Feeding & Nutrition Study Quiz
Answer the questions below:
1. True or false
a) all insects can eat anything
b) insects can vary the amount of nutrients they ingest over time by altering the size of meals and the intermeal duration
c) only macronutrients are essential for insect growth
d) 10 amino acids are considered essential for insect growth as insects can synthesize the other amino acids required
e) everything an insect ingests is digested
f) the balance of nutrients required by an insects results from evolution, stage of life, previous dietary history
2. Choose which statement is correct
a) In plants, nitrogen is in very low supply relative to carbohydrate. Therefore if insects can obtain sufficient protein, then they will have gained carbohydrate in excess of requirements
b) Insects only use pre-ingestive mechanisms to meet nutrient requirements
c) It does not matter what food an insect eats, as they can use post-ingestive processes to obtain the required ‘balance’ of nutrients
d) Although insects have an arsenal of post-ingestive mechanisms to remove nutrients ingested in excess of requirements, they still suffer reduced growth and prolonged development if ingesting foods that are suboptimal to requirements.
3. Choose which statement is correct
a) insects are able to balance their nutrient requirements by keeping a running tally of what they eat
b) insects balance their nutrient requirements by the integration of information from sense receptors and their internal nutrient state
c) insects have specialized mouthparts and guts that enable them to exploit specific resources which they are adapted to eat and therefore these foods supply them with the required nutrients
d) ‘You are what you eat’. Therefore an insect’s body composition is highly variable depending on what it eats.
4. Choose which statement is incorrect
Symbionts in insects...
a) Can provide nutrients the insect cannot ingest
b) Always improves the fitness of the insect
c) Assist in detoxification
d) Can produce anti predator compounds
5. Locusts were provided with one of four food pairings that contained the following percentages of protein and carbohydrate (P:C), 7P:14C and 14P:7C, 7P:14C and 28P:14C, 14P:28C and 28P:14C and 14P:28C and 14P:7C. Four scenarios of ingestive behavior are illustrated below. Match the results illustrated on the graph with the ingestive behavior.
a) Maximizing nitrogen intake
b) Maximizing energy intake
c) Defending a ‘nutrient target’ (a specific blend and amount of P + C)
d) Feeding randomly
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