Summary
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1.
Brain and colonic temperatures were measured in five Zebra finches (Poephila guttata) with a mean body weight of 0.013 kg.
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2.
The mean body-to-brain temperature difference (0.18 °C) was lower than in all other previously studied species of birds, indicating a decreased ability to cool the brain in the Zebra finch.
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3.
Morphological studies of the head vasculature revealed that therete mirabile ophthalmicum was very simple. The absence of a well-developed rete is presumed to be responsible for the decreased ability of brain cooling.
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4.
The present study may provide a clue to the well known phenomenon of mass death among small birds during periods with extreme ambient temperatures.
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Bech, C., Midtgård, U. Brain temperature and therete mirabile ophthalmicum in the Zebra finch (Poephila guttata). J Comp Physiol B 145, 89–93 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00782598
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00782598