Boily 9723065 The basal metabolic rate is the energy expenditure of adult animals while fasting and resting at a comfortable temperature. It's a very important physiological variable because of its large (3080%) component of average daily metabolic rates (total daily energy expenditure of an animal). Yet, the adaptive significance (how it affects survival and fitness) of variations in basal metabolic rates that naturally occur in animal populations is unclear. One hypothesis suggests that variations in basal metabolic rates reflect a balance between two evolutionary forces: one to increase basal metabolic rates to favor a high maximum metabolic rate (critical for athletic performance), the other to lower basal metabolic rates for energy conservation. In this project, we will obtain measurements of basal, maximal and average daily metabolic rates in wild armadillos to test this hypothesis. Armadillos are perfect animals for this study because females always give birth to genetically identical quadruplets, which will simplify our investigation of the genetic component of metabolic variations. While this research is mainly aimed at investigating basic biological principles, it also has potential applications in wildlife management (population energy budgets), conservation biology ("value" of biodiversity), and nutrition science (control of energy expenditure in humans and domestic animals).
