Unusual allometry between respiration rate and body size in Chaoborus species

The respiration rates of all four instars of Chaoborus flavicanswere measured with a flow-through respirometer at an experimentaltemperature of 20°C. The respiration rates (µg O₂larva^-1 h^-1) increased parallel to the larval stages accordingto R = 0.027 x W^0.416 (W = µg dry weight), reaching arespiration rate eight times higher for instar IV than for instarI. The slope of the increase with body weight was as low asin two tropical Chaoborus species and was considerably lowerthan usually found for other aquatic animals. Instar IV larvaecollected in the spring showed a significantly higher respirationrate than those collected in the fall. The respiration rateof the fourth instar approximately doubled with a Q₁₀ of 2.1when the experimental temperature was increased from 10 to 20°C.     

The effect of temperature on the respiration rate of meiofauna

Summary The effect of temperature on respiration rate has been established, using Cartesian divers, for the meiofaunal sabellid polychaeteManayunkia aestuarina, the free-living nematodeSphaerolaimus hirsutus and the harpacticoid copepodTachidius discipes from a mudflat in the Lynher estuary, Cornwall, U.K. Over the temperature range normally experienced in the field, i.e. 5–20° C the size-compensated respiration rate (R _c) was related to the temperature (T) in °C by the equation Log₁₀ R _c=-0.635+0.0339T forManayunkia, Log₁₀ R _c=0.180+0.0069T forSphaerolaimus and Log₁₀ R _c=-0.428+0.0337T forTachidius, being equivalent toQ ₁₀ values of 2.19, 1.17 and 2.17 respectively. In order to derive the temperature response forManayunkia a relationship was first established between respiration rate and body size: Log₁₀ R=0.05+0.75 Log₁₀ V whereR=respiration in nl·O₂·ind^-1·h^-1 andV=body volume in nl.TheQ ₁₀ values are compared with values for other species derived from the literature. From these limited data a dichotomy emerges: species with aQ ₁₀2 which apparently feed on diatoms and bacteria, the abundance of which are subject to large short term variability, and species withQ ₁₀1 apparently dependent on more stable food sources.     

Diurnal heart rate and body temperature in marmosets

Marmosets, Saguinus oedipus oedipus and S. fuscicollis, have been shown to have a diurnal heart rate pattern that has a marked difference between high and low values (about 55 beats/minute) and shows a low point during daylight hours around 1300–1400 hours. A similar pattern for body temperature was seen. A species difference existed; the larger S. o. oedipus has a higher heart rate during both light and dark periods. All measurements were made on undisturbed animals at hourly intervals using radiotelemetry. They were kept in a controlled environment with a light cycle of 12L: 12D and a temperature of 27 ± 1°C.     

Patterns of activity and body temperature of Aldabra giant tortoises in relation to environmental temperature

We studied the temperature relations of wild and zoo Aldabra giant tortoises (Aldabrachelys gigantea) focusing on (1) the relationship between environmental temperature and tortoise activity patterns (n = 8 wild individuals) and (2) on tortoise body temperature fluctuations, including how their core and external body temperatures vary in relation to different environmental temperature ranges (seasons; n = 4 wild and n = 5 zoo individuals). In addition, we surveyed the literature to review the effect of body mass on core body temperature range in relation to environmental temperature in the Testudinidae. Diurnal activity of tortoises was bimodally distributed and influenced by environmental temperature and season. The mean air temperature at which activity is maximized was 27.9°C, with a range of 25.8–31.7°C. Furthermore, air temperature explained changes in the core body temperature better than did mass, and only during the coldest trial, did tortoises with higher mass show more stable temperatures. Our results, together with the overall Testudinidae overview, suggest that, once variation in environmental temperature has been taken into account, there is little effect of mass on the temperature stability of tortoises. Moreover, the presence of thermal inertia in an individual tortoise depends on the environmental temperatures, and we found no evidence for inertial homeothermy. Finally, patterns of core and external body temperatures in comparison with environmental temperatures suggest that Aldabra giant tortoises act as mixed conformer–regulators. Our study provides a baseline to manage the thermal environment of wild and rewilded populations of an important island ecosystem engineer species in an era of climate change.     

A simple method to predict body temperature of small reptiles from environmental temperature

To study behavioral thermoregulation, it is useful to use thermal sensors and physical models to collect environmental temperatures that are used to predict organism body temperature. Many techniques involve expensive or numerous types of sensors (cast copper models, or temperature, humidity, radiation, and wind speed sensors) to collect the microhabitat data necessary to predict body temperatures. Expense and diversity of requisite sensors can limit sampling resolution and accessibility of these methods. We compare body temperature predictions of small lizards from iButtons, DS18B20 sensors, and simple copper models, in both laboratory and natural conditions. Our aim was to develop an inexpensive yet accurate method for body temperature prediction. Either method was applicable given appropriate parameterization of the heat transfer equation used. The simplest and cheapest method was DS18B20 sensors attached to a small recording computer. There was little if any deficit in precision or accuracy compared to other published methods. We show how the heat transfer equation can be parameterized, and it can also be used to predict body temperature from historically collected data, allowing strong comparisons between current and previous environmental temperatures using the most modern techniques. Our simple method uses very cheap sensors and loggers to extensively sample habitat temperature, improving our understanding of microhabitat structure and thermal variability with respect to small ectotherms. While our method was quite precise, we feel any potential loss in accuracy is offset by the increase in sample resolution, important as it is increasingly apparent that, particularly for small ectotherms, habitat thermal heterogeneity is the strongest influence on transient body temperature.     

The effects of environmental temperature on the body temperature and ear morphology of the mouse

1. 1.|The external temperatures of the trunks and tails of four groups of mice kept at 33, 21, 8 and 4°C for the first 6 months of their life were different depending on the environmental temperature.

2. 2.|The skin temperatures over the tails was lower than those over the trunk at all ambient temperatures but the internal rectal temperature had not changed.

3. 3.|Those ear pinnae are also important in thermoregulation for those of 33°C mice were larger and thinner than those kept at the lower temperatures.

土壤温度和湿度对长白松林土壤呼吸速率的影响

2003年6月17日、8月日和10月10日,研究了长白山长白松林地内土壤呼吸速率和断根土壤呼吸速率日变化,并于2004年5～9月对其季节变化进行了测定.结果表明,土壤总呼吸速率和断根土壤呼吸速率的日变化均呈单峰型,峰值一般出现在12:00～14:00,8月份土壤呼吸速率的日变化幅度小于6月份和10月份.土壤总呼吸速率、断根土壤呼吸速率和根系呼吸速率具有明显的季节变化,6～8月份较高,5月份和9月份较低.2004年5～9月份,土壤总呼吸速率、断根土壤呼吸速率和根系呼吸速率的平均值分别为3.12、1.94和1.18 μmolCO₂·m^-2·s^-1,根系呼吸对土壤总呼吸的贡献为26.5%～52.6%.土壤呼吸速率与土壤温度之间呈显著的指数相关,与土壤湿度之间呈线性相关.土壤总呼吸速率、断根土壤呼吸速率和根系呼吸速率的Q10值分别为2.44、2.55和2.27,断根土壤呼吸速率对温度的敏感程度大于土壤总呼吸速率和根系呼吸速率.土壤总呼吸速率对土壤湿度的敏感程度大于根系呼吸,断根土壤呼吸速率对土壤湿度的敏感程度最差.     

The effects of elevated temperature and humidity on rectal temperature and respiration rate in the New Zealand white rabbit

In 2 replicated factorial experiments, 7-h climate chamber exposures were used to study the responses of adult NZW rabbits to a range of elevated temperatures and humidities. At 18 mm Hg water vapour pressure, 23.8° C was well tolerated, rectal temperature (RT) and respiration rate (RR) averaging 38.6±0.3° C and 82.9±15.5 breaths/min, respectively. Both parameters were elevated (P<0.001) at 32.2°, 37.8° and 43.3° C. RT and RR reached plateau levels of 39.5–40.1° C and 410–460/min at 32.2° C, which was tolerated for the full 7-h test period. Test temperatures of 37.8° and 43.3° C, on the other hand, could be tolerated for only 80 and 40 min respectively, before RT reached the safe upper limit of 41.7° C. Final RR values at 37.8° and 43.3° C were 701.6±42.7 and 812±55.1/min, respectively. In a 34.5° C atmosphere a humidity of 21 mm Hg water vapour pressure was classified as dry, and was tolerated for 323±123 min. RT and RR increased by 0.6° C and 316/min during the first 20 min of exposure (P<0.05). Thereafter both parameters increased progressively, but with no significant differences between successive recording periods, until RR reached 550.3±88.8/min at 41.7° C RT. Humidities of 25, 29 and 33 mm Hg water vapour pressure were, on the other hand, classified as wet and were tolerated for only 92±22, 81±16 and 119±50 min, respectively. RR at the times that RT reached 41.7° C at these 3 humidities was 732±26, 789±30 and 764±23/min, respectively. The results point to the likelihood that thermal stress will adversely affect the productivity and welfare of NZW rabbits in the tropics unless adequate housing environments are provided. Significant between-individual phenotypic differences in heat tolerance suggest the need for genetic studies of the possibility of selecting for improved heat tolerance.