Thermal acclimatisation to heatwave conditions is rapid but sex-specific in wild zebra finches.

ABSTRACT: Under climate change, increasing air temperature average and variability pose substantial thermal challenges to animals. While plasticity in thermoregulatory traits could potentially attenuate this impact, whether thermal acclimatisation can occur quickly enough to track weather variability in hot climates is unknown in any endotherm, and sex differences have never been tested. We investigated acclimatisation responsiveness of male and female wild zebra finches to short-term (< 2 weeks) summer temperature fluctuations in the Australian desert. Hotter weather before respirometry trials triggered a typical acclimatisation response (especially at chamber temperature T_chamb ≥ 40). However, acclimatisation occurred remarkably rapidly: metabolic rate responded within just one day, whi

SUBMITTER: Pessato A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10600105 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature