Roborovski Hamsters Control Experiment - Paper Example

Among the living creatures of this planet, there are different classifications of animals which are classified according to what they feed on and their adaptations to the environment, either land, sea or the air- however, these classifications cannot be exhausted. The available classification of which vertebrates are mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish is of particular interest to this paper. Under mammals, there are rodents which survive underground and feed on insects, meat, fruits, and vegetables. Of this class of rodents is a particular species known as Roborovski Hamsters (Also known as Robo Hamsters). They are popularly known for their speed and resilience as they can bore holes as deep as six feet and survive with limited water. They can survive under harsh conditions. Their food intake depends on bodyweight and age as well. The younger ones and the large ones have a high food intake.

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The Radial eight-arm maze was developed to understand and depict the accuracy of the memory of rats. They are subjected to experiments in these mazes to test their ability to remember that it has or has not entered a particular arm midway through the test. A food reward is usually placed at the end of each arm so that when the rat reaches that end. It gets to eat the prize allowing the researcher to keep track of the arms that the Rat has visited.

Having this in mind I conducted an experiment on these various types, of food to evaluate which type of food the Rat would find- using the sense of smell since they are deprived of good eyesight. The easier and faster it is for the Rat to locate the food, the more they like that particular food. Given the variety of food extend to fruits and vegetables equitable to five types; apple, cabbage, carrot, broccoli, and banana.

Response to the Apple

Having washed the apple and I placed a small piece of it in every arm to ensure the Rat doesnt have a stomach upset after eating since it is sensitive to toxins that are present in an unwashed fruit. From the middle of the maze, the Rat exhibited improvement in every run and thus the decrease in the time used as the Rat can remember the parts of the maze that are present. With each trial, the time decreased. However after a considerable number of trials approximately the 12th trial the Rat stopped consuming the apple and consumed one in the arm then jumped to the next. I discovered that the Rat had suffered an upset due to consumption of apple seeds which proved to be toxic. Removal of the seeds, however, did not help. The Apple also contained sugar which made the Rat also refrain from eating the food. Thus it would go and sniff the reward and then move on to the next arm and do the same. Large amounts of sugar would lead to stomach ache. Thus the Rat avoided eating the fruit in plenty.

Trials Apple Response Time Arms

5 2 min 7

10 1.5 min 5

15 2.5 min 4

20 3 min 2

25 5 min 0

In the end, the Rat grew resistant to the fruit presented to it and thus retracted from consuming the reward and decided to stay in the middle without eating the reward placed at the end. Drawing my conclusion from these trials, its clear the amounts the Rat can consume and what is harmful or toxic to the Rat.

Response to the Carrot

The rats had become acquainted with the apple and familiar with the maze after the preceding trials which made it easier for them to maneuver around the maze thus the time to get into the arms and out was minimal.

Having the prior knowledge that Rats cannot consume sugary foods in excess, the reaction with the carrot was notably different in that carrots are a good vegetable for hamsters- they are crunchy, and thus the rodents can gnaw on it. It contains nutrients that are good for its body. However, in surplus, the rat would show signs of hesitation to eat as the animal grew more satisfied, as well as got used to it. Though an observation made is that when the sugar level got too high, it would be toxic for the Rat to consume them as well.

Trials Carrot Response Time Arms Banana Response

Time Arms

5 1.5 min 6 1 min 8

10 2 min 7 1.5 min 7

15 2.5 min 4 2 min 5

20 3 min 2 5 min 3

25 4.5 min 0 6 min 0

Response to Bananas

This fruit is usually delicious and approved to be eaten by Hamsters although it is only suitable for the Rats in small quantity as it contains significant amounts of sugar. The response time to the banana was recorded as the highest as it is the Rat's favorite since it is very sweet and the rats had grown quite familiar to the maze. It is suitable for the Rat's digestion and prevents constipation of the stomach. Consumption of large amounts though can lead to diarrhea and weight gain. To view the response time, look at figure 1.2.

Response to Cabbage

The hamsters acquired an imprint of the maze in the brain and on its fingertips thus allowing it to fully navigate through each and every arm of the maze. For the cabbage, I placed a piece at every end of the arm. The Rats were then put to the test and their response time was a bit enhanced. Almost entirely similar to that of the apples, the rat enjoys the food and moves around eating the pieces and parts laid around the maze. Around the 15th trial, the content on the cabbage proves to hurtn the rodent. Thus they started to slow down and ease up on the eating of the vegetable. Upon researching, it became evident that too much consumption of the plant can cause liver damage as well as other health problems to the hamsters as it contains nitrates which are harmful to its body. The rat then came to stagnate at a certain point in the test bringing the consumption to a halt.

It was evident that the vegetable was harmful to the rodent thus it refrained upon realization of the above fact. To look at the response time kindly turn an eye to figure 1.1 and observe upon the intervals and adding to the fact that it came to a standstill within the test. Limited amounts of the cabbage should be offered to the Rat but not in excess.

Response to the Broccoli

Broccoli being a leafy and crunchy vegetable is rich in nutrition- upon providing this rare type of plant to the Rat, after numerous trials with preceding difference between fruits and vegetable, which are sweet, made the rat have a good initial response time, but midway through the test it was clear that the mouse became choosy with the type of food that it was consuming and showed signs of dislike to the vegetable itself. The broccoli proved to be the least favorite food of all.

Conclusion

It is evident that there are specific foods which are required to feed a hamster and numerous trials have also proved that much. Sugary foods are out of the question and should not be given to hamsters in excess as it may lead to health problems and eventually, the death of the animals. The content of food matters in that it may be good in small doses, though it contains substances which when taken in excess leads to the deterioration of the health of the animal as a whole. Therefore foods which contain nitrates and nitrites are good in small amounts, but in surplus, it is toxic to the creature. As much as there is a variety of food that can be provided. Different animals respond differently to food as well as humans do. The preference of an animal is unique to itself in that it may like one food more than the other. One feature that was peculiar in its nature of the Roborovski Hamster is the ability to plan ahead since in every trial of a different type of food, the Rat would eat at first but at a certain point it would stop eating and store the food for later. As much as the food was in plenty, it exercises the foresight to store food for future events which are an inbuilt instinct of the animals thus indicating intelligence in the small animals. In my opinion, the rat completely utilizes the resources at his disposal and therefore making it able to survive in any environment no matter how harsh the environment may be. It is in an intelligent rodent and therefore has realistic survival mechanisms.

Works cited:

Wan, X. R., et al. "Food consumption and feeding characters of Phodopus roborovski on Hunshandake sandy land of Inner Mongolia." Chin J Ecol 26.2 (2007): 223-227.

Weinhold, Ulrich. "Draft European action plan for the conservation of the common hamster (Cricetus cricetus L., 1758)." Convention on the conservation of European wildlife and natural habitats, Standing Committee. Council of Europe, Strasbourg, France. 2008.

Banaszek, Agata, Katarzyna A. Jadwiszczak, and Joanna Ziomek. "Genetic variability and differentiation in the Polish common hamster (Cricetus cricetus L.): genetic consequences of agricultural habitat fragmentation." Mammalian Biology-Zeitschrift fur Saugetierkunde 76.6 (2011): 665-671.

www.petwebsite.com/hamsters/hamster_fruit_vegetables.asphttp://hamsterific.com/hamsterific-university/acceptable-hamster-food-list/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HamsterNeumann, K., et al. "Genetic spatial structure of European common hamsters (Cricetus cricetus)a result of repeated range expansion and demographic bottlenecks." Molecular Ecology 14.5 (2005): 1473-1483.