Metabolism during flight in two species of bats, Phyllostomus hastatus and Pteropus gouldii

1975 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 273-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. P. Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass ◽  
Energy Utilization ◽  
Energetic Cost ◽  
Metabolic Rates ◽  
Terrestrial Mammal ◽  
Avian Flight ◽  
Terrestrial Mammals ◽  
Level Flight ◽  
Unit Energy ◽  
Order Of Magnitude

The energetic cost of flight in a wind-tunnel was measured at various combinations of speed and flight angle from two species of bats whose body masses differ by almost an order of magnitude. The highest mean metabolic rate per unit body mass measured from P. hastatus (mean body mass, 0.093 kg) was 130.4 Wkg-1, and that for P. gouldii (mean body mass, 0.78 kg) was 69.6 Wkg-1. These highest metabolic rates, recorded from flying bats, are essentially the same as those predicted for flying birds of the same body masses, but are from 2.5 to 3.0 times greater than the highest metabolic rates of which similar-size exercising terrestrial mammals appear capable. The lowest mean rate of energy utilization per unit body mass P. hastatus required to sustain level flight was 94.2 Wkg-1 and that for P. gouldii was 53.4 Wkg-1. These data from flying bats together with comparable data for flying birds all fall along a straight line when plotted on double logarithmic coordinates as a function of body mass. Such data show that even the lowest metabolic requirements of bats and birds during level flight are about twice the highest metabolic capabilities of similar-size terrestrial mammals. Flying bats share with flying birds the ability to move substantially greater distance per unit energy consumed than walking or running mammals. Calculations show that P. hastatus requires only one-sixth the energy to cover a given distance as does the same-size terrestrial mammal, while P. gouldii requires one-fourth the energy of the same-size terrestrial mammal. An empirically derived equation is presented which enables one to make estimates of the metabolic rates of bats and birds during level flight in nature from body mass data alone. Metabolic data obtained in this study are compared with predictions calculated from an avian flight theory.

scholarly journals Accounting for body mass effects in the estimation of field metabolic rates from body acceleration

2021 ◽  
pp. jeb.233544
Author(s):  
Evan E. Byrnes ◽  
Karissa O. Lear ◽  
Lauran R. Brewster ◽  
Nicholas M. Whitney ◽  
Matthew J. Smukall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass ◽  
Predictive Models ◽  
Scale Dependence ◽  
Metabolic Rates ◽  
Body Acceleration ◽  
Mass Effects ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Field Metabolic Rates ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
Modelling Process

Dynamic Body Acceleration (DBA), measured through animal-attached tags, has emerged as a powerful method for estimating field metabolic rates of free-ranging individuals. Following respirometry to calibrate oxygen consumption rate (MO2) with DBA under controlled conditions, predictive models can be applied to DBA data collected from free-ranging individuals. However, laboratory calibrations are generally performed on a relatively narrow size range of animals, which may introduce biases if predictive models are applied to differently sized individuals in the field. Here, we tested the mass dependence of the DBA-MO2 relationship to develop an experimental framework for the estimation of field metabolic rates when organisms differ in size. We performed respirometry experiments with individuals spanning one order of magnitude in body mass (1.74–17.15 kg) and used a two-stage modelling process to assess the intraspecific scale dependence of the MO2-DBA relationship and incorporate such dependencies into the coefficients of MO2 predictive models. The final predictive model showed scale dependence; the slope of the MO2-DBA relationship was strongly allometric (M1.55), whereas the intercept term scaled closer to isometry (M1.08). Using bootstrapping and simulations, we evaluated the performance of this coefficient-corrected model against commonly used methods of accounting for mass effects on the MO2-DBA relationship and found the lowest error and bias in the coefficient-corrected approach. The strong scale dependence of the MO2-DBA relationship indicates that caution must be exercised when models developed using one size class are applied to individuals of different sizes.

Speed, stride frequency and energy cost per stride: how do they change with body size and gait?

1988 ◽  
Vol 138 (1) ◽  
pp. 301-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. C. Heglund ◽  
C. R. Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Body Mass ◽  
Energy Cost ◽  
Reaction Force ◽  
Stride Frequency ◽  
Energetic Cost ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Frequency Change ◽  
Cost Of Locomotion ◽  
The Cost

In this study we investigate how speed and stride frequency change with body size. We use this information to define ‘equivalent speeds’ for animals of different size and to explore the factors underlying the six-fold difference in mass-specific energy cost of locomotion between mouse- and horse-sized animals at these speeds. Speeds and stride frequencies within a trot and a gallop were measured on a treadmill in 16 species of wild and domestic quadrupeds, ranging in body size from 30 g mice to 200 kg horses. We found that the minimum, preferred and maximum sustained speeds within a trot and a gallop all change in the same rather dramatic manner with body size, differing by nine-fold between mice and horses (i.e. all three speeds scale with about the 0.2 power of body mass). Although the absolute speeds differ greatly, the maximum sustainable speed was about 2.6-fold greater than the minimum within a trot, and 2.1-fold greater within a gallop. The frequencies used to sustain the equivalent speeds (with the exception of the minimum trotting speed) scale with about the same factor, the −0.15 power of body mass. Combining this speed and frequency data with previously published data on the energetic cost of locomotion, we find that the mass-specific energetic cost of locomotion is almost directly proportional to the stride frequency used to sustain a constant speed at all the equivalent speeds within a trot and a gallop, except for the minimum trotting speed (where it changes by a factor of two over the size range of animals studied). Thus the energy cost per kilogram per stride at five of the six equivalent speeds is about the same for all animals, independent of body size, but increases with speed: 5.0 J kg-1 stride-1 at the preferred trotting speed; 5.3 J kg-1 stride-1 at the trot-gallop transition speed; 7.5 J kg-1 stride-1 at the preferred galloping speed; and 9.4 J kg-1 stride-1 at the maximum sustained galloping speed. The cost of locomotion is determined primarily by the cost of activating muscles and of generating a unit of force for a unit of time. Our data show that both these costs increase directly with the stride frequency used at equivalent speeds by different-sized animals. The increase in cost per stride with muscles (necessitating higher muscle forces for the same ground reaction force) as stride length increases both in the trot and in the gallop.

scholarly journals Terrestrial mammal diversity in forests close to pineapple crops, Cutris San Carlos, Costa Rica.

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-65
Author(s):  
Jonathan Navarro P ◽  
Alexander Gómez L
Keyword(s):  
Conservation Status ◽  
Forest Fragments ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Forest Patches ◽  
Wild Mammals ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Terrestrial Mammal ◽  
Terrestrial Mammals ◽  
San Carlos ◽  
Mammal Diversity

Pineapple crops reduce the size of forest fragments and generate pressure on biodiversity in the remnants. To determine potential negative effects of forest fragmentation we assessed diversity and composition of terrestrial mammals in forest patches on three farms under pineapple crops. We placedSherman and Tomahawk traps, footprints traps near water bodies, and made daily tracks to obtain traces and direct observation of mammals. We identified seven species of wild mammals, mostly omnivorous and under a least concern conservation status. The effect of cover type generated by the pineapple crops is consistent with mammal composition. Pineapple crops could enhance the most common wildlife problems, such as predator-prey relationships. Therefore, pineapple plantations, by causing fragmentation and lack of connectivity among forest patches, threaten extinction of mammals in some of their original range.

THE ENERGETIC COSTS OF CALLING IN THE BUSHCRICKET REQUENA VERTICALIS (ORTHOPTERA: TETTIGONIIDAE: LISTROSCELIDINAE)

1993 ◽  
Vol 178 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. J. Bailey ◽  
P. C. Withers ◽  
M. Endersby ◽  
K. Gaull
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass ◽  
Sound Pressure ◽  
Metabolic Cost ◽  
Acoustic Power ◽  
Metabolic Energy ◽  
Energetic Cost ◽  
Metabolic Efficiency ◽  
Metabolic Costs ◽  
Sound Pressure Levels ◽  
The Relationship

1. The metabolic costs of calling for male Requena verticalis Walker (Tettigoniidae: Listroscelidinae) were measured by direct recordings of oxygen consumption. The acoustic power output was measured by sound pressure levels around the calling bushcricket. 2. The average metabolic cost of calling was 0.143 ml g-1 h-1 but depended on calling rate. The net metabolic cost of calling per unit call, the syllable, was calculated to be 4.34×10-6+/−8.3×10-7 ml O2 syllable-1 g-1 body mass (s.e.) from the slope of the relationship between total V(dot)O2 and rate of syllable production. The resting V(dot)O2, calculated as the intercept of the relationship, was 0.248 ml O2 g-1 body mass h-1. 3. The energetic cost of calling for R. verticalis (average mass 0.37 g) was estimated at 31.85×10-6 J syllable-1. 4. Sound pressure levels were measured around calling insects. The surface area of a sphere of uniform sound pressure level [83 dB SPL root mean square (RMS) acoustic power] obtained by these measurements was used to calculate acoustic power. This was 0.20 mW. 5. The metabolic efficiency of calling, based on total metabolic energy utilisation, was 6.4 %. However, we propose that the mechanical efficiency for acoustic transmission is closer to 57 %, since only about 10 % of muscle metabolic energy is apparently available for sound production. 6. R. verticalis emits chirps formed of several syllables within which are discrete sound pulses. Wing stroke rates, when the insect is calling at its maximal rate, were approximately 583 min-1. This is slow compared to the rates observed in conehead tettigoniids, the only other group of bushcrickets where metabolic costs have been measured. The thoracic temperatures of males that had been calling for 5 min were not significantly different from those of non-calling males. 7. For R. verticalis, calling with relatively slow syllable rates may reduce the total cost of calling, and this may be a compensatory mechanism for their other high energetic cost of mating (a large spermatophylax).

Bird Metabolism During Flight: Evaluation of a Theory

1973 ◽  
Vol 58 (3) ◽  
pp. 689-709 ◽  
Author(s):  
VANCE A. TUCKER
Keyword(s):  
Reynolds Number ◽  
Absolute Error ◽  
Metabolic Rates ◽  
Avian Flight ◽  
Theoretical Predictions ◽  
Reynolds Number Effects ◽  
Plate Area ◽  
Laughing Gulls ◽  
Modified Theory ◽  
Approximate Equations

1. Pennycuick's (1969) theory for the energetic requirements of avian flight predicts the metabolic rates of budgerigars and laughing gulls flying level at intermediate speeds in a wind tunnel with an accuracy of 10% or better. However, its predictions appear to be low for most birds with masses less than 0·1 kg and high for most birds with masses greater than 0·5 kg. 2. Four modifications are made to Pennycuick's theory: (1) a different computation of induced power; (2) a different estimate of equivalent flat plate area that includes Reynolds number effects, and is based on additional measurements; (3) a different estimate of profile power that includes Reynolds number effects; and (4) the addition of power terms for respiration and circulation. These modifications improve the agreement between the theoretical predictions and existing measurements for flying birds and bats. 3. The metabolic rates of birds and bats in level flight at various speeds can be estimated by the modified theory if body mass alone is measured. Improved estimates can be made if wing span is measured as well. In the latter case the theory predicts measured values with a mean absolute error of 8·3%. 4. The results of the modified theory are presented by approximate equations that can be solved quickly for metabolic rate and flight speed with a slide rule.

Dynamics of photoconversion processes: the energetic cost of lifetime gain in photosynthetic and photovoltaic systems

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Godin ◽  
James R. Durrant
Keyword(s):  
Kinetic Model ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Energy Conversion ◽  
Energy Cost ◽  
Energetic Cost ◽  
Photovoltaic Systems ◽  
Simple Kinetic Model ◽  
Energy Conversion Systems ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
The Cost

The energy cost of lifetime gain in solar energy conversion systems is determined from a breadth of technologies. The cost of 87 meV per order of magnitude lifetime improvement is strikingly close to the 59 meV determined from a simple kinetic model.

Efficiency of uphill locomotion in nocturnal and diurnal lizards

1996 ◽  
Vol 199 (3) ◽  
pp. 587-592 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Farley ◽  
M Emshwiller
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Minimum Cost ◽  
Mechanical Work ◽  
Energetic Cost ◽  
Cost Of Transport ◽  
Unit Distance ◽  
Cost Of Locomotion ◽  
Average Body Mass ◽  
Average Body

Nocturnal geckos can walk on level ground more economically than diurnal lizards. One hypothesis for why nocturnal geckos have a low cost of locomotion is that they can perform mechanical work during locomotion more efficiently than other lizards. To test this hypothesis, we compared the efficiency of the nocturnal gecko Coleonyx variegatus (average body mass 4.2 g) and the diurnal skink Eumeces skiltonianus (average body mass 4.8 g) when they performed vertical work during uphill locomotion. We measured the rate of oxygen consumption when each species walked on the level and up a 50 slope over a range of speeds. For Coleonyx variegatus, the energetic cost of traveling a unit distance (the minimum cost of transport, Cmin) increased from 1.5 to 2.7 ml O2 kg-1 m-1 between level and uphill locomotion. For Eumeces skiltonianus, Cmin increased from 2.5 to 4.7 ml O2 kg-1 m-1 between level and uphill locomotion. By taking the difference between Cmin for level and uphill locomotion, we found that the efficiency of performing vertical work during locomotion was 37 % for Coleonyx variegatus and 19 % for Eumeces skiltonianus. The similarity between the 1.9-fold difference in vertical efficiency and the 1.7-fold difference in the cost of transport on level ground is consistent with the hypothesis that nocturnal geckos have a lower cost of locomotion than other lizards because they can perform mechanical work during locomotion more efficiently.

scholarly journals Examining predator–prey body size, trophic level and body mass across marine and terrestrial mammals

2014 ◽  
Vol 281 (1797) ◽  
pp. 20142103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marlee A. Tucker ◽  
Tracey L. Rogers
Keyword(s):  
Community Structure ◽  
Body Size ◽  
Body Mass ◽  
Marine Environment ◽  
Trophic Level ◽  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Trophic Position ◽  
Trophic Levels ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Terrestrial Mammals

Predator–prey relationships and trophic levels are indicators of community structure, and are important for monitoring ecosystem changes. Mammals colonized the marine environment on seven separate occasions, which resulted in differences in species' physiology, morphology and behaviour. It is likely that these changes have had a major effect upon predator–prey relationships and trophic position; however, the effect of environment is yet to be clarified. We compiled a dataset, based on the literature, to explore the relationship between body mass, trophic level and predator–prey ratio across terrestrial ( n = 51) and marine ( n = 56) mammals. We did not find the expected positive relationship between trophic level and body mass, but we did find that marine carnivores sit 1.3 trophic levels higher than terrestrial carnivores. Also, marine mammals are largely carnivorous and have significantly larger predator–prey ratios compared with their terrestrial counterparts. We propose that primary productivity, and its availability, is important for mammalian trophic structure and body size. Also, energy flow and community structure in the marine environment are influenced by differences in energy efficiency and increased food web stability. Enhancing our knowledge of feeding ecology in mammals has the potential to provide insights into the structure and functioning of marine and terrestrial communities.

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