Circadian Rhythms are the outputs of an internal biological clock common to all animals. Most circadian rhythms have about a 24-hour period and can synchronize with the earth’s solar day. Our lab primarily studies the circadian rhythms of spiders because their internal clocks can be extremely different from 24 hours (some as much as five hours different), yet they can remain synchronized with the solar day. The objective of this study is to identify a non-spider species for comparison with spiders that, a) has a clear and measurable circadian rhythm, and b) can easily be bred and reared in the lab. Gromphadorhina Grandidieri, also known as Black Tiger Hissing Cockroach (hereafter referred to as ‘hissers’), is one of the very many species of African Hissing Cockroaches native to rainforests in Madagascar. These species get the nickname ‘hisser’ because of their defense mechanism that forces air through spiracles which are breathing holes in the exoskeleton to make a hissing noise like a cat would. These animals are colonial and are easily bred and reared in captivity. Our hypotheses were that G. Grandidieri will be nocturnally active with a typical animal circadian rhythm of close to 24 hours. To carry out this experiment we measured locomotor activity in Juvenile and adult hissers for 5 days in a 12:12 hour light:dark cycle followed by 7-10 days in constant darkness to reveal the animals’ internal clock period. We measured this using an activity monitor which records when an individual moves across an infrared light beam. Data were taken from 32 individuals in this manner. Our results showed that juveniles had a mean circadian rhythm of 24.03 + 0.49 hours, and that adults had a mean rhythm of 24.12 + 0.90 hours. Most, but not all, individuals had a clear and measurable circadian rhythm and survived the duration of the experiment. Locomotor activity in the light:dark cycle was mainly in the dark phase, confirming that these animals are generally nocturnal. Overall, our hypotheses were supported and we have identified an excellent comparison species for future research in our lab.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ETSU/oai:dc.etsu.edu:asrf-2157 |
| Date | 25 April 2023 |
| Creators | Satterly, Alaina, Jones, Thomas C, Moore, Darrell, Giulian, Joseph W |
| Publisher | Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University |
| Source Sets | East Tennessee State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Source | Appalachian Student Research Forum |
Page generated in 0.0021 seconds