Effects of temperature acclimation on body mass and energy budget in the Chinese bulbul Pycnonotus sinensis  

作　　者：Yu-Nan WU Lin LIN Yu-Chao XIAO Li-Meng ZHOU Meng-Si WU Hui-Ying ZHANG Jin-Song LIU 

机构地区：[1]School of Life and Environmental Sciences,Wenzhou University [2]Zhejiang Provincial Key Lab for Subtropical Freshwater Environment and Marine Biological Resources Protection [3]Institute of Applied Ecology,Wenzhou University

出　　处：《Zoological Research》2014年第1期33-41,共9页动物学研究（英文）

基　　金：supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(31070366);the‘Xinmiao’Project in Zhejiang Province

摘　　要：Chinese bulbuls （Pycnonotus sinensis） are small passerine birds that inhabit areas of central, southern and eastern China. Previous observations suggest that flee-living individuals of this species may change their food intake in response to seasonal changes in ambient temperature. In the present study, we randomly assigned Chinese bulbuls to either a 30 ~C or 10 ~C group, and measured their body mass （BM）, body temperature, gross energy intake （GEl）, digestible energy intake （DEI）, and the length and mass of their digestive tracts over 28 days of acclimation at these temperatures. As predicted, birds in the 30 ℃ group had lower body mass, GEI and DEI relative to those in the 10 ℃ group. The length and mass of the digestive tract was also lower in the 30 ℃ group and trends in these parameters were positively correlated with BM, GEl and DEI. These results suggest that Chinese bulbuls reduced their absolute energy demands at relatively high temperatures by decreasing their body mass, GEI and DEI, and digestive tract size.Chinese bulbuls(Pycnonotus sinensis) are small passerine birds that inhabit areas of central, southern and eastern China. Previous observations suggest that free–living individuals of this species may change their food intake in response to seasonal changes in ambient temperature. In the present study, we randomly assigned Chinese bulbuls to either a 30 °C or 10 °C group, and measured their body mass(BM), body temperature, gross energy intake(GEI), digestible energy intake(DEI), and the length and mass of their digestive tracts over 28 days of acclimation at these temperatures. As predicted, birds in the 30 °C group had lower body mass, GEI and DEI relative to those in the 10 °C group. The length and mass of the digestive tract was also lower in the 30 °C group and trends in these parameters were positively correlated with BM, GEI and DEI. These results suggest that Chinese bulbuls reduced their absolute energy demands at relatively high temperatures by decreasing their body mass, GEI and DEI, and digestive tract size.

关 键 词：Body mass Energy budget Pycnonotus sinensis Temperature acclimation 

分 类 号：Q958[生物学—动物学]