Temperature Preference Testing with TECA Thermal Gradient system:
A university research laboratory is pleased with TECA’s Thermal Gradient Bar. It is being used with two TECA Model AHP-1200CPV Cold/Hot Plates to create a gradient.
The user writes:
We are using the TECA cold plates to create a thermal gradient from 10 to 50 degrees C. We have 6 aluminum tracks running from the hot plate to the cold plate. We place ground beetles (family Carabidae) on the center of the gradient (one in each track), cover them to reduce light interference, and allow them to acclimate to and explore the track for 15 minutes. We then do a series of 8 checks every 5 minutes and record their location on the track at each check. We initially used 10 thermocouples along the track to model the temperature at each location and can now infer the temperature the beetle was resting at during each check based on its location. Ultimately, we are using all these measurements to estimate the preferred temperature of each ground beetle species. So far, we have experimented with about 10 species, and hope to test more species next year.
