Foraging by Deep‐Diving Birds Is Not Constrained by an Aerobic Diving Limit: A Model of Avian Depth‐Dependent Diving Metabolic Rate

The theoretical aerobic diving limit (tADL) specifies the duration of a dive after which oxygen reserves available for diving are depleted. The tADL has been calculated by dividing the available oxygen stores by the diving metabolic rate (DMR). Contrary to diving mammals, most diving birds examined to date exceed the tADL by a large margin. This discrepancy between observation and theory has engendered two alternative explanations suggesting that dive duration is extended either anaerobically or by depressing aerobic metabolism. Current formulations of tADL uncritically assume that DMR is independent of depth. However, diving birds differ from other vertebrate divers by having a larger respiratory system volume and by retaining air in their plumage while diving, thereby elevating buoyancy. Because air compresses with depth, diving power requirement decreases with depth. Following this principle, we modeled DMR to depth for Adelie and little penguins and reformulated the tADL accordingly. The model's results suggest that < approximately 5% of natural dives by Adelie penguins exceed the reformulated tADL(d), or maximal aerobic depth, and none in the more buoyant little penguin. These data suggest that, for both small and large species, deep diving birds rarely if ever exceed tADL(d).

Hemorheology and oxygen transport in vertebrates. A role in thermoregulation?

We studied the effect of temperature on blood rheology in three vertebrate species with different thermoregulation and erythrocyte characteristics. Higher fibrinogen proportion to total plasma protein was found in turtles (20%) than in pigeons (5.6%) and rats (4.2%). Higher plasma viscosity at room temperature than at homeotherm body temperature was observed in rats (1.69 mPa x s at 20 degrees C vs. 1.33 mPa x s at 37 degrees C), pigeons (3.40 mPa x s at 20 degrees C vs. 1.75 mPa x s at 40 degrees C), and turtles (1.74 mPa x s at 20 degrees C vs. 1.32 mPa x s at 37 degrees C). This fact allow us to hypothesize that thermal changes in protein structure may account for an adjustment of the plasma viscosity. Blood viscosity was dependent on shear rate, temperature and hematocrit in the three species. A different behaviour in apparent and relative viscosities between rat and pigeon at environmental temperature was found. Moreover, the blood oxygen transport capacity seems more affected by a reduction of temperature in rats than in pigeons. Both findings indicate a greater influence of temperature on mammalian erythrocyte than on nucleated red cells, possibly as a consequence of differences in thermal sensitivity and mechanical stability between them. A comparison between the three species revealed that apparent blood viscosity measured at homeotherm physiological temperature was linearly related to the hematocrit level of each species. However, when measured at environmental temperature, rat blood showed a higher apparent viscosity than those found in species with non-nucleated red cells, thus indicating a higher impact of temperature decrease on blood viscosity in mammals. This suggest that regional hypothermia caused by cold exposure may affect mammalian blood rheological behaviour in a higher extent than in other vertebrate species having nucleated red cells and, consequently, influencing circulatory function and oxygen transport.

Blood viscosity in broilers: influence on pulmonary hypertension syndrome

Elevation in apparent blood viscosity may enhance the pulmonary hypertension that leads to pulmonary hypertension syndrome (PHS) and ascites in fast-growing broilers. We investigated the importance of packed cell volume (PCV) and shear rate in modifying apparent viscosity of the blood from broilers assigned to normal, preascites, and ascites groups. Apparent viscosity of broiler blood increased at all shear rates as PCV increased; the increase in apparent viscosity became greater as the shear rate decreased at PCV above 0.30. At the PCV of normal broilers (0.30 or below), apparent viscosity was nearly shear rate independent, at least down to 11.25 per second, the lowest shear rate studied. Apparent viscosity, at any given PCV and shear rate, was significantly lower in the blood of birds with ascites than in normal birds; however, the relative viscosity was not different between those groups, indicating that lower plasma viscosity in the birds with PHS was responsible for the finding. The results show that the principal factor responsible for increased apparent viscosity of blood in birds with PHS is the increase in PCV. The increased resistance to flow of blood as the result of higher blood viscosity may contribute to the pulmonary hypertension.