Effects of ingested crude and dispersed crude oil on thermoregulation in ducks (Anas platyrhynchos).

Thermoregulatory effects of ingested doses of Statfjord A crude oil and of this oil mixed with the dispersant Finasol OSR-5 were studied in adult domestic ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) exposed to ambient temperatures of +16 degrees C and -17 degrees C. The data show that ingestion of both the crude and the oil-dispersant mixture resulted in an increased body temperature during exposure to the low ambient temperature (-17 degrees C). Neither contaminant had any effect on body temperature during exposure to +16 degrees C. Ingestion of the contaminants had no effect on metabolic heat production at either ambient temperature. The breast skin temperature of the ducks in both contaminated groups was significantly decreased when the ducks were exposed to the low ambient temperature. This indicates that the increase in body temperature observed in the contaminated ducks at the low ambient temperature is due to an increase in peripheral vasoconstriction.