When the final 20 minutes are up,

carefully place the crayfish back in the tank, clean up the area, and record all findings and

observations. Jay timed the measurements while I recorded them, and Hannah and Erin read the

DO meter.

Results

All of the combined class data shows that Crayfish exhibit more energy and use more

oxygen when the surrounding temperature is warmer. This was seen in both large and small

crayfish. Regardless of temperature, smaller crayfish have a higher metabolic rate than larger

crayfish. The Large ranged from 25.6 grams to 34.1 grams. The small crayfish weighed between

5.2 grams and 8.4 grams.

 Metabloic Rate
9
8
7
oxygen uptake

6
5 Large
4 Small
3
2
1
0
22°C 32°C
Temperature (°C)

Change in O2

7
6
change in 02 mg/L

Large 22
5 Large 32
4 Small 22
3 Small 32
2
1
0
1 2 3 4 5 6

The line graph above shows the results of the change in oxygen. All of the Large crayfish

at 22 °C are grouped together. All of the large crayfish at 32°C are grouped together. All small

crayfish at 22°C are grouped together, and all small crayfish at 32°C are grouped together. This

shows their change in oxygen from when it first stabilized to the 20th minute. You can see that

the larger crayfish had a more unstable oxygen intake, especially at 32°C. The small crayfish

were steadier in terms of metabolic rate.

Discussion

The purpose of this experiment was to determine if there’s a relationship between

environmental temperature and rate of metabolism in crayfish. As you can see in the first graph

of the results section, at 32°C both large and small crayfish have a higher metabolic rate than at a

lower temperature. As compared to large crayfish, the small ones have an overall higher

metabolism rate at both temperatures and they show to exert more energy than larger ones.

According to our hypothesis, we were correct when we predicted that crayfish would use more

oxygen at a higher temperature. We were incorrect when predicting that both large and small will

use the same amount per gram, regardless of size. During the experiment, I noticed that the small

crayfish had more room to move around and use more energy. The larger one didn’t have much

room to move around, he could just position himself in one spot. As the time went on, the larger

crayfish seemed to be getting aggravated and was trying to move around, but couldn’t. He was

using a lot of oxygen trying to swing his claws but he wasn’t getting anywhere, only causing him

to get more aggravated and exert more energy. This could’ve contributed to the large change in

the oxygen readings with the large crayfish. While the small ones had a steady rate (for the most

part) the large ones would have a drastic increase, possibly due to the way the experiment was

set up. The basal metabolic rate of an endotherm is about six times greater than the metabolic

rate of an ectotherm of the same size and body temperature ( Purves, et al. 2003). Temperature

has a relationship with metabolic rate in some animals, and some are just better at conserving

than others. In order to come to a true conclusion, more experiments must be done in order to

factor out the problem with large crayfish in a chamber that is too small.