THERMOREGULATION IN VERTEBRATES

Thermoregulation is the ability of an organism to keep

its body temperature within certain boundaries, even
when the surrounding temperature is very different.

On the basis of heat that influences their body

temperature, animals can be classified into:
ECTOTHERMS: they rely primarily on external
environment to regulate their body temperature. They
have low metabolic rate. E.g. Reptiles, fish, amphibians
(poikilotherms)
ENDOTHERMS: can regulate their body temperature
by producing heat within their body. They have high
metabolic rate E.g. Mammals, Birds (Homeotherms)

THERMOREGULATION IN FISHES:
--cold blooded, core body temperature is close to
environment.
--two types of thermoregulation:
a) Behavioural thermoregulation
b) physiological thermoregulation
Behavioural thermoregulation: As ectotherms,
fish exclusively rely on behavioural strategies for
thermoregulation.
It occurs when fish actively seeks out areas of
higher or lower temperature.The movement may
occur from surface to the downward or vice versa.
Like other vertebrates, fish sense water
temperature using thermoreceptors in trigeminal
and dorsal root ganglia neurons that innervate the
skin.
Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus
nerka)crepuscular feeders, meaning they hunt for
food – and therefore feed only at dawn(after that
they move 11m deep, 15°C temp.) and dusk(after
that they retreats to 30m depth ,5°C temperature).
During the full day and the full night they rest.
Physiological thermoregulation:fish controls its
core body temperature by means of internal
physiological and metabolic activities. It is rare in
fish,occurs in only a few species – all of which
are marine and swim constantly.

heat exchange takes place at rete

mirabile(network of capillaries b/w swimming red
muscles).
Heat from red swimming muscles transported to
blood. Warm blood in veins transfers the heat to
blood in arteries.
The blood in both vessels flow in opposite
direction due to which the process becomes
efficient.
No body heat is lost.
Body temp. Rise from 5-14°C to environment.
Occurs in sharks and tuna.
THERMOREGULATION IN AMPHIBIANS:

assumes the temp. Of the water when submerged.

On land-the body temperature can differ from that
of the environment.
Temp. Lowers due to evaporative loss across the
thin skin and temperature rises because of radiations
from the sun and from the warm surfaces.
To prevent overheating-many amphibians are
nocturnal and will hide in shady areas.
■ Ectotherms and have difficulty in controlling body heat as
they produce less of it metabolically and rapidly lose most
of it.
■ However behavioural adaptations enable them to maintain
their body temp. Within a homeostatic range most of the
time.
■ Exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide across their skin
surface and this moisture layer act as a natural evaporative
system.
■ The problem of heat loss through evaporation limits the
habitats and activities of amphibians to warm, moist areas
■ Bull frogs can vary the amount of mucus they secret from their
body surface, a physiological response that helps regulate
evaporative cooling.
■ Change their colour darker in cooling environment and lighter in
warmer environment.

THERMOREGULATION IN REPTILES: The most noticeable

process in a reptile affected by thermoregulation is their behaviour.
■ Reptiles need to thermoregulate because they cannot maintain
their body temperature by producing metabolic heat.
■ they rely on external conditions to regulate the temperature of
their bodies.
■ This can be done directly by basking in the sun or indirectly
by soaking up the heat from a hot surface such as a rock.
When a reptile needs to cool down, they can retreat into the
shade.
■ A snake can control how much heat it absorbs from the sun by
coiling or straightening its body. A stretched-out snake has
more surface area to absorb heat while a coiled snake will
have less surface area exposed.
■ some species of snake are coiled around their eggs, they shiver
to raise the temperature of the eggs.
■ Tortoises and turtles can cool themselves through salivating
and frothing at the mouth.
■ Reptiles also thermoregulate via heat production in response
to hormones-Thyroxine and epinephrine.
■ Many reptiles endure cold temperature by hibernating in
large groups as the temperature Is too cold for them to
function properly so they retreat to a warm area To keep their
body temperature Up until the temperature rise again.
THERMOREGULATION IN BIRDS: are endotherms and have
special mechanism of increasing their body temperature by heat
generation within their tissues.
■ Don’t have sweat gland and they lose heat from gular pouches
in throat.
■ Birds can behaviourally thermoregulate to some extent to
reduce heat loss. The most conspicuous behaviour is migration
to a warmer climate.
■ In cold environments some birds “hunch down” and/or reduce
surface area heat loss by tucking the head or feet or legs
(grebes) under the wing or body feathers.
■ In many species feathers provide insulation.
■ Some birds have the ability to allow their body temperatures
to drop-become torpid under certain circumstances.
■ Aquatic species have rete mirabile in legs and feet which
transfer heat from the outgoing (hot) blood in the arteries to
the incoming (cold) blood in the veins.
■ As temperature fluctuates they either expose themselves in the
sun or seek shades.
THERMOREGULATION IN MAMMALS:
Endothermic, Depending on the mammal, there are a few ways
to regulate body temperature:
Goosebumps – this slows the airflow over the skin and reduces
the amount of heat loss.
Thick skin or blubber – this gives the animal an extra layer of
protection in harsh conditions, such as polar bears.
Shivering – this generates heat to keep the body warm
Sweating – this allows for evaporative cooling to bring down the
body temperature.
■ Panting –an animal breathes rapidly and shallowly with its
mouth open to increase evaporation from the surfaces of the
mouth.
Opening capillaries – the capillaries of the skin can open up and
allow heat to escape, cooling off the body
■ Adjusting fur – animals with fur can either flatten or puff it up
to allow more or less air to get trapped within it.
■ Some mammals, especially hibernators and baby animals,
have
lots of brown fat which contains many mitochondria with special
proteins that let them release energy.

in tails and flippers, blubber is absent, counter-current system

Helps In conservation of heat lose by allowing heat to be
transferred From blood vessels containing warmer blood to
those containing cooler blood.
CONTROL OF THERMOREGULATION:
3 ways in humans:
a)By sweat glands- produce sweat in response to Parasympathetic
stimulation from the hypothalamus. Swear cools the body down
through the water evaporating from the sweat and transporting heat
away from the body.
b)By blood circulation-
Vasoconstriction: In endotherms, warm blood from the body’s core
typically loses heat to the environment as it passes near the skin.
Shrinking the diameter of blood vessels that supply the skin, a
process known as vasoconstriction, reduces blood flow and helps
retain heat.
Vasodilation: When an endotherm
needs to get rid of heat,these blood
vessels get wider, or dilate. This
process is called vasodilation.
Vasodilation increases blood flow to
the skin and helps the animal lose
some of its extra heat to the
environment.
C) By hairs – The arrector pili muscles contract (piloerection) and
lift the hair follicles upright. This makes the hairs stand on end,
which acts as an insulating layer, trapping heat.
MECHANISM OF THERMOREGULATION:
The human body uses three mechanisms of thermoregulation:
efferent responses
afferent sensing
central control
Efferent responses are the behaviours that humans can engage in to regulate their
own body temperature. Examples of efferent responses include putting on a coat
before going outside on cold days and moving into the shade on hot days.
Afferent sensing involves a system of temperature receptors around the body to
identify whether the core temperature is too hot or cold. The receptors relay the
information to the hypothalamus, which is part of the brain.
The hypothalamus acts as the central control, using the information it receives
from afferent sensing to produce hormones that alter body temperature. These
hormones send signals to various parts of the body so that it can respond to heat
or cold in the following ways:
 Response to heat Response to cold

■ Sweating ■ Shivering, or
thermogenesis
■ dilated blood vessels, ■ constricted blood
known as vasodilation vessels, known as
■ decrease in vasoconstriction
metabolism ■ increase in
metabolism
When the surroundings are hot or when the body is vigorously exercising:
■ The body core temperature starts to rise.
■ increase in temperature is detected by heat sensors in the body.
■ These sensors send signals to the CNS.
■ The CNS stimulates the sweat glands, increases production of sweat.
■ activates the evaporation of sweat, Evaporation promotes heat loss
■ The CNS also signals the vasomotor system to dilate the capillaries
underlying the skin.
■ Vasodilation occurs and the capillaries become larger , More blood flows
underneath the skin surface.
■ Blood flow promotes heat loss by conduction, radiation, and convection.
The body core temperature returns to normal.
When the surroundings are cold or when the body is resting:
The body core temperature starts to drop , detected by cold sensors
in the body.
sensors send signals to the CNS, the CNS slows down the activity
of the sweat glands. This lowers the production of sweat . Lowered
production of sweat decreases the evaporation of sweat which
reduces heat loss.
The CNS also signals the vasomotor system to constrict the
capillaries underlying the skin.
Vasoconstriction occurs and the capillaries become narrower Less
blood flows underneath the skin surface.
■ This reduces heat loss by conduction, radiation, and convection .
■ Heat production , also called thermogenesis, is the result of several different
body functions. One of them is the action of the thyroid gland. Hormones
released by this gland increase the body’s metabolism, leading to heat
production.
■ Other producers of heat are the skeletal muscles, the liver, the internal
organs. Muscles play a major role in thermogenesis. Because of their
weight, they are able to produce very large amounts of heat very rapidly
during increased physical activity. Digestion also results in an increased
production of heat.
■ The sweat glands are controlled by cholinergic impulses through the
sympathetic nerve fibres. During intensive sweating, up to one litre of sweat
may be formed. When the humidity of the environment is higher, heat loss
through sweating is easier. When the body needs to accumulate heat,
adrenergic impulses restrict the blood flow through the skin, with the result
that the skin becomes an insulator, thus decreasing heat loss to a minimum.
Thermogenesis is the process of heat production in organisms.
It occurs in all warm-blooded animals And can occur via
shivering and non shivering mechanism.
Shivering: It produces heat because the conversion of the
chemical energy of ATP into kinetic energy causes almost all of
the energy to show up as heat.
Non-shivering: Non-shivering thermogenesis occurs in brown
adipose tissue (brown fat) with the help of thermogenin protein
in animals like kangaroo rat.