Vulpes Zerda Research Paper

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Vulpes zerda of the Saharan Desert Leanne Cubar Gessica Davila Biology 211 Professor Mustard November 18, 2013 Within the Sahara and other sandy deserts of the North African continent, a small carnivorous fox survives and thrives in scorching high temperatures as well as the freezing desert nights. Vulpes zerda, commonly known as the fennec fox, usually lives in small communities consisting of about ten other individual foxes where they utilize physiological and behavioral adaptations to combat the constant challenges the Sahara presents. Alongside the fluctuating temperatures, another challenge includes the scarcity of water and food. iOne may wonder how animals such as Vulpes zerda survive in such an extreme environment, and the…show more content…
ii Going back to Vulpes zerda specifically, these desert dwellers are able to keep their internal desired temperature regardless of the fluctuation of the environmental heat through their endothermic characteristics. For this animal and other endotherms alike they are able to cool their bodies with rising temperatures and warm their bodies with low temperatures versus ectotherms that rely mainly on behavioral strategies to battle environmental changes. These carnivores are also described to be homeotherms which are animals that are capable of keeping a relatively constant temperature within their bodies. Insulation is a key component in thermoregulation of these homeotherms in which they are able to minimize the interaction of the environmental heat with their bodies. Burrowing is a common behavioral response of insolation in protecting themselves from the intensity of the heat and sun of the desert. It is advantageous to the Vulpes zerda to have such small bodies because places of shelter are more available to them than the larger desert animals who cannot partake in this survival strategy. Generally, these animals are also nocturnal, being known to sleep in their burrows during the more intense…show more content…
Another way that humans have adapted in order to carve a niche in the desert landscape of Sub-Saharan Africa is by utilizing the physiological responses to the heat of the desert days and the freezing temperatures of the night. This is because they are homeotherms. This means that their bodies try to maintain a constant body temperature. They do this by maintaining homeostasis within their bodies. In order to combat the heat of the desert, humans will sweat, thus cooling off the body. At night, a human will shiver in order to contract their muscles to generate heat for the body. The human body will also undergo vasoconstriction and vasodilation of the blood vessels in order to maintain homeostasis. The vasoconstriction of the blood vessels when it is cold in the night, allows for the body to retain heat in the important parts of the body such as the organs. This physiological response is what allows the human body to keep a constant body temperature in the freezing nights of the desert. Vasodilation of the blood vessels allow for the human body to cool down during the extreme heat of the day. Vasodilation of the blood vessels allows the heat to release from the body in order to maintain homeostasis. vi Homeostasis of the body in this extreme climate also means maintaining water balance or osmoregulation, especially

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