Chen Yan, Li Ke, Sommer Stefan, Ozgul Arpat, Zhang Yizhen, Wang Deng
College of Grassland Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, 2 Yuanmingyuan West Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100193, China.
College of Life Sciences, Henan Normal University, 46 Jianshe East Road, Muye District, Xinxiang 453007, China.
Animals (Basel). 2025 Apr 11;15(8):1112. doi: 10.3390/ani15081112.
Rodent body size often exhibits a diversity of temperature-size patterns among and within species, which might be caused by differential thermoneutral zones (TNZs) and experienced extents of warming. Here, we test this hypothesis in populations of . To study how body size varies across space, we analysed data on body size and temperature (specifically, annual mean minimum temperature) from nine sites spanning 1150 m of elevation. Using indirect calorimetry, we also measured the resting metabolic rate at different temperatures to infer the population-specific TNZ. To study how body size changes over time (2013-2020), we analysed body-size data of southern and northern populations from warm and cold sites, respectively. With increasing temperatures across space, body size increased and the TNZ narrowed. Moreover, during the eight years, temperature remained stable at the warm site but rose at the cold site. As a result, body size increased in the population at the cold site but remained stable in the population at the warm site. Finally, the rate of change in body size per 1 °C change in temperature was larger along the temporal than the spatial temperature gradient. Together, these results support our hypothesis that, among rodent populations, differential changes in body size can be caused by site-specific habitat warming and the population-specific TNZ. A population with a narrow TNZ can be restricted in its body-size response to habitat warming.
啮齿动物的体型在物种之间和物种内部常常呈现出多种温度-体型模式，这可能是由不同的热中性区（TNZs）和经历的变暖程度所导致的。在此，我们在……种群中检验这一假设。为了研究体型如何随空间变化，我们分析了来自跨越1150米海拔的9个地点的体型和温度数据（具体为年平均最低温度）。我们还使用间接量热法测量了不同温度下的静息代谢率，以推断特定种群的热中性区。为了研究体型如何随时间变化（2013 - 2020年），我们分别分析了来自温暖和寒冷地点的南方和北方种群的体型数据。随着空间温度的升高，体型增大且热中性区变窄。此外，在这八年中，温暖地点的温度保持稳定，而寒冷地点的温度上升。结果，寒冷地点的种群体型增大，而温暖地点的种群体型保持稳定。最后，温度每变化1°C时体型的变化率在时间温度梯度上比在空间温度梯度上更大。总之，这些结果支持了我们的假设，即在啮齿动物种群中，体型的差异变化可能由特定地点的栖息地变暖以及特定种群的热中性区引起。热中性区狭窄的种群在其体型对栖息地变暖的反应上可能会受到限制。
