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The incidence of torpor in winter and summer in the Angolan free-tailed bat, Mops condylurus (Microchiroptera: Molossidae), in a subtropical environment, Mpumulanga, South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Zoology • Authors: L. Vivier --- Zoology Department, South Africa M. van der Merwe --- Department of Zoology and Entomology, South AfricaThe incidence of torpor during summer and winter in response to cold exposure in Mops condylurus was studied in a subtropical environment. Body temperature changes under natural roosting conditions during winter and summer were monitored using bats fitted with temperature-sensitive... -
Can behaviour buffer the impacts of climate change on an arid-zone bird?
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology • Authors: Susan J Cunningham --- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST–NRF Centre of Excellence, South Africa Rowan O Martin --- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST–NRF Centre of Excellence, South Africa Philip AR Hockey --- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST–NRF Centre of Excellence, South AfricaBehavioural thermoregulation, particularly the use of cool microclimates, is one method by which organisms could avoid the worst effects of climate warming. However, retreat into cool microsites, e.g. shady vegetation or burrows, may carry important lost-opportunity costs. These could include... -
Elevated temperatures drive fine-scale patterns of habitat use in a savanna bird community
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology • Authors: Rowan O Martin --- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST–NRF Centre of Excellence, South Africa Susan J Cunningham --- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST–NRF Centre of Excellence, South Africa Philip AR Hockey --- ,Many animals use thermally buffered microhabitats, e.g. patches of shade within trees, to avoid temperature extremes. These ‘thermal refugia’ may mediate the impact of climate change on animals. Predicting how species and communities will respond to rising temperatures therefore requires... -
Diet and time-activity budget of White-backed Mousebirds Colius colius in south-western South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology • Authors: Carlos Bosque --- Departamento de Biología de Organismos, Venezuela Carlos D Bosque --- Departamento de Arquitectura, Venezuela Penn Lloyd --- Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST–NRF Centre of Excellence, AustraliaMousebirds (Coliiformes) are unusual in having an exclusively vegetarian diet that includes substantial foliage and by using huddling and sunning to assist thermoregulation. Although previous studies have identified plant species and plant parts consumed by mousebirds, the relative importance of... -
Variation in the daily activity, movement and refugia of Critically Endangered geometric tortoises, Psammobates geometricus, in autumn and spring
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Herpetology • Authors: Brian T. Henen --- , , South Africa Ulric P. van Bloemestein --- , , South Africa Margaretha D. Hofmeyr --- , , South Africa Craig A. Weatherby --- , , USATo help assess habitat requirements of Critically Endangered geometric tortoises, we used thread-trailing to measure daily activity, movements and refugia of adult Psammobates geometricus in autumn and spring 2002. We found strong differences between seasons, and effects of weather, individuals... -
The energetic significance of communal roosting and insulated roost nests in a small arid-zone passerine
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology • Authors: Nevanya Lubbe --- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, South Africa Zenon J Czenze --- School of Biological Sciences, New Zealand Matthew J Noakes --- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, South Africa Andrew E McKechnie --- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence at the FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, South AfricaSmall endotherms have evolved behavioural mechanisms for reducing rest-phase energy expenditure, which reduce the likelihood of mismatches between energy supply and demand during periods of cold weather and/or food scarcity. Although the energetic consequences of communal roosting and the use... -
The subtropical–temperate transition along the east coast of South Africa shapes the thermal physiology of the truncated mangrove snail Cerithidea decollata (Gastropoda: Caenogastropoda, Potamididae)
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Marine Science • Authors: AS Nonyukela --- Department of Zoology and Entomology, South Africa S Baldanzi --- South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB), South Africa LU Vumazonke --- Department of Zoology and Entomology, South AfricaThe east and south coasts of South Africa are characterised by a transition from subtropical to warm-temperate conditions. This transition in environmental temperatures may shape the physiological tolerance of ectothermic species inhabiting harsh environments, such as the intertidal zone. A... -
How to make measurements in thermoregulatory studies: the heating debate continues
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Herpetology • Authors: Shelley Currin --- University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa Graham John Alexander --- University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa -
A respone to Hertz, Huey and Stevenson
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Herpetology • Authors: Graham John Alexander --- University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa Shelley Currin --- University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa -
Analysis of intraspecific colour variation in the fossorial Coastal Legless Lizard, Microacontias litoralis (Scincidae: Acontiinae)
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: The Journal of the Herpetological Association of Africa • Authors: PhomoloL. Mashinini --- Transvaal Museum, South Africa Neil.J. L. Heideman --- University of the Free State, South Africa P. le FrasN. Mouton --- Stellenbosch University, South AfricaAn analysis of intraspecific variation in the fossorial skink Microacontias litoralis revealed that orange‐coloured and melanistic individuals co‐occur at several localities. Body colour was found to be independent of sex and body size. Both orange‐coloured and melanistic in situ embryos... -
Huddling in the heat? Rarely seen thermoregulatory behaviours as Southern Pied Babblers Turdoides bicolor compete for cool microsites
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: Ostrich: Journal of African Ornithology • Authors: Amanda R Bourne --- University of Cape Town, South Africa Camilla Soravia --- The University of Western Australia, AustraliaHuddling is an important thermoregulatory behaviour used by many group-living endotherms to conserve energy during cold weather or periods of food scarcity. It is not typically considered a strategy for keeping cool during hot weather, largely because endotherms produce body... -
Thermal tolerances of littorinid snails from temperate and subtropical South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Marine Science • Authors: CD McQuaid --- Rhodes University, South Africa TG Matumba --- Rhodes University, South AfricaEnvironmental temperature affects ectotherm performance and fitness because physiological performance increases up to a sublethal optimum temperature; this is not fixed, but depends on the species and individual history. We explored the influence of species identity, size and thermal history...