Mapping Shade Availability and Use in Zoo Environments: A Tool for Evaluating Thermal Comfort
For many species in zoos, particularly megafauna vulnerable to heat stress, shade is a key environmental resource. However, shade availability has received comparatively less attention than other aspects of the zoo environment. In this study, we share a simple low-cost approach that we applied to document shade availability across 33 zoo enclosures. We then combined […]
Amphibian temperature regulation studies in the field and laboratory
Studies on thermoregulation in the laboratory and field have come a long way from the early work done between 1940 and 1960. While some physiological studies on amphibians have progressed at the same rate as those on reptiles, field studies have been far behind. Laboratory studies have largely delt with thermal acclimation, evaporative water loss, […]
The naked truth: Breeding performance in nude mice with and without nesting material
In laboratories, mice are housed at ambient temperatures between 20 and 24 °C, which is below their lower critical temperature of 30 °C, but comfortable for human workers. Thus, mice are under chronic thermal stress, which can compromise many aspects of physiology from metabolism to pup growth. These effects may be exacerbated in nude mice. […]