Workshop held June 1988. Thirty-nine contributions treat the central mechanisms of thermoregulation, heat production, metabolic adaptations, respiration and circulation, physiology of hypometabolism, breeding and incubation, and adaptations to cold in chicks. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

When survival is challenged by the cold, animals react by employing both behavioral and physiological solutions. Depending on the magni tude of the cold stress and the nature of the adjustment, simple avoidance or sophisticated capacity or resistance compensations may be used. Thus, migration, shelter seeking, metabolic and insulative compen sation, torpor, and freezing avoidance and tolerance are successful tac tics used by diverse groups of animals. To understand and appreciate the benefits of these tactics, it is necessary to examine not only the well being of the whole animal but also their basic underlying mechanisms. In ad dition, it is also of fundamental importance to grasp how seasonal cold affects the survivorship and reproductive success of populations when confronted by a general reduction in primary productivity and an elevated energy cost for maintenance (e. g. in endotherms). In this regard, a synthetic overview which integrates aspects of cell biology, biochem istry, physiology, neurobiology, behavior, and population biology should be a fruitful approach in providing a holistic understanding on how animals adapt to cold. The present volume is an attempt to achieve such an overview; its objective is to provide a depth and breadth of coverage that is essential to a full appreciation of animal adaptation to cold. It is the hope of the contributing authors that this book will serve as an effective reference text for all senior undergraduate and graduate students as well as research scientists with an interest in cold physiology.

Contributors present the newest information on ecological, physiological, neurological, cellular and biochemical mechanisms by which vertebrates deal with seasonal cold.

Comparative Mechanisms of Cold Adaptation covers the proceedings of a symposium held at the Naval Arctic Research Laboratory in Barrow, Alaska in 1975 and 1976. The said symposium discusses the mechanisms of cold adaptation according to experts from different fields. The book covers topics related to cold adaptation, such as energy acquisition and utilization; mechanisms of thermal tolerance; the physiology and requirements of hibernation; and the role of neural inputs in cold adaptation. Topics also include cold-induced enzymatic adjustments; cold-induced responses in ectotherms and homeotherms; hormonal mechanisms; and plant adaptation to low temperatures. The text is recommended for biologists who would like to understand better the different mechanisms involved in cold adaptation and the importance of its study.

Examining avian physiology in detail, this text specifically addresses the unique physiological characteristics of birds, although experimental techniques and future research directions are also considered.

Birds have colonized almost every terrestrial habitat on the planet - from the poles to the tropics, and from deserts to high mountain tops. Ecological and Environmental Physiology of Birds focuses on our current understanding of the unique physiological characteristics of birds that are of particular interest to ornithologists, but also have a wider biological relevance. An introductory chapter covers the basic avian body plan and their still-enigmatic evolutionary history. The focus then shifts to a consideration of the essential components of that most fundamental of avian attributes: the ability to fly. The emphasis here is on feather evolution and development, flight energetics and aerodynamics, migration, and as a counterpoint, the curious secondary evolution of flightlessness that has occurred in several lineages. This sets the stage for subsequent chapters, which present specific physiological topics within a strongly ecological and environmental framework. These include gas exchange, thermal and osmotic balance, 'classical' life history parameters (male and female reproductive costs, parental care and investment in offspring, and fecundity versus longevity tradeoffs), feeding and digestive physiology, adaptations to challenging environments (high altitude, deserts, marine habitats, cold), and neural specializations (notably those important in foraging, long-distance navigation, and song production). Throughout the book classical studies are integrated with the latest research findings. Numerous important and intriguing questions await further work, and the book concludes with a discussion of methods (emphasizing cutting-edge technology), approaches, and future research directions.