Literaturdatenbank
Literaturdatenbank |
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Hailey, A., & Loveridge, J. P. (1998). Body temperatures of captive tortoises at high altitude in zimbabwe, with comments on the use of "living models". Herpetological Journal, 8(2), 79–84.
Added by: Admin (14 Aug 2008 22:46:44 UTC) |
| Resource type: Journal Article BibTeX citation key: Hailey1998a View all bibliographic details  |
Categories: General Keywords: Afrika = Africa, Geochelone, Habitat = habitat, Kinixys, Kinixys spekii, Physiologie = physiology, Schildkröten = turtles + tortoises, Stigmochelys, Stigmochelys pardalis, Testudinidae Creators: Hailey, Loveridge Collection: Herpetological Journal |
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| Abstract |
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Testudinidae Geochelone pardalis Kinixys spekii It is difficult to devise physical models which precisely mimic the body temperatures (Tb's) of large reptiles in the field. Studies of large reptiles have the compensating advantage that individuals can be followed for long periods, so that translocated individuals can be used as 'living models'. We compare Tb's of two tortoise species in an enclosure in Harare (altitude 1500 m) with those in the field at Sengwa (900 m), where mean air temperatures were about 5oC higher. Kinixys spekii, which occurs naturally near Harare, had similar Tb's at the two sites (means 27.6 and 27.0oC, respectively). Geochelone pardalis had significantly lower Tb's in Harare (29.1oC) than at Sengwa (32.6oC), even though activity was shifted towards midday in Harare. The inability to reach high Tb during activity may explain the absence of G. pardalis near Harare, and the distribution of this species in southern Africa.
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