Document Type

Research

Abstract

A complete description is given of a respirometer, suitable for unrestrained five to ten gram bats, from which the following variables were simultaneously directly measured: air and body temperatures, relative humidity, oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production, water loss, and electrocardiograms. Temperature was measured with specially mounted bead thermistors and a wheatstone bridge. Relative humidity was measured with an adsorptive electronic sensor which was excited by a transistorized oscillator, and had the voltage output rectified and fed to an oscillograph. Electrocardiograms were taken with custom-made "safety" pins chronically indwelling through the dorsolateral thoracic epidermis. Electrical connection was made with common clothing snap fasteners. Various controlled humidities were produced by bubbling air through saturated salt solutions. Water vapor was converted to acetylene and collected along with respiratory gases over mercury for subsequent analysis with a gas chromatograph.

Publication Date

1963

Journal Title

Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science

Volume

Issue

First Page

472

Last Page

478

Copyright

Language

File Format

application/pdf

Recommended Citation

Henshaw, Robert E. and Folk, G. Edgar Jr. (1963) "Measurement of Standard Metabolism, Water Loss and Body Temperature of the Little Brown Bat," Proceedings of the Iowa Academy of Science, 70(1), 472-478.
Available at: https://scholarworks.uni.edu/pias/vol70/iss1/76

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Measurement of Standard Metabolism, Water Loss and Body Temperature of the Little Brown Bat

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