Mesotherm

Mesotherm (Greek, meso = intermediate; thermē = "heat") refers to an animal organism that adjusts its body to a metabolically favourable temperature using a context dependent balance of internal metabolically produced heat and external environmentally derived heat. "Mesothermy" is this mode of thermoregulation functionality in animals. Mesotherm animals are intermediate within the spectrum of biological thermal regulation, between ectotherms (colloquially "cold-blooded") and endotherms (colloquially "warm-blooded").

Historically, the same term was used by Alphonse Pyramus de Candolle to describe plants that require a moderate degree of heat for successful growth.[1] In his scheme, a mesotherm plant grew in regions where the warmest month had a mean temperature greater than 22 °C and the coldest month had a mean temperature of at least 6 °C.

Examples

A relatively small number of extant animal species are mesotherms such as tuna, lamnid sharks, and leatherback turtles.[2] Dinosaurs may have been mesotherms given projected growth and metabolic rates.[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Allaby, Michael (2004). A Dictionary of Ecology (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198608912.
  2. ↑ Witze, Alexandra. "Dinosaurs neither warm-blooded nor cold-blooded". Nature.com. Nature News. doi:10.1038/nature.2014.15399. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  3. ↑ Grady, et. al., J. M.; Enquist, B. J.; Dettweiler-Robinson, E.; Wright, N. A.; Smith, F. A. (June 13, 2014). "Evidence for mesothermy in dinosaurs". Science 344 (6189): 1268–1272. doi:10.1126/science.1253143. PMID 24926017. Retrieved 15 June 2014.