Abstract
We review the seasonal patterns in body bass and energy balance in four wild, small mammals native to northern China. Specifically, we characterize the variations in mass, lipid content, hormone, and enzyme levels for two species inhabiting the Qinghai–Tibet plateau: plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) and root voles (Microtus oeconomus), and two rodent species that inhabit the Inner Mongolian grassland: Brandt’s voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii) and Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). Generally pikas and gerbils maintained body mass and body fat content relatively stable despite seasonal fluctuations in food availability, while two vole species showed significant decreases in body mass and lipid stores in the winter. All species showed increases in their capacity for thermogenesis (adaptive thermogenesis) and subsequently increase total energy intake to attempt to meet increased metabolic demands during winter. We conclude that these wild small mammals have evolved different specific strategies to survive food limitation during the harsh winter.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Ebling FJ (1994) Photoperiodic differences during development in the dwarf hamsters Phodopus sungorus and Phodopus campbelli. Gen Comp Endocrinol 95:475–482
Evans SA, Messina MM, Knight WD, Parsons AD, Overton JM (2005) Long-Evans and Sprague-Dawley rats exhibit divergent responses to refeeding after caloric restriction. Am J Physiol 288:R1468–R1476
Karakas A, Gunduz B (2002) Effect of different photoperiods on gonadal maintenance and development in Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). Zool Sci 19:233–239
Li XS, Wang DH (2005a) Regulation of body weight and thermogenesis in seasonally acclimatized Brandt’s voles (Microtus brandti). Horm Behav 48:321–328
Li XS, Wang DH (2005b) Seasonal adjustments in body mass and thermogenesis in Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus): the roles of short photoperiod and cold. J Comp Physiol B 175:593–600
Li XS, Wang DH, Yang M (2004) Effects of cold acclimation on body weight, serum leptin level, energy metabolism and thermogenesis in the Mongolian gerbil Meriones unguiculatus. Acta Zool Sin 50:334–340
Li YG, Yan ZC, Wang DH (2010) Physiological and biochemical basis of basal metabolic rates in Brandt’s voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii) and Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). Comp Biochem Physiol A 157:204–211
Liu JS, Li QF (1996a) Seasonal variations of thermogenesis in brown adipose tissue and liver in Plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae). Acta Theriol Sin 16:155–157
Liu JS, Li QF (1996b) Variation of thermogenesis in plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) during cold acclimation and de-cold acclimation. Acta Zool Sin 42:377–385
McCue MD (2010) Starvation physiology: reviewing the different strategies animals use to survive a common challenge. Comp Biochem Physiol 156A:1–18
McNab BK (2002) The physiological ecology of vertebrates. Cornell University Press, Ithaca
Sheldon BC, Verhulst S (1996) Ecological immunology: costly parasite defences and trade-offs in evolutionary ecology. Trends Ecol Evol 11:317–321
Smith CC, Reichman OJ (1984) The evolution of food caching by birds and mammals. Ann Rev Ecol Syst 15:329–351
Starck JM (1999) Structural flexibility of the gastro-intestinal tract of vertebrates—implications for evolutionary morphology. Zool Anz 238:87–101
Steinlechner S, Heldmaier G, Becker H (1983) The seasonal cycle of body weight in the Djungarian hamster: photoperiodic control and the influence of starvation and melatonin. Oecologia 60:401–405
Tang GB, Cui JG, Wang DH (2009) Role of hypoleptinemia during cold adaptation in Brandt’s voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii). Am J Physiol 297:R1293–R1301
Wang JM (2006) Seasonal regulations and influence factors in energy metabolism, thermogenic capacity and body mass in plateau pikas and root voles from the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Ph.D. thesis, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Wang DH, Wang ZW (1989) Strategies for survival in a cold alpine environment of small mammals I. Seasonal variations in the weight and structure of brown adipose tissue in Ochotona curzoniae and Microtus oeconomus. Acta Theriol Sin 9:176–185
Wang DH, Wang ZW (1990) Strategies for survival in a cold alpine environment of small mammals II. Seasonal variations in the capacity of nonshivering thermogenesis in Ochotona curzoniae and Microtus oeconomus. Acta Theriol Sin 10:40–53
Wang DH, Wang ZW (2000) Effects of photoperiod and temperature on brown adipose tissue thermogenic properties in root voles. Acta Theriol Sin 20:123–129
Wang DH, Wang ZW (2001) Seasonal variations in digestive tract morphology in plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) on the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau. Acta Zool Sin 47:495–501
Wang DH, Liu XD, Wang ZW, Shi ZX (1993) Seasonal dynamics of composition and function of brown adipose tissue for plateau pika. Acta Theriol Sin 13:271–276
Wang DH, Wang ZW, Sun RY (1995) Variations in digestive tract morphology in root voles (Microtus oeconomus) and its adaptive significance. Acta Theriol Sin 15:53–59
Wang DH, Sun RY, Wang ZW, Liu JS, Chen Z (1996) Adaptive thermogenic properties during cold exposure in root voles (Microtus oeconomus). Acta Zool Sin 42:368–376
Wang DH, Sun RY, Wang ZW (1999a) Effects of photoperiod and temperature on brown adipose tissue thermogenic properties in plateau pika. Zool Res 20:347–351
Wang DH, Sun RY, Wang ZW, Liu JS (1999b) Effects of temperature and photoperiod on thermogenesis in plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) and root voles (Microtus oeconomus). J Comp Physiol B 169:77–83
Wang DH, Wang ZW, Wang YS, Yang JC (2003) Seasonal changes of thermogenesis in Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) and Brandt’s voles (Microtus brandti). Comp Biochem Physiol A 134:S96
Wang JM, Zhang YM, Wang DH (2006a) Photoperiodic regulation in energy intake, thermogenesis and body mass in root voles (Microtus oeconomus). Comp Biochem Physiol A 145:546–553
Wang JM, Zhang YM, Wang DH (2006b) Seasonal regulations of energetics, serum concentrations of leptin, and uncoupling protein 1 content of brown adipose tissue in root voles (Microtus oeconomus) from the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau. J Comp Physiol B 176:663–671
Wang JM, Zhang YM, Wang DH (2006c) Seasonal thermogenesis and body mass regulation in plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae). Oecologia 149:373–382
Wunder BA, Dobkin DS, Gettinger RT (1977) Shifts of thermogenesis in the prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster): strategies for survival in a seasonal environment. Oecologia 29:11–26
Xu DL, Wang DH (2010) Fasting suppresses T cell-mediated immunity in female Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). Comp Biochem Physiol A 155:25–33
Zhang LN (2007) Effect of fasting, food restriction and refeeding on body mass, energy metabolism and thermogenic capacity in Mongolian gerbils. Master Thesis, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Zhan XM, Li YL, Wang DH (2009) Effects of fasting and refeeding on body mass, thermogenesis and serum leptin in Brandt’s voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii). J Therm Biol 34:237–243
Zhang XY, Wang DH (2006) Energy metabolism, thermogenesis and body mass regulation in Brandt’s voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii) during cold acclimation and rewarming. Horm Behav 50:61–69
Zhang XY, Wang DH (2007a) Thermogenesis, food intake and serum leptin in cold-exposed lactating Brandt’s voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii). J Exp Biol 210:512–521
Zhang ZQ, Wang DH (2007b) Seasonal changes in thermogenesis and body mass in wild Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). Comp Biochem Physiol A 148:346–353
Zhang Y, Proenca R, Maffei M, Barone M, Leopold L, Friedman JM (1994) Positional cloning of the mouse obese gene and it’s human homologue. Nature 372:425–432
Zhao ZJ, Wang DH (2005) Short photoperiod enhances thermogenic capacity in Brandt’s voles. Physiol Behav 85:143–149
Zhao ZJ, Wang DH (2006a) Effects of photoperiod on energy budgets and thermogenesis in Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). J Therm Biol 31:323–331
Zhao ZJ, Wang DH (2006b) Short photoperiod influences energy intake and serum leptin level in Brandt’s voles (Microtus brandtii). Horm Behav 49:463–469
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Drs. Xingsheng Li, Jianmei Wang, and Zhijun Zhao who finished these studies during their Ph.D. programs. The last 10 years our research has been financially supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the National Natural Foundation of China, and the Ministry of Science and Technology in China.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Zhang, X., Liu, X., Wang, D. (2012). Seasonal Changes in Body Mass and Energy Balance in Wild Small Mammals. In: McCue, M. (eds) Comparative Physiology of Fasting, Starvation, and Food Limitation. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-29056-5_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-29056-5_13
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-642-29055-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-29056-5
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)