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Torpor and hibernation in a basal placental mammal, the Lesser Hedgehog Tenrec Echinops telfairi

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Abstract

The patterns of heterothermy were measured in Lesser Hedgehog Tenrecs, Echinops telfairi, under semi-natural conditions in an outdoor enclosure during the austral mid-winter in southwestern Madagascar. The animals were implanted with miniaturized body temperature (T b) loggers (iButtons) that measured body temperature every 42 min for 2 months (May and June). The tenrecs entered daily torpor on all 60 consecutive days of measurement, that is, on 100% of animal days, with body temperature closely tracking ambient temperature (T a) during the ambient heating phase. The mean minimum daily T b of the tenrecs was 18.44 ± 0.50°C (n = 174, N = 3), and never exceeded 25°C whereas, apart from a few hibernation bouts in one animal, the mean maximum daily T b was 30.73 ± 0.15°C (n = 167, N = 3). Thus during winter, tenrecs display the lowest normothermic T b of all placental mammals. E. telfairi showed afternoon and early evening arousals, but entered torpor before midnight and remained in torpor for 12–18 h each day. One animal hibernated on two occasions for periods of 2–4 days. We consider E. telfairi to be a protoendotherm, and discuss the relevance and potential of these data for testing models on the evolution of endothermy.

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Acknowledgments

We are very grateful to Mr. M. De Heaulme, the owner of the Berenty Private Reserve, for providing us with accommodation and transport facilities. We also thank various staff at the Reserve, especially Hajarimanitra Rambeloarivony, as well as Greg Davies, Natal Museum, for their assistance in the field and with surgery. This research was financed by the University of KwaZulu-Natal Research Office (publication incentives) to B. G. L, and a National Research Foundation postdoctoral grant to F. G.

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  1. School of Biological and Conservation Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Scottsville, 3209, South Africa

    Barry G. Lovegrove & Fabien Génin

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  1. Barry G. Lovegrove
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  2. Fabien Génin
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Correspondence to Barry G. Lovegrove.

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Communicated by G. Heldmaier.

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Lovegrove, B.G., Génin, F. Torpor and hibernation in a basal placental mammal, the Lesser Hedgehog Tenrec Echinops telfairi . J Comp Physiol B 178, 691–698 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00360-008-0257-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00360-008-0257-9

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