Raphe pallidus/parapyramidal neurons control cutaneous vasoconstriction induced by noxious stimuli. To determine whether they mediate forebrain-induced cutaneous vasoconstriction, we assessed changes in ear pinna blood flow elicited by electrical stimulation of amygdala and hypothalamus before and after injection of muscimol into the raphe/parapyramidal region. We compared ear flow with simultaneously recorded mesenteric flow. Experiments were performed in rabbits anesthetized with urethane (1.25–1.5 g/kg), paralysed and mechanically ventilated. Amygdala stimulation reduced skin conductance from 0.32±0.06 to 0.10±0.02 cm/s per mm Hg ( P<0.05, n=9), without effect on mesenteric conductance. Hypothalamic stimulation caused vasoconstriction in both cutaneous and mesenteric beds (conductances fell from 0.27±0.05 to 0.05±0.02 cm/s per mm Hg and from 0.27±0.06 to 0.14±0.04 cm/s per mm Hg ( P<0.05, n=9), respectively). Muscimol microinjection (5 nmol in 100 nl) to raphe/parapyramidal region eliminated amygdala- and hypothalamus-induced skin vasoconstriction (pre-stimulus conductance 0.42±0.13 and 0.41±0.11 cm/s per mm Hg, post-stimulus 0.41±0.12 and 0.39±0.10 cm/s per mm Hg, respectively), but not hypothalamically-induced mesenteric vasoconstriction (pre-stimulus 0.29±0.06, post-stimulus 0.16±0.03 cm/s per mm Hg, P<0.05, n=8). The latter was strongly attenuated by bilateral injection of muscimol to the rostral ventrolateral medulla. Data suggest that descending hypothalamo–spinal and amygdala–spinal pathways constricting the cutaneous vascular bed relay in the raphe/parapyramidal area. A relay in the rostral ventrolateral medulla contributes substantially to mesenteric vasoconstriction elicited from the hypothalamus.