MICROANATOMY

Detailed explanation-1: -ectotherm, any so-called cold-blooded animal-that is, any animal whose regulation of body temperature depends on external sources, such as sunlight or a heated rock surface. The ectotherms include the fishes, amphibians, reptiles, and invertebrates.

Detailed explanation-2: -Cold-blooded animals cannot generate their own body heat, but they do regulate it by changing their environment. Alligators and other reptiles often lie in the sun to warm themselves. On the other hand, they cool off by taking a dip in the water, moving into the sade of a rock or crawling into a burrow in the ground.

Detailed explanation-3: -In contrast, ectotherms rely on behavior to regulate their body temperature. They must move their bodies into the shade or sun to cool down or warm up. This requires less energy than constant metabolic regulation. This is why many reptiles and other ectotherms can eat one large meal and not eat again for some time.

Detailed explanation-4: -Reptiles and amphibians are ectotherms, while birds are endotherms. An ectotherm (reptile/amphibian) relies primarily on its external environment to regulate the temperature of its body. Endotherms (birds) are able to regulate their body temperatures by producing heat within the body.