Biology 2601A/B Study Guide - Final Guide: Cricetulus, Heterothermy, Chinese Striped Hamster
10 Dec 2015
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Document Summary
Effect of temperature on oxygen consumption of the mouse, mus musculus. Endotherms possess a mechanism of thermoregulation that allows them to maintain a relative constant body temperature in varying environmental temperatures. Maintaining a constant body temperature depends on the organism"s ability to produce and maintain metabolic heat. This capability gives endothermic organisms a great amount of independence from eternal thermal conditions (hill et al. , 2012). Specifically, homeotherms are able to maintain a stable body temperature over a wide range of thermal conditions (hill et al. , 2012). The resting metabolic rate of an endotherm often varies with changing environmental temperature. The temperature range in which organism"s can maintain a constant metabolic rate is known as the thermoneutral zone (tnz). At this temperature range, metabolic rate is independent of ambient temperature and body temperature is maintained through behavioral responses (hill et al. , 2012). The lowest ambient temperature in the tnz of an organism is determined to be the lower critical temperature (lct).
