Changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive Gentoo penguins
Once a year, penguins undergo a catastrophic moult replacing their entire plumage during a fasting period on land or on sea-ice during which time individuals can lose 45% of their body mass. In penguins, new feather synthesis precedes the loss of old feathers leading to an accumulation of two feathe...
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Online Access: | https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/108431.pdf https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.16.575878 https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/ |
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ftarchimer:oai:archimer.ifremer.fr:98782 2024-03-24T09:04:52+00:00 Changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive Gentoo penguins Lewden, Agnès Halna Du Fretay, Tristan Stier, Antoine 2024-01-17 application/pdf https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/108431.pdf https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.16.575878 https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/ eng eng Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/108431.pdf doi:10.1101/2024.01.16.575878 https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/ info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess restricted use bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) In Press text Article info:eu-repo/semantics/article 2024 ftarchimer https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.16.575878 2024-02-27T08:55:35Z Once a year, penguins undergo a catastrophic moult replacing their entire plumage during a fasting period on land or on sea-ice during which time individuals can lose 45% of their body mass. In penguins, new feather synthesis precedes the loss of old feathers leading to an accumulation of two feathers layers (double coat) before the old plumage is shed. We hypothesize that the combination of the high metabolism required for new feathers synthesis and the potentially high thermal insulation linked to the double coat could lead to a thermal challenge requiring additional peripheral circulation to thermal windows to dissipate extra-heat. To test this hypothesis, we measured the surface temperature of different body regions of captive Gentoo penguins (Pygoscelis papua) throughout the moult under constant environmental conditions. The surface temperature of the main body trunk decreased during the initial stages of the moult, therefore suggesting a higher thermal insulation. On the opposite, the periorbital region, a potential proxy of core temperature in birds, increased during these same early moulting stages. The surface temperature of bill, flipper and foot (thermal windows) tended to initially increase during the moult period, highlighting the likely need for extra heat dissipation in moulting penguins. These results raise questions regarding the thermoregulatory capacities of wild penguins during the challenging period of moulting on land in the current context of global warming. Article in Journal/Newspaper Pygoscelis papua Sea ice Archimer (Archive Institutionnelle de l'Ifremer - Institut français de recherche pour l'exploitation de la mer) |
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Open Polar |
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Archimer (Archive Institutionnelle de l'Ifremer - Institut français de recherche pour l'exploitation de la mer) |
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ftarchimer |
language |
English |
description |
Once a year, penguins undergo a catastrophic moult replacing their entire plumage during a fasting period on land or on sea-ice during which time individuals can lose 45% of their body mass. In penguins, new feather synthesis precedes the loss of old feathers leading to an accumulation of two feathers layers (double coat) before the old plumage is shed. We hypothesize that the combination of the high metabolism required for new feathers synthesis and the potentially high thermal insulation linked to the double coat could lead to a thermal challenge requiring additional peripheral circulation to thermal windows to dissipate extra-heat. To test this hypothesis, we measured the surface temperature of different body regions of captive Gentoo penguins (Pygoscelis papua) throughout the moult under constant environmental conditions. The surface temperature of the main body trunk decreased during the initial stages of the moult, therefore suggesting a higher thermal insulation. On the opposite, the periorbital region, a potential proxy of core temperature in birds, increased during these same early moulting stages. The surface temperature of bill, flipper and foot (thermal windows) tended to initially increase during the moult period, highlighting the likely need for extra heat dissipation in moulting penguins. These results raise questions regarding the thermoregulatory capacities of wild penguins during the challenging period of moulting on land in the current context of global warming. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Lewden, Agnès Halna Du Fretay, Tristan Stier, Antoine |
spellingShingle |
Lewden, Agnès Halna Du Fretay, Tristan Stier, Antoine Changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive Gentoo penguins |
author_facet |
Lewden, Agnès Halna Du Fretay, Tristan Stier, Antoine |
author_sort |
Lewden, Agnès |
title |
Changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive Gentoo penguins |
title_short |
Changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive Gentoo penguins |
title_full |
Changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive Gentoo penguins |
title_fullStr |
Changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive Gentoo penguins |
title_full_unstemmed |
Changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive Gentoo penguins |
title_sort |
changes in surface temperatures reveal the thermal challenge associated with catastrophic moult in captive gentoo penguins |
publisher |
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/108431.pdf https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.16.575878 https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/ |
genre |
Pygoscelis papua Sea ice |
genre_facet |
Pygoscelis papua Sea ice |
op_source |
bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) In Press |
op_relation |
https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/108431.pdf doi:10.1101/2024.01.16.575878 https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00876/98782/ |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess restricted use |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.16.575878 |
_version_ |
1794406211253174272 |