State dependence of arousal from torpor in brown long-eared bats (Plecotus auritus)

AbstractTo cope with periods of low food availability and unsuitable environmental conditions (e.g., short photoperiod or challenging weather), many heterothermic mammals can readily go into torpor to save energy. However, torpor also entails several potential costs, and quantitative energetics can, therefore, be influenced by the individual state, such as available energy reserves. We studied the thermal energetics of brown long-eared bats (Plecotus auritus) in the northern part of its distributional range, including torpor entry, thermoregulatory ability during torpor and how they responded metabolically to an increasing ambient temperature (Ta) during arousal from torpor. Torpor entry occurred later in bats with higher body mass (Mb). During torpor, only 10 out of 21 bats increased oxygen consumption (V ̇O2) to a greater extent above the mean torpor metabolic rates (TMR) when exposed to lowTa. The slope of the torpid thermoregulatory curve was shallower than that of resting metabolic rate (RMR) during normothermic conditions, indicating a higher thermal insulation during torpor. During exposure to an increasingTa, all bats increased metabolic rate exponentially, but the bats with higherMb aroused at a lowerTa than those with lowerMb. In bats with lowMb, arousal was postponed to anTa above the lower critical temperature of the thermoneutral zone. Our results demonstrate that physiological traits, which are often considered fixed, can be more flexible than previously assume...
Source: Journal of Comparative Physiology B: Biochemical, Systemic, and Environmental Physiology - Category: Physiology Source Type: research