|
| |
|
|
|
|
||||
| Home Help Feedback Subscriptions Archive Search Table of Contents | ||||
Journal of Experimental Biology, Vol 160, Issue 1 1-23, Copyright © 1991 by Company of Biologists
JOURNAL ARTICLES |
AF Bennett
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine 92717.
The capacities of animals for activity (burst speed, maximal exertion, endurance) are examined in relation to their selective importance in extant populations and the pattern of their evolution in major animal taxa. Activity capacities have been demonstrated to be both heritable and highly variable in natural populations and hence susceptible to natural selection. Some field studies have demonstrated significant positive associations between activity capacities, particularly burst speed, and survivorship; other studies have not. The potential for such selection therefore clearly exists, although it may not operate in all populations. Comparative studies of major taxa have linked endurance capacities to maximal rates of oxygen consumption; speed and exertion are correlated with capacities for anaerobic metabolism, either the catabolism of phosphagens or the production of lactic acid or octopine, depending on taxon. In vertebrates, the primitive metabolic pattern involved the use of aerobic metabolism to support moderate swimming performance, supplemented by bursts of activity fuelled through lactic acid production. Because of much greater locomotor costs, the transition of vertebrates onto land entailed a decrease in endurance, which was greatly expanded again only after the evolution of the higher rates of aerobic metabolism characteristic of the birds and mammals. These greater aerobic capacities may have been selected for thermoregulatory reasons and/or for increased activity capacity itself.
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  P. Wiersma, M. A. Chappell, and J. B. Williams Cold- and exercise-induced peak metabolic rates in tropical birds PNAS, December 26, 2007; 104(52): 20866 - 20871. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 M. A. Chappell, T. Garland Jr, G. F. Robertson, and W. Saltzman Relationships among running performance, aerobic physiology and organ mass in male Mongolian gerbils J. Exp. Biol., December 1, 2007; 210(23): 4179 - 4197. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
P. Wiersma, A. Munoz-Garcia, A. Walker, and J. B. Williams Tropical birds have a slow pace of life PNAS, May 29, 2007; 104(22): 9340 - 9345. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
D. L. Swanson and E. T. Liknes A comparative analysis of thermogenic capacity and cold tolerance in small birds J. Exp. Biol., February 1, 2006; 209(3): 466 - 474. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. D. Kieffer, A. M. Wakefield, and M. K. Litvak Juvenile sturgeon exhibit reduced physiological responses to exercise J. Exp. Biol., March 14, 2002; 204(24): 4281 - 4289. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
A. F. Bennett and J. W. Hicks Postprandial exercise: prioritization or additivity of the metabolic responses? J. Exp. Biol., March 8, 2002; 204(12): 2127 - 2132. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
E. L. Rezende, D. L. Swanson, F. F. Novoa, and F. Bozinovic Passerines versus nonpasserines: so far, no statistical differences in the scaling of avian energetics J. Exp. Biol., January 1, 2002; 205(1): 101 - 107. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 M. R. Dohm, J. P. Hayes, and T. Garland Jr. The Quantitative Genetics of Maximal and Basal Rates of Oxygen Consumption in Mice Genetics, September 1, 2001; 159(1): 267 - 277. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
M. Chappell, C Bech, and W. Buttemer The relationship of central and peripheral organ masses to aerobic performance variation in house sparrows J. Exp. Biol., January 9, 1999; 202(17): 2269 - 2279. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 B. Block, Finnerty JR, A. Stewart, and J Kidd Evolution of endothermy in fish: mapping physiological traits on a molecular phylogeny Science, April 9, 1993; 260(5105): 210 - 214. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
