Heat tolerance limit
- Avian thermoregulation in the heat: metabolism, evaporative cooling and gular flutter in two small owls
Summary: Small desert owls demonstrate heat tolerance intermediate between that of very heat-tolerant nightjars and less heat-tolerant passerines. The gular flutter mechanism contributes significantly to cooling efficiency.
- Avian thermoregulation in the heat: evaporative cooling capacity of arid-zone Caprimulgiformes from two continents
Summary: Caprimulgiformes demonstrate high heat tolerance that is mediated by low rates of resting metabolism and a very efficient evaporative process that uses a gular flutter mechanism.
- Avian thermoregulation in the heat: resting metabolism, evaporative cooling and heat tolerance in Sonoran Desert songbirds
Summary: Thermoregulatory performance measurements in seven Sonoran Desert passerine bird species show that heat tolerance limits did not scale with body mass among species, but were ∼50°C for all species.
- Avian thermoregulation in the heat: resting metabolism, evaporative cooling and heat tolerance in Sonoran Desert doves and quail
Highlighted Article: Species-level differences in heat tolerance may drive changes in desert bird communities as global temperatures continue to rise and heat waves become more frequent.