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Respiration Rate Changes in Goldfish as a Function of External TemperatureTeacher: Larry Beck; Isaac E. Young Middle School; New
Rochelle, New York
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This classroom activity was developed during the year-long Frontiers in Physiology teacher fellowship program sponsored by the American Physiological Society.
Click the links below to:
Explore APS Education programs.
Find more teacher-designed and tested classroom activities.
Learn about the
Frontiers in Physiology Professional Development
Fellowship.
To observe and record the different ways in which the respiration rate in
fish changes as a function of external temperature.
1. Students will directly observe the physiological changes that occur as a result of changes in water temperature.
2. Students will study the physiological processes and record measurements in the same way that physiologists do.
3. Students will use prior knowledge to develop a hypothesis about physiological changes resulting from environmental temperature changes;
4. Students will design and carry out an experiment to test their hypotheses.
5. Students will gain an understanding of the importance of using animals in
physiological research.
Other Materials
These items should be sequestered and only made available after students have outlined their experimental procedures and have received permission to proceed. These materials are based on a class of 24 students working in 6 groups of four students.
This lab is an excellent follow-up lab to the engage activity "What Types of
Bodily Changes Can You Observe in Situations of Varying Environmental
Temperatures." It is an inquiry activity designed for studying human respiration
in high school biology. Plan on devoting two to four, forty five minute lab
periods for this investigation.
Goldfish are relatively inexpensive and may be purchased at a local pet shop.
If an aquarium with filter and aerator is available to house the fish, plan on
buying 2-3 fish per group (for a class of 24 students you should purchase
approximately 24 fish). If no aquarium is available, you may use a clear plastic
bucket. Be sure you fill the bucket with tap water 24 hours prior to its use,
allowing it to "rest." Also, plan on getting 4-5 fish per group as the fatality
rate during the night may be higher (for a class of 24 students you should buy
36 goldfish). Allow time before the lab to remove any fish that may have expired
during the night and be sure to check with the laws in your particular state
regarding use of vertebrates in the lab.
A discussion of the importance of using live animals in physiological
research is appropriate here along with a discussion of the importance of
integrity in working with animals. On the day before the activity, review the
proper way of handling goldfish with students stressing that students should be
careful in how they handle the fish to avoid injuring them.
Also, ask students to think about temperature ranges suitable for the study.
The temperature changes for the fish (at maximum) should not exceed ten degrees
in either direction since this could result in physiological shock to the
goldfish. The temperature should not exceed 35 degrees Celsius at any time.
Guide students as they think of ways to minimize temperature shock to the fish,
e.g., studying only small temperature changes or immersing fish in a small
beaker which is then immersed in a larger beaker with a pronounced temperature
difference.
1. Divide students into groups of four to insure student equity through random separation; you may wish to use a deck of cards for this purpose. Each team will be composed of all four suits of a particular number (e.g., Group 1 would include students with the 3's of hearts, spades, clubs, and diamonds). Each suit of any group number will be assigned a different job (e.g., recorders = hearts; material gatherers = spades, technicians = clubs, etc.)
2. Explain to students that they will have an opportunity to directly observe physiological changes (breathing rate/respiration rate) in response to environmental temperature changes.
3. Each team will pose a hypothesis regarding how temperature might affect respiration rate in goldfish. Each team will need to provide the following information on the laboratory worksheet: hypothesis, materials, procedure, control, results and conclusion. Additionally, each group at the outset will need to clearly explain how the respiration rate will be observed and measured.
4. Students groups will have to review their experimental design with a teacher before beginning their project and teacher approval is required to continue the investigation for both experimental design and data collection (see student worksheet).
5. Each group will complete their experiment; record their data; write
conclusions; and note any new questions that the experimental results generate
among the group.
1. What happened to the fish's respiration rate as the temperature changed?
2. What is the connection between metabolism and respiration, i.e., why should temperature have anything to do with respiration rate?
3. At what temperature did students' observe the highest metabolic rate in the fish? The lowest?
4. At what temperatures did students observe the fish needing the most food and oxygen?
5. What could students predict might happen to the activity of fish in cold
climates during the winter months?
Students could follow-up this lab with an exploration of how environmental
temperatures affect blood flow rate in goldfish. For this activity, students
could directly observe flow rate changes in the capillaries of goldfish tails
using compound microscopes. Alternatively, small redworms could be adapted for a
blood flow lab in observing how environmental temperatures affect respiratory
and circulatory systems.
Each group will present their work for five minutes to the entire class.
Students will also graph both by hand and by computer their data. As a follow up
assessment, students may be assigned "mini-reports" on applications of their
data. Such applications may be in the apparel industry, construction industry,
pharmaceutical industry, OSHA, etc. This latter assessment is ideally suited for
interdisciplinary work with the Social Studies Department.
To observe and record the different ways respiration rate in fish changes as
a function of external temperature.
Your team will design an experiment to observe how temperature affects
respiration rate in goldfish. The following information will need to be provided
for each group:
Caution
Group #____________
| Name | Group Job |
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Answer the following questions on attached sheets of paper. Number each
answer with the question number.
1. How will your group observe and accurately record goldfish respiration rate?
2. State your proposed hypothesis:
3. List the materials needed:
4. Describe your procedure step-by-step (for example, a), b), etc.).
5. What is the control for your experiment?
Results: Draw a data table which will be suitable for collecting your group's data being sure to record the temperature three times at any given temperature.
Get your teacher's approval to proceed. Approval to proceed __________________________
6. What conclusions can you draw from your findings?
7. List any additional questions about respiration, temperature regulation, or goldfish, in general, that your experiment led you to think about.
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American
Physiological Society |
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