Stimuli Response
The Central & Peripheral Nervous Systems
Within the nervous system of the Northern Flying Squirrel there are two branches working together; the central
nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS).
The Central Nervous System
The CNS consists of the brain and spinal cord of the organism and controls the voluntary and conscious actions
of the body, with an example being a skeletal-muscular movement.
The Peripheral Nervous System
The PNS consists of nerve fibre branching from the CNS and controls the involuntary and unconscious movements of the organism's body, and is responsible for regulating and coordinating many things, including
the heartbeat and muscles of the digestive system.
Within the nervous system of the Northern Flying Squirrel there are two branches working together; the central
nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS).
The Central Nervous System
The CNS consists of the brain and spinal cord of the organism and controls the voluntary and conscious actions
of the body, with an example being a skeletal-muscular movement.
The Peripheral Nervous System
The PNS consists of nerve fibre branching from the CNS and controls the involuntary and unconscious movements of the organism's body, and is responsible for regulating and coordinating many things, including
the heartbeat and muscles of the digestive system.
The Major Sense Organs
The major sense organs of the Northern Flying Squirrel include that of sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing. The more developed of these senses are smell, sight and touch, with the apparent reasons for this being described below...
Sight
The eyes are the visual organs of the Northern Flying Squirrel and provide it with a visual interface that is unmatched when compared to other animals. This is due to the fact that squirrels have an equal sensitivity to light across their entire retina as opposed to other organism's where their visual sensitivity is focused on only a small area of the retina. This makes the Northern Flying Squirrel excellent at performing activities involving visual coordination such as seeing food and spotting predators on the prowl.
Smell
The nose is the organ that provides the Northern Flying Squirrel with its exceptionally well developed sense of smell. This is because the part of the squirrel's brain that is concerned and responsible for this particular sense ( ) is highly refined and experienced when compared to other senses.
Taste
The tongue is the organ that provides the Northern Flying Squirrel with its sense of taste. Much is unknown about this aspect of the organism's senses, but research has shown that squirrels in general dislike, and are even repulsed by hot or spicy foods, hinting at a highly developed sense of taste, too.
Touch
Touch is another of the highly developed senses in the arsenal of the Northern Flying Squirrel, with all squirrel's inherently having four sets of whiskers on the head acting as touch receptors, consequently relaying information about the squirrel's surrounding to the brain. There are also touch-sensitive whiskers on the wrist, tail and feet, too.
Hearing
Hearing is the last of the senses at the disposal of the Northern Flying Squirrel, and like the others, is very acute and well developed, too. There is no apparent reason for this, but one can assume that in the environment that a creature like this lives in, a sharp mind and acute senses are needed in order to accomplish the game of survival.
The major sense organs of the Northern Flying Squirrel include that of sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing. The more developed of these senses are smell, sight and touch, with the apparent reasons for this being described below...
Sight
The eyes are the visual organs of the Northern Flying Squirrel and provide it with a visual interface that is unmatched when compared to other animals. This is due to the fact that squirrels have an equal sensitivity to light across their entire retina as opposed to other organism's where their visual sensitivity is focused on only a small area of the retina. This makes the Northern Flying Squirrel excellent at performing activities involving visual coordination such as seeing food and spotting predators on the prowl.
Smell
The nose is the organ that provides the Northern Flying Squirrel with its exceptionally well developed sense of smell. This is because the part of the squirrel's brain that is concerned and responsible for this particular sense ( ) is highly refined and experienced when compared to other senses.
Taste
The tongue is the organ that provides the Northern Flying Squirrel with its sense of taste. Much is unknown about this aspect of the organism's senses, but research has shown that squirrels in general dislike, and are even repulsed by hot or spicy foods, hinting at a highly developed sense of taste, too.
Touch
Touch is another of the highly developed senses in the arsenal of the Northern Flying Squirrel, with all squirrel's inherently having four sets of whiskers on the head acting as touch receptors, consequently relaying information about the squirrel's surrounding to the brain. There are also touch-sensitive whiskers on the wrist, tail and feet, too.
Hearing
Hearing is the last of the senses at the disposal of the Northern Flying Squirrel, and like the others, is very acute and well developed, too. There is no apparent reason for this, but one can assume that in the environment that a creature like this lives in, a sharp mind and acute senses are needed in order to accomplish the game of survival.
Response to External Stimulus
The Northern Flying Squirrel responds to an external stimulus stimulus (such as pain) through the following steps and stages...
- Stimulus occurs (change).
- Receptor detects change.
- Sensory neurones collect information and pass it on.
- Motor neurones carry response message.
- The CNS (spine and brain) processes the information and sends a response.
- The effector (e.g. muscles) carries out the response.
- Stimulus is removed or changed.
What is homeostasis?
Homeostasis is the regulation of an internal system so that a stable, constant condition is maintained. In organisms such as the Northern Flying Squirrel, homeostasis is a product of the endocrine system, with the process itself being performed mainly by the release of various hormones (chemicals) in the bloodstream, granting the organism the advantage of being able to function effectively in a broad range of environmental conditions and situations. The drawbacks of homeostasis are that it requires a lot of energy to operate as it is a constant action - meaning that it is always switched on, and the fact that the imbalance of homeostasis can result in diseases or illnesses such as dehydration, hypothermia and diabetes. An example of homeostasis can be found in the diagram below.
Homeostasis is the regulation of an internal system so that a stable, constant condition is maintained. In organisms such as the Northern Flying Squirrel, homeostasis is a product of the endocrine system, with the process itself being performed mainly by the release of various hormones (chemicals) in the bloodstream, granting the organism the advantage of being able to function effectively in a broad range of environmental conditions and situations. The drawbacks of homeostasis are that it requires a lot of energy to operate as it is a constant action - meaning that it is always switched on, and the fact that the imbalance of homeostasis can result in diseases or illnesses such as dehydration, hypothermia and diabetes. An example of homeostasis can be found in the diagram below.