Hibernation allows animals to reduce their energy needs during winter, when food may be scarce and high amounts of energy would be required to maintain body temperature. These animals prepare for winter by storing body fat that can be used as fuel during hibernation. Skeletal muscles in particular have high energy needs as they make up nearly half of an animal’s body mass. They also play important roles in regulating […]
The ability to regulate body temperature is critical for animals. This is especially true for small mammals as they have a larger surface area resulting in more heat loss to the environment than larger animals. Animals that stay active during the winter likewise have to spend more energy to stay warm. To do this well, they need to balance heat loss with heat generation through shivering as well as non-shivering […]
New research published in the American Journal of Physiology Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology shows that bacterial infections increase the production of nitric oxide in chicks, which is similar to what happens in rodents. The increase in nitric oxide is thought to be related to the development of fever. In fact, when nitric oxide production was blocked, thermogenesis was inhibited and infected chicks began to huddle more to increase body temperature. Source: […]
Life Lines by Dr. Dolittle 