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Thermoregulation during Flight: Body Temperature and Sensible Heat Transfer in Free-Ranging Brazilian Free-Tailed Bats (Tadarida brasiliensis)

Authors: Jonathan D, Reichard; Spenser R, Fellows; Alexander J, Frank; Thomas H, Kunz;

Thermoregulation during Flight: Body Temperature and Sensible Heat Transfer in Free-Ranging Brazilian Free-Tailed Bats (Tadarida brasiliensis)

Abstract

(Uploaded by Plazi for the Bat Literature Project) Bat wings are important for thermoregulation, but their role in heat balance during flight is largely unknown. More than 80% of the energy consumed during flight generates heat as a by-product, and thus it is expected that bat wings should dissipate large amounts of heat to prevent hyperthermia. We measured rectal (Tr) and surface (Ts) temperatures of Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) as they emerged from and returned to their daytime roosts and calculated sensible heat transfer for different body regions (head, body, wings, and tail membrane). Bats' Tr decreased from 36.8°C during emergence flights to 34.4°C during returns, and Ts scaled positively with ambient temperature (Ta). Total radiative heat loss from bats was significantly greater for a radiative sink to the night sky than for a sink with temperature equal to Ta. We found that free-ranging Brazilian free-tailed bats, on average, do not dissipate heat from their wings by convection but instead dissipate radiative heat (L) to the cloudless night sky during flight ( W). However, within the range of Ta measured in this study, T. brasiliensis experienced net heat loss between evening emergence and return flights. Regional hypothermia reduces heat loss from wings that are exposed to potentially high convective fluxes. Additional research is needed to establish the role of wings in evaporative cooling during flight in bats.

Related Organizations
Keywords

Male, bats, bat, Biodiversity, Convection, Texas, Body Temperature, Flight, Animal, Chiroptera, Mammalia, Animals, Wings, Animal, Animalia, Female, Chordata, Body Temperature Regulation

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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
32
Top 10%
Top 10%
Top 10%
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