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Social thermoregulation in the subterranean Mashona mole-rat (\kur{Fukomys darlingi}): the role of socio-physiological effect
WIEDENOVÁ, Pavlína
Life underground is one of the most challenging tasks for animals. The subterranean environment is seasonally and diurnally stable and provides shelter from predators. On the other hand food is scarce, the cost of digging is very high and closed burrows create hypoxic and hypercapnic conditions. Thus the physiological and behavioral adaptations to save energy are very important for underground dwellers. Social thermoregulation is such behavioral adaptation. Additionally, it has been suggested that social animals suffer from ?isolation stress? and that they decrease their metabolic rates when other family members are present = socio-physiological effect. In this study I measured the resting metabolic rates (RMR) of social Mashona mole-rats (Fukomys darlingi) in isolated individuals, pairs and groups of three to eight individuals. Measurements were carried out at two ambient temperatures, in the thermoneutral zone (TNZ; 30°C) to test the presence of a socio-physiological effect and below their TNZ (20°C) to test the effect of social thermoregulation. A socio-physiological effect was distinctive neither in pairs nor in larger groups. At temperature below the TNZ the Mashona mole-rat saved 21% of its energetic expense in pairs due to social thermoregulation. With an increase in group size, energetic savings rose up to four animals. In larger groups, social thermoregulation did not influence the energetic expenditure, possibly because Mashona mole-rat´s families naturally contain around four to five adults.
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Daily energy expenditure of subterranean rodent, mole-rat \kur{Fukomys darlingi}, in the relation with group size and temperature
WIEDENOVÁ, Pavlína
Daily energy expenditure (DEE) was examined in the social subterranean rodent Mashona mole-rat (Fukomys darlingi) by the long-term (24 hours) indirect calorimetry. Individuals´ DEEs were compared with DEEs of grouped mole-rats (groups of 2, 3, 4 and 7) to establish the role of social thermoregulation (?huddling?) in this species at two different temperatures (20 and 30°C). The average DEE of single isolated individual was 1.84 ? 0.25 mlO2 g-1h-1 at Ta = 30°C and 2.99 ? 0.34 mlO2 g-1h-1 at Ta = 20°C. The influence of group size on daily energy expenditure (DEE) was observed. The energy savings rose with the increasing number of individuals up to 33.77% in group of seven. Maximal energy savings at 30°C were reached in group of three animals and did not increase further with an increasing number of animas in the group. Similarly at 20°C the maximal savings were observed when seven animals were present. My results confirm that social thermoregulation is an essential mechanism that saves energy expenditure of F. darlingi, which is important in the food-scarce underground environment.
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The Thermoregulatory Abilities in a Mole-rat \kur{Fukomys darlingi} and its Development in Pups
ZEMANOVÁ, Milada
The oxygen consumption and body temperature were measured in adults and pups of a social Mashona mole-rat(Fukomys darlingi)to test poikilothermic traits in this species and effect of presence of adults on pup´s thermoregulation abilities. The adult´s resting metabolic rate was 0.76 {$\pm$} 0.20 mlO2g-1hod-1 in the thermoneutral zone 27-34°C. We did not confirm poikilotermic traits in this species, because body temperature was stable (33.0 {$\pm$} 0.5°C) at low ambient temperatures. The pups started to thermoregulate in age of one month and they are able to maintain stable body temperature very late in age of three months. My results indicate that presence of adults is necessary for thermoregulation of pups.
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The Thermoregulatory Abilities in a Mole-rat \kur{Fukomys darlingi} and its Development in Pups
ZEMANOVÁ, Milada
The oxygen consumption and body temperature were measured in adults and pups of a social Mashona mole-rat(Fukomys darlingi)to test poikilothermic traits in this species and effect of presence of adults on pup´s thermoregulation abilities. The adult´s resting metabolic rate was 0.76 {$\pm$} 0.20 mlO2g-1hod-1 in the thermoneutral zone 27-34°C. We did not confirm poikilotermic traits in this species, because body temperature was stable (33.0 {$\pm$} 0.5°C) at low ambient temperatures. The pups started to thermoregulate in age of one month and they are able to maintain stable body temperature very late in age of three months. My results indicate that presence of adults is necessary for thermoregulation of pups.
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