Abstract
Pekin ducks Anas platyrhynchos were chronically equipped with thermodes in the vertebral canal. Metabolic heat production, parabronchial oxygen extraction, vertebral canal temperature and body temperature were measured simultaneously before and during spinal cooling, at ambient temperatures ranging from 6 to 25 degrees C. Lowering vertebral canal temperature from 41.4 +/- 0.2 degrees C to 35.9 +/- 0.6 degrees C gave a mean increase in metabolic heat production of 1.54 +/- 0.26 W kg-1. Even though the spinal cooling had a clear metabolic effect, there was no concomitant change in parabronchial oxygen extraction. It is concluded that the thermosensitive structures residing in the spinal cord are not involved in the regulation of parabronchial gas exchange. The increase in parabronchial oxygen extraction, which is reported during cold exposure in birds, may therefore be induced by thermal inputs from peripheral thermoreceptors.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
