Causes and significance of variation in mammalian basal metabolism |
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Authors: | David A Raichlen Adam D Gordon Magdalena N Muchlinski J Josh Snodgrass |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Anthropology, University of Arizona, 1009 E. South Campus Drive, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA;(2) Department of Anthropology, University at Albany, SUNY, Albany, NY, USA;(3) Department of Anatomy and Pathology, Marshall University, School of Medicine, Huntington, VA, USA;(4) Department of Anthropology, University of Oregon, Corvallis, OR, USA |
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Abstract: | Mammalian basal metabolic rates (BMR) increase with body mass, whichs explains approximately 95% of the variation in BMR.
However, at a given mass, there remains a large amount of variation in BMR. While many researchers suggest that the overall
scaling of BMR with body mass is due to physiological constraints, variation at a given body mass may provide clues as to
how selection acts on BMR. Here, we examine this variation in BMR in a broad sample of mammals and we test the hypothesis
that, across mammals, body composition explains differences in BMR at a given body mass. Variation in BMR is strongly correlated
with variation in muscle mass, and both of these variables are correlated with latitude and ambient temperature. These results
suggest that selection alters BMR in response to thermoregulatory pressures, and that selection uses muscle mass as a means
to generate this variation. |
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Keywords: | |
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