Question

It is much easier for a small animal to run uphill than a large animal, because
A. It is easier to carry a small body weight.
B. Smaller animals have higher metabolic rate.
C. Small animals have a lower O2 requirement.
D. The efficiency of muscles in large animals is less in the small animals.

Answer 1

Hint:- To run uphill a huge amount of energy will be required by the body of animals. For calculating such energy used up by any organism we use metabolic rate. When the body is at rest it uses energy to complete various metabolic activities but when the body is moving or doing work then we calculate the basal metabolic rate.

Complete step-by-step solution:- Basal metabolic rate is the amount of energy used per unit time by an organism. It can be measured in various units including watt, joule per hour. Basal metabolic rate affects the number of calories used up by a person. The processes which require energy are breathing, blood circulation, cell growth, and contraction of muscles.
Oxygen consumption is the amount of oxygen required by the body and taken in while respiration per minute. It is also called the rate of oxygen used. An increase in the ventricular volume and an increase in the blood pressure both factors are involved in the increase of oxygen demand.
Whenever we do heavy exercise there is not enough oxygen available in our body which causes anaerobic metabolism to occur in the body. This leads to the formation of lactic acid in the body. It causes discomfort to the body.
The answer is ‘smaller animals have higher metabolic rate’.

Note:- The smaller animals have a high metabolic rate as the metabolic rate is inversely proportional to the body of the animal. So small animals can run faster and can climb uphill faster than large animals.