Body Temperatures of Arctic and Subarctic Birds and Mammals
- 1 May 1954
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Physiological Society in Journal of Applied Physiology
- Vol. 6 (11) , 667-680
- https://doi.org/10.1152/jappl.1954.6.11.667
Abstract
The resting body temp. was measured in 22 spp. of arctic and subarctic mammals and in 30 spp. of birds in arctic and subarctic Alaska. Many measurements were made in the field in arctic winter temps. and some were made under even colder exptl. conditions. Resting body temps. were taken as those which prevailed by day when animals were alert and not in strenuous activity. Series of observations show that from 20[degree] to -30[degree]C, and in some cases below -50[degree]the individuals of a sp. maintain the same body temp. within a range of about 2 deg. The mean temp. of all of the arctic and subarctic spp. of mammals examined differed within a range of 2.2 deg. Among avian spp. the difference was slightly greater. The avg. of the mean body temp. in 19 mammalian spp. observed in good resting condition was 38.[degree]C. The avg. of all observations of the mean body temp. of 30 avian spp. was 41.lt. The distribution of mean temps. of the various spp. of birds and mammals about the means of their respective classes bore no relation to the wts. of the animals. The birds weighed between 10 and 2000 g.; the mammals weighed from 0.1 to 1000 kg. It is apparent that each sp. has its own temp. and that the spp. of each class are in separate groups in regard to level of temp. regulation. The mean of body temps. of the northern mammals was 0.5 deg. higher than was summarized by Morrison and Ryser from records of 56 spp. of mammals of temperate regions. The mean of the spp. of birds examined in Alaska was 0.5 deg. lower than was summarized from Wetmore''s report on the temp. of birds in temperate U. S. These small opposite differences cannot be ascribed to climate or method and may be the result of sampling from the limited number of arctic and subarctic spp. Arctic and subarctic birds and mammals keep their resting body temps. stable in the great variety of arctic temps. which requires extreme flexibility in the variable physiological functions concerned with the regulation of animal heat.Keywords
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