Kovac Helmut, Käfer Helmut, Stabentheiner Anton
Institute of Biology, University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria.
Insects. 2020 Mar 4;11(3):165. doi: 10.3390/insects11030165.
European Polistine wasps inhabit mainly temperate and warm climate regions. However, the paper wasp represents an exception; it resides in mountainous areas, e.g., in the Alps and in the Apennines. In these habitats, the wasps are exposed to a broad temperature range during their lifetime. We investigated whether they developed adaptations in their metabolism to their special climate conditions by measuring their CO production. The standard or resting metabolic rate and the metabolism of active wasps was measured in the temperature range which they are exposed to in their habitat in summer. The standard metabolic rate increased in a typical exponential progression with ambient temperature, like in other wasps. The active metabolism also increased with temperature, but not in a simple exponential course. Some exceptionally high values were presumed to originate from endothermy. The simultaneous measurement of body temperature and metabolic rate revealed a strong correlation between these two parameters. The comparison of the standard metabolic rate of with that of revealed a significantly lower metabolism of the alpine wasps. This energy saving metabolic strategy could be an adaptation to the harsh climate conditions, which restricts foraging flights and energy recruitment.
欧洲马蜂主要栖息在温带和温暖气候地区。然而，纸巢黄蜂是个例外；它栖息在山区，例如阿尔卑斯山和亚平宁山脉。在这些栖息地，黄蜂在其一生中会面临广泛的温度范围。我们通过测量它们的二氧化碳产生量来研究它们是否在新陈代谢方面适应了特殊的气候条件。在夏季它们栖息地所接触到的温度范围内，测量了标准或静息代谢率以及活跃黄蜂的代谢率。标准代谢率像其他黄蜂一样，随环境温度以典型的指数形式增加。活跃代谢率也随温度升高，但并非呈简单的指数变化过程。一些异常高的值被认为源于体温调节。体温和代谢率的同时测量揭示了这两个参数之间的强相关性。将[此处原文缺失具体对比对象]的标准代谢率与[此处原文缺失具体对比对象]的标准代谢率进行比较，发现高山黄蜂的代谢率显著更低。这种节能的代谢策略可能是对恶劣气候条件的一种适应，因为恶劣气候条件限制了觅食飞行和能量获取。
