托福口语 Task 4

Today we're going to talk about a fascinating phenomenon in animal behavior called 'behavioral thermoregulation.' This is when animals deliberately change their behavior to control their body temperature, rather than relying solely on physiological mechanisms like sweating or shivering. Let me give you two examples. First, consider the desert iguana. When the sun gets too intense, the iguana doesn't just lie in the open. Instead, it climbs onto a rock and adopts a posture that minimizes its exposure to the sun—it faces the sun directly, with its body narrow side-on, reducing the surface area hit by solar radiation. This allows it to stay active longer without overheating. Second, think about honeybees. On hot days, worker bees will collect water and bring it back to the hive. They then spread the water on the hive's surface and fan their wings vigorously, creating evaporative cooling. This behavior lowers the hive's temperature, protecting the developing larvae. So, in both cases, the animals use specific actions to manage their thermal environment, which is crucial for survival.