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Chapter 1Bringing It all Together
inIntegrated Science
Sea Butterflies & Amphipods
Biology, Chemistry, and the Scientific Method
James McClintock (UA) & Bill Baker (USF)
Studying toxic chemicals used to deter predators
Observed something very interesting
Curious relationship between sea butterfly and amphipods
sea butterfly amphipodYouTube - sea angel YouTube - Amphipods Playi
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1. Observation
Many amphipods carry sea butterflies on their backs.
2. Question
Why are the amphipods “kidnapping” sea butterflies?
3. HypothesizeThe sea butterflies give amphipods a chemical defense
4. PredictThey would be able to isolate a toxic chemical from the sea butterfly
Fish that normally feed on amphipods would avoid this chemical
5. Test the Predictions
These were good results, but….Were the fish reacting
to a chemical from the sea butterflies?
or
Were the fish just reacting to the feel of the sea butterflies in their mouths?
Controlled ExperimentExperiment that tests only one thing (variable) at a time.
Here they were looking for chemicals from sea butterflies
Experiment #1Prepared
plain fish food pellets(no sea butterfly extract)
Control Pellets
Experiment #2Prepared
fish food pellets that contained
sea butterfly extract
Experimental Pellets
6. Draw a Conclusion
Sea butterfliesproduce a chemical deterrent.
Looking Forward…..
Possible applications as a pest repellant
Can it be useful in treating in human diseases
Need much more study