Does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)?
We examined the effects of season and captivity on several commonly measured physiological variables (body temperature, metabolic rate, thermal conductance, and evaporative water loss [EWL]) for the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus), an endangered myrmecophagous Australian marsupial, because the mainte...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
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American Society of Mammalogists
2012
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42881 |
| _version_ | 1848756539378106368 |
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| author | Cooper, Christine Withers, P |
| author_facet | Cooper, Christine Withers, P |
| author_sort | Cooper, Christine |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | We examined the effects of season and captivity on several commonly measured physiological variables (body temperature, metabolic rate, thermal conductance, and evaporative water loss [EWL]) for the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus), an endangered myrmecophagous Australian marsupial, because the maintenance of a wild-type physiology may increase the likelihood of successful reintroduction of numbats into the wild. Our results indicate that the physiology of male captive numbats is representative of wild individuals, at least at thermoneutrality, except for some diet-related effects on substrate metabolism and thermoregulation. Season significantly influenced physiological variables, in particular basal metabolic rate (BMR) and EWL. BMR was 30–37% higher in winter than in summer, and EWL increased at a high ambient temperature (Ta) in winter, presumably reflecting seasonal differences in Ta, food availability, and water consumption. Seasonal variation in physiological responses of captive numbats was similar to that observed for wild numbats. We conclude that there is seasonal flexibility in the physiology of numbats, and that captivity under seminatural conditions does not compromise their basic physiology. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T09:13:48Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-42881 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T09:13:48Z |
| publishDate | 2012 |
| publisher | American Society of Mammalogists |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-428812017-09-13T15:04:46Z Does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)? Cooper, Christine Withers, P captivity season metabolism thermal conductance evaporative water loss body temperature We examined the effects of season and captivity on several commonly measured physiological variables (body temperature, metabolic rate, thermal conductance, and evaporative water loss [EWL]) for the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus), an endangered myrmecophagous Australian marsupial, because the maintenance of a wild-type physiology may increase the likelihood of successful reintroduction of numbats into the wild. Our results indicate that the physiology of male captive numbats is representative of wild individuals, at least at thermoneutrality, except for some diet-related effects on substrate metabolism and thermoregulation. Season significantly influenced physiological variables, in particular basal metabolic rate (BMR) and EWL. BMR was 30–37% higher in winter than in summer, and EWL increased at a high ambient temperature (Ta) in winter, presumably reflecting seasonal differences in Ta, food availability, and water consumption. Seasonal variation in physiological responses of captive numbats was similar to that observed for wild numbats. We conclude that there is seasonal flexibility in the physiology of numbats, and that captivity under seminatural conditions does not compromise their basic physiology. 2012 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42881 10.1644/11-MAMM-A-084.2 American Society of Mammalogists fulltext |
| spellingShingle | captivity season metabolism thermal conductance evaporative water loss body temperature Cooper, Christine Withers, P Does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)? |
| title | Does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)? |
| title_full | Does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)? |
| title_fullStr | Does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)? |
| title_short | Does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)? |
| title_sort | does season or captivity influence the physiology of an endangered marsupial, the numbat (myrmecobius fasciatus)? |
| topic | captivity season metabolism thermal conductance evaporative water loss body temperature |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42881 |