Abstract
The ventilatory and metabolic responses of lesser spear-nosed bats to hypoxia and hypercapnia were measured to determine whether these corresponded to preliminary allometries and a positive relationship between hypoxic ventilatory threshold andP 50. Ventilatory responses of lesser spear-nosed bats to 3, 5 and 7% CO2 differed significantly from ventilation on air and each other. The magnitude of their ventilatory response to CO2 is consistent with the prediction of a smaller ventilatory response to hypercapnia in small compared to large mammals [\(\% \Delta \dot V \propto M_B^{0.130}\); Williams et al. (1994)]. Among 12, 10 and 8% O2 treatments only the ventilatory response to 8% O2 differed significantly from ventilation on air or the other treatments. Metabolic rate was significantly reduced at both 10 and 8% O2. The hypoxic ventilatory response of these bats does not support the prediction of a greater response in small compared to large mammals [\(\% \Delta \dot V \propto M_B^{0.273}\); Boggs and Tenney (1984)]. Their metabolic response is consistent with the hypoxic hypometabolism typical of small mammals, though not of comparable magnitude. The response, expressed as percent change in convection requirement (\(({{\dot V} \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{\dot V} {\dot VO_2 )}}} \right. \kern-\nulldelimiterspace} {\dot VO_2 )}}\)), is also less than that observed in other small mammals. This relative insensitivity to hypoxia may be associated with this bat's unusually high affinity hemoglobin (P50=27.5 torr).
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Abbreviations
- \(\% \Delta \dot V\) :
-
percent change in ventilation
- f :
-
respiratory frequency
- M B :
-
body mass
- MR :
-
metabolic rate
- PaO2 :
-
partial presure of O2 in arterial blood
- T a :
-
chamber temperature
- T B :
-
body temperature
- T E :
-
expiratory time
- T I :
-
inspiratory time
- T TOT :
-
total breath time
- V:
-
ventilation
- O 2 :
-
O2 consumption
- V T :
-
tidal volume
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Communicated by L.C.-H. Wang
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Walsh, J.P., Boggs, D.F. & Kilgore, D.L. Ventilatory and metabolic responses of a bat,Phyllostomus discolor, to hypoxia and CO2: implications for the allometry of respiratory control. J Comp Physiol B 166, 351–358 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02336917
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02336917