Wind of change: a diurnal skink thermoregulates between cooler set-points and for an increased amount of time in the presence of wind

Abstract

Wind has the potential to dramatically alter the thermal landscape of habitats, and consequently to affect how ectotherms thermoregulate. However, few studies have directly assessed if wind alters thermoregulation by ectotherms. We compared the thermoregulation of a heliothermic, New Zealand skink under three treatments: no wind, wind at 2 m/s and wind at 6 m/s. We provided captive skinks with housing in which their preferred body temperature was only achievable inside a wind tunnel. During experimental treatments with wind, airflow was generated through the wind tunnel while the maximum available operative temperature remained consistent among treatments. Skinks were able to move in and out of the wind tunnel. Using thermal bio-loggers, we recorded near-continuous skin temperatures of skinks over 90 min. Contrary to our expectations, more skinks tended to thermoregulate in the two wind treatments compared to the treatments without wind (P=0.062) and of the skinks that did thermoregulate, those in the two wind treatments thermoregulated for significantly longer than those in the treatment without wind. The set-point temperatures that skinks thermoregulated between became significantly cooler as windspeed increased, despite skinks having access to the same operative temperatures. Overall, our study suggests that wind has the potential to significantly change the temperatures selected by lizards, even when comparable temperatures are available; wind is therefore an important environmental parameter to consider when studying the thermal ecology of ectotherms, including in the context of climate change.

Extreme tolerance for nocturnal emergence at low body temperatures in a high-latitude lizard: implications for future climate warming

“…In studies on other lizards, wind facilitated the cooling of field T b through convection and may lead to a drop in body temperature when out of the retreat ( Maia-Carneiro et al, 2012 ; Gontijo et al, 2018 ). In contrast, activity at high wind speed has been inferred for the diurnal lizard, Anolis lemurinus ( Logan et al, 2015 ) but wind significantly reduced thermoregulatory set-point temperatures of a New Zealand diurnal skink in a controlled experiment ( Virens and Cree, 2022 ). A previous report on the activity of Woodworthia maculata (then described as Hoplodactylus maculatus ) on Takapourewa/Stephens Island in New Zealand observed relatively low activity on nights with high wind speed ( Walls, 1983 ).…”

Lunar Cycle, Climate, and Onset of Parturition in Domestic Dromedary Camels: Implications of Species-Specific Metabolic Economy and Social Ecology

“…According to Virens and Cree [ 116 ], the heat transfer between an animal and its environment and, thus, the individual energy budget is predominantly modulated by the wind. Specifically, thermal comfort decreases as air velocity does [ 117 ], resulting in an increase in the rate of water loss that provides no cooling [ 118 ].…”